Luca Cianchetti wins South of England Amateur
Luca Cianchetti
TADWORTH, England — Michael Saunders enjoyed a five-shot lead through two rounds of the South of England Amateur. But, like most European amateur championships, 36 holes remains on the final day.
Luca Cianchetti of Italy posted a six-under 66 in the morning before birdieing two of his last three holes in the afternoon to post 72 and win by a stroke over Saunders.
Saunders, a 24-year-old Englishman, shot back-to-back 69s in the first two rounds to grab his hefty lead but carded consecutive 73s on Thursday to finish just a stroke behind Cianchetti.
Riccardo Michelini, a senior at San Diego State, joined Cianchetti as two Italians inside the top-five in a field mostly comprised of English amateurs. His even-par total of 288 gave him a tied-for-fifth finish with Josh Hilleard.
Finsihing two back in third place were Steven Robins and Jake Burnage, both of whom utilized stellar morning rounds of five-under 67 to jump back into contention.
The defending champion Adam Chapman shot the second lowest score of the final round — a 69 — to climb into the top-10. He tied for seventh at one-over par 289 in his attempt to repeat.
ABOUT THE Walton Heath Trophy
The Walton Heath Trophy each year attracts a top-
class
field of amateur
golfers from across the world. The 72 hole
stroke play event
takes place over both the Old and New
courses
at the famed Walton Heath Golf Club in
Tadworth,
Surrey
and consists of four
rounds of golf with a cut after 36 holes.
The tournament changed its name from South of
England Open Amateur to the current name in
November of 2017.
View Complete Tournament Information