Golf, Italian Open: Pavon in the lead. Only Migliozzi does well among the Italians

Rome – On the opening day, dominated by the 30-year-old Frenchman Mathieu Pavon in 63 strokes (8 under par) followed with 65 by the 33-year-old German Maximilian Kieffer, a sense of patriotic discouragement was taking over, hole after hole. Not one of the large patrol of Italian players was able to rise from a melancholy mediocrity. Not Renato Paratore (+1 like Di Nitto and Zemmer); not Francesco Laporta (+2) and not even Edoardo Molinari (+3 like Filippo Celli). To the point that, in the middle of the day, the only good news had been brought by a veteran, the 52-year-old Peppo Canonica who, at least, had finished in par. But for a community that is about to host the Ryder Cup and nurtures the hope of seeing at least one blue in the team, the momentary verdict was taking on discouraging tones. Canonica, after an honorable career enriched by a victory on the European Tour at Gleneagles, Scotland, in the year of our Lord 2005, had dedicated himself almost exclusively to teaching before putting his tools back in his bag to compete in the circuit reserved for the over 50s. Once he got an invitation to this Open, he took advantage of it, placing himself in 40th place.

But we certainly couldn’t be satisfied with this belated roar of pride and when resignation was about to take over, luckily the paw of 26-year-old Guido Migliozzi arrived, the only new Ryder-hope of the moment. With a fluctuating round of 69 shots (-2) fueled by 6 birdies but weighed down by 4 bogeys, he entered 18th place, suggesting that he can do something good, and better in the days to come and, above all, that in the meantime he can pass the cut remaining in the race until Sunday. Which, for all other Italians, is not at all obvious and, for some, is even prohibitive.

That French leader, son of another art

The momentary leader, Pavon is a bit of a son of an art, even if of another art. Dad Michel, in fact, has a long football history in the French “Ligue 1” culminating in Bordeaux where he was captain, at the end of the 90s, then coach. But the young Mathieu preferred golf where so far he has gotten by without too many rings, with the exception of two successes on the Alps Tour (basically the European C series) and an almost unexpected 25th place at the 2018 US Open, which he had landed thanks to qualifications and not by world ranking. Basically a regularist with rare performance peaks (164th in the world rankings) who however experienced a glorious morning at Marco Simone, punctuated by 9 birdies and only one bogey. A late afternoon of glory, however, for the 33-year-old German Maximilian Kieffer, who grew up at the Düsseldorf Golf Club in the shadow of Martin Kaymer, former world No. 1. With a lap in 65 strokes, marred only by a bogey at 17, he overtook everyone except the leader, who now closes with a gap of two strokes. Chasing him with 66 is the other Frenchman Julien Guerrier and the Chinese Ashun Wu. But it’s only the first day. And there is a whole story to write.