Ahead of the 72nd Open d’Italia, European Tour champion Marco Crespi gives us his hole by hole guide to the host venue, Golf Club Milano.
HOLE 1
Tight par five, but relatively easy with a dogleg on the right side. Pay attention to the tee shot both from the back tees and from the forward tees. Players who go for the green in two should beware the bunker that guards the very tight green.
HOLE 2
Straightforward par four. Hitting the fairway with the tee shot is fundamental to easily reach the wide and elevated green.
HOLE 3
Demanding par three due to the length and the green size. Missing the green to end up in the bunker is not that bad a play.
HOLE 4
Short dogleg right with a very tight tee shot. The best strategy is hitting the first shot before the bunkers placed on the left, in order to hit a second shot directly to the small and well-guarded green. The distance control is very important.
HOLE 5
Demanding par four both due to the tee shot and the second shot. Keep away from the woods on the left and pay attention to the tree branches that can come into play in the shot to the green.
HOLE 6
Par four with a dogleg left. Fairly easy hole from the forward tees, but not as much from the back tees. Important not to hit the tee shot left. The green is wide, but well-guarded by the four bunkers.
HOLE 7
Very demanding par three because of its length. The green is quite wide but with a strong slope on the first part. Pay attention with a short pin position.
HOLE 8
Very demanding par four because of the tee shot: the hardest hole on the course. Avoid the woods on the right in order to attack the three-tiered, elevated green.
HOLE 9
The rough is really punitive, so an accurate drive is crucial here. Lay up before the hills to hit a third shot to a very sloping green.
HOLE 10
The hard thing about this par three is the length. The green is quite easy but well-guarded on both sides by two bunkers: avoiding the left one is important.
HOLE 11
A not particularly difficult par four. Hitting the drive on the left side of the fairway is fundamental in order to avoid the rough and the trees on the right that might bother in hitting the shot to the green. The bunkers on the left guard the green with a high step, especially on the left side.
HOLE 12
Short par three but with tricky slopes on the greens. Pay attention to the distance control: never land over the green.
HOLE 13
Difficult par four. The tee shot must be played before a high slope. The second shot is quite long into a wide but well-guarded green.
HOLE 14
A par five where players attempting to hit long could try to carry the bunkers and hit a short second shot. For those who would rather lay up, pay attention to the tree around the 100 metres and to the right rough. The green is wide but well protected by the bunkers and two cedar trees.
HOLE 15
Straight par four but demanding because of the length. It is important to avoid the bunkers on the right. Very wide green easily reachable from the fairway.
HOLE 16
Easy and straightforward par five with bunkers on both sides that could come into play off the tee. The wide, sloping green is guarded by several bunkers.
HOLE 17
Straightforward par four. Avoiding the bunkers from the tee shot is fundamental, most of all the left ones, in order to have a short shot to the little and elevated green. Missing the second shot could be dangerous, especially if the green is overshot.
HOLE 18
Demanding par four, both for the hole design and for the length. The best way to hit the tee shot is on the right side of the fairway, in order to avoid the trees that secure the green on the left.
