Thomas Gögele, Alessandro Tadini and Bradley Dredge took advantage of the fantastic scoring conditions at San Domenico Golf Club to race out to -8 on the Puglia coast. The players made the most of temperatures in the low-20s, a relatively soft course and an unusually light breeze, with 40 of the 60-man field breaking par.
Gögele was the first to sign for his 64 as he racked up one eagle, eight birdies and two bogeys, and Tadini pulled alongside him at the summit with birdies at three of his last four holes in a bogey-free round. Dredge flew up the leaderboard late in the day as he came home in just 29 strokes, including an eagle at the 10th.
“It’s a very good round, a very good start to the tournament,” said Gögele, who finished tied-6th at this event last year. “I played nicely, and I putted nicely. I made a couple of mistakes, actually, and had a few things going my way that meant a lot of birdies, so I’m very happy. I played really well, but I made a lot more putts than I usually do, so I was very, very pleased on the greens.
“I’ve played a lot better on Sundays this year, so I’m very happy. I started really well in Barbados in the first round, but since then, I haven’t really got hot into the tournament. Today, I obviously started really well, and from here on we see what happens.”
Gögele’s eagle came courtesy of a spectacular hole-out with his third shot on the 2nd hole: “It was really a bit weird because I pulled my tee shot and it hit the wooden sleeper bank of the bunker and bounced 30 metres left – almost on the 4th green. I just tried to get back in play (with my second shot), and then hit a really good 8-iron that pitched just behind the hole and went in, so that’s very handy.”
The German has been playing consistently well this season, with a best result of tied-3rd at the HSBC India Legends Championship, a pair of tied-7th finishes and four more top-16s. A maiden Legends Tour win this week could lift him inside the top 10 in the MCB Road to Mauritius, from his current ranking of 23rd.
Home favourite Tadini was understandably delighted with his start: “It was a beautiful feeling today. I played very well from tee-to-green, and the difference maker was on the greens because I made two or three putts from 40-50 feet. The course is in beautiful condition and I’m very, very happy with my game. It is a good start for me because my dream is to try to play on the Legends Tour for a minimum of four or five years and now we can try to win this week.”
The Italian just missed out on gaining a full Legends Tour card at Qualifying School in January, so he’s only been able to play two previous events – finishing tied-28th at the Costa Navarino Legends Tour Trophy and tied-19th at the Zambia Legends Golf Championship. A win on home soil would earn him a full card to tee it up in every event.
Welshman Dredge is looking for a second Legends Tour win after claiming his maiden title at last year’s Legends Tour Trophy, and his strong finish has thrust him well into contention.
“I’m really pleased,” said the two-time DP World Tour winner. “I obviously played nicely today, going low on the back nine and finishing in style with a nice putt at the last. The eagle on 10 got me going. I hit a really good second shot into about four feet and all of a sudden it gives you a bit of a kickstart and gets me to -4. Then there’s a few relatively straightforward holes coming in and I made the most of those and the par-fives.”
Former Ryder Cup player Joakim Haeggman, already a winner this year at the HSBC India Legends Championship, is in a tie for 4th alongside Paul Streeter on -6. Andrew Marshall, David Shacklady and Clark Dennis are a shot further back.
MCB Road to Mauritius number one Adilson da Silva is six shots adrift following a 70. That was equalled by James Kingston, who’s won the Sergio Melpignano Senior Italian Open the two previous times it’s been held at San Domenico in 2021 and last year.
Visit www.legendstour.com to see the full leaderboard and second round tee times, and to find out more about the Sergio Melpignano Senior Italian Open at San Domenico GC in Puglia, Italy.
