Weather hits the Italian Open again
Thursday, 5 May 2005 21:00Last year the event was reduced to 54 holes after storms wrecked the schedule and half the field of 156 must return early tomorrow morning to complete their first rounds.
Well before the storm struck hit, Spanish rookie Fernandez-Castano had underlined his potential by eagling his final hole to complete a six-under-par round of 66.
That gave him a one-stroke advantage over Ireland's Gary Murphy, Argentine Sebastian Fernandez and Britons Simon Khan and Bradley Dredge. Frenchman Francois Delamontagne was five under with four holes still to complete.
Fernandez-Castano bagged four birdies before producing a stunning finale with a 160-yard seven-iron to three feet on the par-five ninth, his 18th, for an eagle.
"One of the biggest differences between being a good amateur player and a professional is course management and that is the area I knew I most had to improve on," Fernandez-Castano, the 2003 Spanish amateur champion, said. "It was pretty good today."
Defending champion Graeme McDowell, carded a 70, but one of his playing partners, American Mark Calcavecchia, is struggling to make the cut on his first trip to Italy.
The 1989 British Open champion, shot a 78 before driving to Lake Como to marry his fiancee Brenda, his caddy for the week.
