Adrián Otaegui (-7) has signed a card of 69 strokes in the morning round of the second day of the Italian Open, a result that keeps him at the top of the table, just one stroke behind the provisional leader, the German Jannik de Bruyn (-8). In this way, the player from San Sebastian keeps intact, and even multiplies, his chances of getting into the last Major of the year, The Open at Royal Troon.
On the one hand, it should be remembered that this week two places are distributed for this event at the Adriatic Golf Club Cervia, the venue for the test, a route that Adrián has within reach with 36 holes left, being as he is fighting in the leading positions. On the other hand, the Spanish player could access through the Race to Dubai, which grants a place to the five best who are not already classified, once the BMW International Open of next week concludes. Right now Otaegui is the fifth of those five names, a situation that could even improve if he finishes high this week and gains some position.
The performance of the Basque player has been the only positive news of the morning for the Spanish Armada in Italian lands, since Alfredo García Heredia (PAR), Rafa Cabrera Bello (+3), Iván Cantero (+4), Alejandro Del Rey (+7) and Santi Tarrio (+8) have been left out of a cut that can go to -2. All of them needed to move up positions today and none of them have been able to win the game against a course, which is proving somewhat more complicated than it apparently seemed in the days prior to the start of the tournament: this morning the best result has been a 65 from Marcel Schneider (+2), six less on the day, which has not been enough for him to make the cut (he signed a 79 on Thursday).
Even Otaegui has been the victim of a certain ‘jinx’ in the final stretch of his round, which has prevented him from even finishing as the sole leader, as he ended with a bogey on hole 9 after three-putting on that last green and having wasted good birdie options on holes 6 and 8.
