Robert Moran will count himself a little unfortunate after torrential rain caused play to be suspended for the day in the opening round of the Alps Tour Grand Final at Italy’s Golf Club Monticello.
Chasing a victory that would see him thrust his way into the top five in the Order of Merit and earn a Challenge Tour card for 2025 in the process, the Castle man was going along nicely and found himself at three-under through 11 holes and tied for the lead when the rain that had been steadily falling kicked into a higher gear.
Bogeys on the par-4 12th and par-5 14th holes halted his momentum, before the hooter sounded forcing 42 of the 45 players in the field to head for the shelter of the clubhouse and wait for a let up. Sadly, it would never come, and after almost three hours and an additional inch of rain had fallen, tournament organisers were forced to suspend play overnight and hope for Mother Nature to play ball on days two and three.
Moran now sits tied for sixth at -1, three shots behind leader Ignacio Arcaya from Venezuela who is two strokes clear of an Italian quartet that includes Enrico Di Nitto who came into the week in fifth place in the Order of Merit and is one of the men Moran is hoping to overtake.
Round one will now resume at 08:30 local time (07:30 Irish time).