![](../img/bg/0clear.gif)
Italian "Masters" 2012: Paolo Porta and Silvia Bandera
![](../img/bg/0clear.gif)
19 Nov 2012 at 14:15 | Published by: paoloITA | Views: 12333 | News search ![](img/forum/magnifier.png)
![](../img/bg/0clear.gif)
![Italian "Masters" 2012: Paolo Porta and Silvia Bandera Italian "Masters" 2012: Paolo Porta and Silvia Bandera](../photo/news/medium/2012-11-19_master2012.jpg)
Italian Master podiums 2012 (Photo by Ottavio Boninsegna)
|
The first major tournament of the Italian minigolf winter season is as usual the "Master Final", reserved to the best Italian players of the season.
It has been played, as usual, on Vedano al Lambro concrete indoor course.
The tournament program was the following:
- 5 qualification rounds
- matchplay final reserved to the best 24 men and 6 ladies (8 men + 2 ladies got the direct pass to the matchplay, while men 9th to 24th and ladies 3rd to 6th had to play a preliminary match to get it).
The men qualification rounds showed a very close gap between the top players with the best 8 separated by only 4 strokes after 5 rounds: the best has been, like last year, Alberto Pirovano (MC Monza) with 125 strokes (25.0 average), who has a very constant game on his home course. Just behind him, Michele Graffeo (MMC Paderno) and Paolo Porta (MGC Novi Ligure) with 127 strokes (25,4 average) and then other 3 player with 128 and 3 more with 129.
Also the ladies had a close qualification match. The best has been Silvia Bandera (MC Monza) with 132 strokes, right ahead of Antonella Flamini (MC Aponense) with 133 , Sara Marchiani (GSP Cusano) with 134, Cristina Ruggiero (MT Amatese) and Anna Catanzaro (MMC Paderno) with 135.
A total of 22 "Blue" rounds have been played in the qualification day: 1x 22 4x 23 and 17x 24, with the best round, 22, played in the ladies category by Anna Catanzaro.
The matches of the final day has been played on a 18 hole rounds formed by the most "technical" lanes of the course (1,4,5,6,8,12,14,15,17) that have to be played twice. The modus of the match was "stroke counts" and not "hole counts" like in internationa events.
The final victory went to Paolo Porta (MGC Novi Ligure) and Silvia Bandera (MC Monza) .
Paolo, defending champion, gained his second "Master" title after that won last year. For Silvia this is the first main title of her still young minigolf carreer.
Paolo started winning the 1/8 final against Luca Picciali with the score 29-32. Then he changed rhythm and scored 24 in the 1/4 with Emanuele Prestinari (24-26), in the 1/2 finals with the surprise of the tournament Roberto Luerti (24-25) and also in the final with Stefano Piccini, that won this tournament in 2010 (24-30). Three "blue" rounds without playing the "easy" lanes of the course like 3,9,11,18 is really an impressive performance by Paolo.
Silvia defeated Cristina Ruggiero in the 1/2 finals with score 29-31 and then setted a really superb performance in the final with Antonella Flamini: she won the match with a great 23, which is really difficult to score playing only the most technical lanes. Antonella Flamini scored a good 26 but couldn't do anything to challenge Silvia.
The 3rd place final have been won by Roberto Alemanno (GSP Cusano) on Roberto Luerti (26-27) in the men event, and by Emilia Prina (MMC Paderno) on Cristina Ruggiero (30-31)
» Qualification rounds result » Final Matchplay men » Final Matchplay ladies
|