Veteran Jerónimo Esteve had a round of 69 shots, three under par, to start this Thursday Latin America Amateur Championship at the Grand Reserve Golf Club of Río Grande with the best card of the nine Puerto Ricans who are seeing action in the prestigious tournament, and finishing tied for eighth position on the opening day.
Colombian Mateo Fuenmayor closed with a 66, six under par, to take the lead in the tournament that serves as a gateway to the world of professional golf, as he will award the winner on Sunday several exemptions for important top-level tournaments.
Esteve, who began his afternoon run from the 10th hole, bogeyed his third hole of the day but made up ground quickly and with three birdies over the next six holes moved to two under par. Entering the second half of the course, he had another bogey on hole 3, but responded with two more birdies on holes 6 and 7. Esteve entered the final hole of the round at 4 under par, but a costly bogey deprived him. to be in a better position on the opening day.
Even so, Esteve and four other players were only three shots behind the first, Fuenmayor.
Meanwhile, the also veteran Max Alverio, who began his run just before 8:00 a.m. also from the 10th hole, missed with a bogey on the 16th but immediately made up ground on the next two with successive birdies to move to two under par after the first nine holes. From then on, he shot par the last nine holes to sign a card of 70 (2 under par) and finish the first round tied for 13th place with eight other golfers, four shots behind the leader.
That group is followed by two other Puerto Ricans. Erick Morales, who opened the tournament from hole 1 at 7:10 in the morning, finished the first round with a card of 71 strokes, one under par. Morales, the only Puerto Rican to have been in the previous seven editions of the LAAC, will enter the second round on Friday in a tie for 22nd place, along with seven other players, including his compatriot Kelvin Hernández.
As far as Fuenmayor is concerned, he was left alone in the lead with one of his seven birdies of the day, upon reaching the 17th hole.
Argentina’s Vicente Marzilio and Mexico’s Santiago de la Fuente led at 5-under shortly after the close of the first round and before Fuenmayor finished his turn, and finished with identical 67s to tie for second place. with the Chilean Martín Cancino and the also Mexican Luis Carrera, all with 67 strokes.
Puerto Rico is the country with the greatest representation on the field in this eighth edition of the LAAC, the first on the island since its creation in 2015, with nine players.
Roberto Nieves, who entered this tournament as the Puerto Rican with the best ranking in the World Amateur Golf Ranking, in position number 350, shot par and delivered a card of 72 shots, tied for thirtieth position, six shots behind Fuenmayor, the same as 16 other players, including three other Puerto Ricans: Ian Aldarondo, Gustavo Rangel and Diego Saavedra.
Robi Calvesbert did not have his best day and finished the first round with 79 goals, seven over par.
The second round begins this Friday in the same way at 7:10 in the morning. Saavedra will be the first of the Puerto Ricans on the course at that time, from hole 1. Kelvin Hernández will start hole 10 at 7:54, and Calvesbert will leave it at approximately 8:05 am.
Esteve will start his second round from hole number one at 8:16, while Morales will start from hole 10 at 11:40 am
The last four will be Nieves (11:51, hole 1); Alverio (12:13 pm, hole 1); Aldarondo (12:46 pm, hole 1); and Rangel (1:08, hole 1).
