TORRANCE AND DRUMMOND SHARE SECOND
PLACE IN ITALIAN SENIORS OPEN

BY STEVEN FRANKLIN
Press Office, European Seniors Tour

Sam Torrance upstaged Costantino Rocca on his playing partner’s European Seniors Tour debut at the Sharp Italian Seniors Open, with the Scot carding a two under par 70 to take a share of second place while the Italian was round in 72.
Englishman Bob Cameron, who tied sixth in Turkey last weekend, continued his good form with a bogey-free 67 that leaves him three strokes clear after Friday’s first round.
It was the first time that Cameron had broken par in ten rounds at the shot-maker’s paradise of Circolo Golf Venezia, on the island of Lido.

In contrast, Torrance has a fine record here and won last year’s event with an 11 under par total.

However, he was less consistent on Friday with an eagle three at the sixth proving the difference on a card that also featured four birdies and four bogeys.

“My alignment has been wrong, but a friend helped me with that the other day. I had been dropping it on the inside and getting the odd block, which is really destructive. That’s absolutely gone now, so that’s fantastic and obviously I’m well placed at the moment,” said Torrance.
Rocca, the only Italian to have played in The Ryder Cup and the man who memorably beat Tiger Woods 4 & 2 to help Europe seal victory at Valderrama in 1997, could not produce similar heroics on his Seniors debut in front of an expectant home crowd, coming home in level par 72.
However, the 1996 PGA Championship winner did produce a moment to savour at the 18th when, stuck tight behind some bushes off the tee, he punched a low draw onto the green and holed a long putt for birdie.
“I think it was nearly the 17 yarder I had at the British Open,” said Rocca in reference to the putt he holed to force a play-off with John Daly at St Andrews in 1995.
“But I’m thinking that if I can make that kind of shot from behind the bushes then I can hole this putt. It was an emotional day, like my first day at school, and maybe I will be more relaxed tomorrow.”

ITALIAN SENIORS OPEN
Circolo Golf Venezia, Lido (par 72)

FIRST ROUND SCOREBOARD

67 Bob Cameron (Eng)
70 Stewart Ginn (Aus), Tony Charnley (Eng), Carl Mason (Eng), Nick Job (Eng), Ross Drummond (Sco), Simon Owen (Nzl), Horacio Carbonetti (Arg), Sam Torrance (Sco)
71 Jim Rhodes (Eng), José Rivero (Esp), David Merriman (Aus), Giuseppe Cali (Ita), Philippe Dugeny (Fra), Bill Longmuir (Sco), Tony Allen (Eng), John Benda (USA)
72 Glenn Ralph (Eng), Kevin Spurgeon (Eng), Jerry Bruner (USA), Manuel Piñero (Esp), Jim Lapsley (Nzl), Doug Johnson (USA), John Mashego (RSA), David J Russell (Eng)
72, Gordon J Brand (Eng), Adan Sowa (Arg), Ray Carrasco (USA), Gavan Levenson (RSA), Costantino Rocca (Ita)
73 Martin Poxon (Eng), Denis Durnian (Eng), Jean Pierre Sallat (Fra), Ronald Stelten (USA), Peter Teravainen (USA), Bruce Heuchan (Can)
74 Guillermo Encina (Chi), Gery Watine (Fra), Neville Clarke (RSA), Emilio Rodriguez (Esp), David Good (Aus), Jimmy Heggarty (NIr), Bobby Lincoln (RSA), Mike Ferguson (Aus), Delroy Cambridge (Jam), Martin Gray (Sco), Terry Gale (Aus)
75 John Chillas (Sco), Baldovino Dassu (Ita), Ian Mosey (Eng), Pete Oakley (USA), Bertus Smit (RSA), Bob Larratt (Eng)
76 Adriano Mori (Ita), Tommy Horton (Eng), Angel Fernandez (Chi), Noel Ratcliffe (Aus), Denis O'Sullivan (Irl), Steve Martin (Sco)
77 Bob Lendzion (USA), Terry Dill (USA), Alberto Croce (Ita), Mike Miller (Sco)
78 Tim Rastall (Eng), Stefano Betti (Ita), Antonio Garrido (Esp), Maurice Bembridge (Eng)
79 Luis Carbonetti (Arg), Bill Hardwick (Can)
80 Gary Wintz (USA), Eddie Polland (NIr)
85 Romolo Napoleoni (Ita)