Four players share the lead after the opening round of the Buccellati Ladies Italian Open, with Noora Komulainen, Patricie Mackova, Casandra Alexander and Alexandra Försterling all carding rounds of 67 (-5) on Friday at Golf Club Milano.
Finland’s Komulainen, Czechia’s Mackova and South Africa’s Alexander set the pace during the morning wave in Monza before Germany’s Försterling joined them later in the day.
England’s Eleanor Givens sits alone in fifth place on four-under-par, while home favourite Alessandra Fanali is among a group of nine players tied for sixth on three-under.
Komulainen, who started her round on the 10th tee, saved the best until last with an eagle at the par-5 ninth, her closing hole of the day.
“I am satisfied because I played really solid and didn’t make any mistakes,” said Komulainen. “After the pro-am I even texted my coach that this course is really tough and I couldn’t see myself going under par because it felt so long and narrow.”
The Finn credited her driving for setting up opportunities throughout the round before producing the standout moment on the ninth.
“I finished with an eagle, so that was the highlight of my day. I had 200 metres to the pin, hit a 3-wood onto the green about 10 metres from the hole and holed the putt.”
Mackova’s round was highlighted by an eagle of her own at the par-4 11th, where she holed her approach from 64 metres.
“That was fun,” said the Czech player. “I hit a good drive on 11, had 64 metres in and hit a really good wedge. Then it went in.”
The 24-year-old was delighted with her opening-day work after a challenging period earlier in the season.
“I played some good golf and I’m very happy because the past months were not the easiest. There’s still a lot of golf to play, so I’ll try to get my mind off golf now and get ready for tomorrow.”
Order of Merit leader Alexander continued her excellent recent form with a composed five-under-par round featuring six birdies and just one dropped shot.
“Doug and I weren’t really sure what a good score around here would be, so I’m happy to be up there and kind of know where we need to be,” she explained. “It wasn’t the most unbelievable round, but I was very tidy. I had one hole where I got a bit unlucky, but I still feel there were putts that could have dropped.”
The recent KPMG Women’s Irish Open champion feels increasingly comfortable on the course.
“It’s a cool layout. You can be very defensive out here, but that’s not Doug and my style. It’s very tree-lined and we have a lot of those courses in South Africa. If you’re hitting it nicely and playing aggressively, I think there are a couple more birdies out there.”
Försterling produced one of the rounds of the day, racing to six birdies on her opening nine holes to make the turn in just 30 strokes before coming back in 37.
“I’m overall really happy,” said the two-time LET winner. “The front nine was obviously a lot better than the back nine. I didn’t play badly on the back nine, I just couldn’t hole much and made two bogeys, which also happens, but overall, I’m very satisfied.”
The German believes accuracy is the key to success around the historic venue.
“The course is playing great. It’s very narrow and I think that suits my game. You have to be careful with what you hit off the tee because there are a couple of doglegs and small greens. You have to get your irons dialled in and I thought I did a pretty good job today.”
One unique feature of the week is the unmistakable soundtrack from the nearby Monza Circuit, which is hosting the International GT Open alongside the tournament. Both Alexander and Försterling admitted they enjoyed the atmosphere.
“It’s not really distracting,” said Försterling. “It’s quite a nice sound and you can see a little bit of the track, so that’s quite cool.”
Alexander (above, at the old race track on Wednesday), added: “Everyone’s complaining because of the noise, which is quite loud on the golf course, but I’m like, this is spectacular. I’m absolutely loving it. We’re definitely going to go and check out some racing because we really enjoy the cars.”
Italian favourite Fanali delighted the home crowds by finishing strongly, making birdie at the eighth before holing a 2.2-metre eagle putt on the par-5 ninth to sign for a three-under-par 69.
“It was really good,” said Fanali. “I started really well and then had a couple of three-putts on the first nine. I was trying to stay patient and stay there. To finish with a nice eagle on the last was great.”
The 26-year-old was also encouraged by the support she received from spectators throughout the day.
“You feel like a lot of people are cheering for you in your home country, but I think I’m handling it quite well. It’s nice to see people out there following us. I wasn’t expecting too many people, so I’m happy about it and I hope to see even more over the next few days.”
There was also a memorable moment for Australian Justice Bosio, who recorded a hole-in-one at the par-3 12th hole. Bosio used a pitching wedge from 120 metres to ace the hole and claim the first hole-in-one of the tournament.
The second round of the Buccellati Ladies Italian Open gets underway on Saturday, with a tightly packed leaderboard setting up an exciting weekend in Monza.
