Englishman Tom Shadbolt didn’t give his rivals much of a chance of victory in the Alps Tour event at Lauro Golf on the Costa del Sol. The golfing gods were certainly on his bag when he holed a 60-metre shot for eagle on the 13th followed by a hole-in-one on the par-three next hole, to move to eight-under for the final round.
The 28-year-old Londoner then birdied the 17th and eventually carded a course record 63 (the previous record of 64 had been set in 1999) to total 18-under for the tournament and win by three shots from second-placed Spaniard Santiago Tarrio, with France’s Nicolas Tacher and David Borda from Navarra tied for third.
It was his maiden Alps Tour title, after three runner-up finishes over the past two seasons and two thirds in 2016. It also enabled him to climb into the highly coveted top-five on the tour order of merit. At the end of the season, the leading five players gain a place on next year’s European Challenge Tour. The circuit concludes with the inaugural Alps Tour grand final from 19 to 22 October, at MIglianico Golf & Country Club in Italy.
The prize-giving ceremony was presided over by Francisco Salado, representing Turismo Costa del Sol de Málaga; Joaquín Villanova, mayor of Alhaurín de la Torre; Carlos Pitarch, managing director of Lauro Golf; Pablo Mansilla, president of the Royal Golf Federation of Andalucía’s professionals committee; and Javier Gervás, director of event organiser JGolf18.0. Also officially supporting the tournament were the Turismo y Deporte Andalucía regional government organisation, the Royal Golf Federation of Spain and the Consejo Superior de Deportes (under the auspices of the national government).
