Graeme McDowell returns to the scene of his most recent European Tour triumph when he lines up as defending champion in this week’s Telecom Italia Open at the Castello di Tolcinasco Golf & Country Club on the outskirts of Milan.
The 25 year old Northern Irishman had to wait an extra day 12 months ago to land his second European Tour title – following his win in the 2002 Volvo Scandinavian Masters – when heavy rain throughout the week in Milan meant played spilled over into Monday morning.
But despite only managing three full rounds, the wait was worth the while for McDowell when he beat Thomas Levet at the fourth extra hole of a sudden-death play-off, a par four being sufficient after the Frenchman pulled his six iron approach shot into the greenside lake.
“When I won in Sweden I felt I was still an amateur because I was only two months into my professional career,” said McDowell. “Since then I had two years of working hard and I felt that Italy was my first professional victory.”
McDowell should travel to the Castello di Tolcinasco Golf & Country Club full of confidence, having enjoyed a successful recent spell on the US PGA Tour. The highlight came in the Bay Hill Invitational in Florida in March where he tied second with World Number Two Vijay Singh, only two shots adrift of eventual winner Kenny Perry.
Forty three places adrift of McDowell that week was, amongst others, Mark Calcavecchia, and the 1989 Open Champion will line up alongside the Northern Irishman again in Italy as he makes the trip across the Atlantic to take up the offer of a sponsor’s invitation.
The 44 year old American’s last trip to Europe came last July when he played in both the Barclays Scottish Open at Loch Lomond and in The 133rd Open Championship at Royal Troon, the site of his Major victory 15 years earlier.
Although he made the cut on the Bonnie Banks, he did not trouble the leaderboards, but was far more impressive in Ayrshire the following week, carding weekend rounds of 69-68 to move up into a share of 11th place, and if the American reproduces that sort of form he will be a danger in Milan.
The Telecom Italia Open is one of the oldest established tournaments in Europe stretching back to 1925 and has been a permanent fixture on The European Tour International Schedule since 1972.
The last home winner of the event was Massimo Mannelli, who captured the title in Rome in 1980 but this year the Italian challenge will be spearheaded by players featuring a mixture of youth and experience, from the veteran Costantino Rocca – who warmed up with a hole in one during last week’s BMW Asian Open in China – to the big hitting Emanuele Canonica, and new talent such as Francesco Molinari, the 22 year old who took fourth place in last November’s European Tour Qualifying School Finals in San Roque.
Castello di Tolcinasco Golf & Country Club, which opened in 1993, was designed by Arnold Palmer and will be hosting the Telecom Italia Open for the second time, while Telecom Italia are sponsoring the event for a fourth successive season.
