A year ends and a new one begins: more than good intentions we need good news, something that encourages us to look ahead. Golf, in its small way, offers us some positive ideas in these days of Christmas respite from tournaments.
The first is that the European tour in 2015 will be packed with Italian players like never before: the magnificent quartet formed by Matteo Manassero, Francesco Molinari, Edoardo Molinari, Marco Crespi, will be joined by Andrea Pavan, Alessandro Tadini and Renato Paratore. Seven golfers who will be able to give emotions and fun to the fans of this sport.
The second good news is that Francesco Molinari has won the "full member" card of the American tour. This means that the great Chicco has entered Serie A and that his name is included in the Fedex ranking as well as in the Race to Dubai. His debut on the PGA tour will take place in Hawaii, from 15 to 18 January for the Sony Open, a rich tournament, like all those held in the United States, which offers 5 million dollars, over one million dollars and 500 points in the FedexCup for first place.
Molinari, in an article in his own hand, says that he has already included the Humana Challenge in Palm Springs (January 22-25) and the Phoenix Open in Arizona (January 29-February 1) on his agenda. This means that he will have to give up some good appointments on the European tour such as the Desert Swing, but a “block” schedule is inevitable for those who want to split between the two circuits. Molinari guarantees that he will still participate in key European events such as Wentworth, the French and Scottish Opens. All the more reason it will be at the Open Championship which is a major, therefore common to the two "championships".
On the other side of the globe it is worth noting the birthday of Tiger Woods, who yesterday reached the threshold of 39 years. A dangerous boundary for any sportsman, but not for a golfer, who boasts a greater competitive longevity. In the case of Tiger, at the moment, however, it is only a hope. The former world number one has slipped in recent months to 32nd place in the order of merit and needs to find good athletic shape and above all the right concentration to start winning again. Will he make it?
He is convinced yes and from his blog he says he is happy to get back on the field. His 2015 calendar, however, is still to be written. We can hypothesize that, if the physique holds up, Tiger will do all the majors, the WGC in the USA and the Florida Swing. For the rest you have to wait. On the other hand, we will hardly see him in Dubai at the end of January, because the emirs have decided to tighten the purse strings and have not renewed his engagement for two million euros. However, the tournament remains one of the most interesting of the winter season and Henrik Stenson, number two in the world, has already signed up, indeed he has already listed the entire Desert Swing circuit, which starts from Abu Dhabi (15-18 January) , passes through Qatar (January 21-24) and ends in Dubai (January 29-February XNUMX).
On the good side, in this new golf year, there is a patrol of very strong twenty-year-olds who will animate top challenges: from world number one Rory McIlroy, to the Americans Jordan Spieth and Patrick Reed, to the Italians Matteo Manassero and Renato Paratore.
Finally, one last positive piece of news: the dances reopen on January 8th. The European tour picks up from where it ended, with the South African Open Championship, in Johannesburg where the winner of 4 majors Ernie Els will also be present. The PGA Tour gets back on track in Hawaii with the Hyundai Tournament of Champions on the Plantation Course in Kapalua, Maui (January 9-12).
