Álvaro Mateu from Madrid, with a sensational final round of 50 strokes, and María Ros from Barcelona, with a decisive final round of 58, have been proclaimed Spanish Benjamin Pitch & Putt Champions, a magnificent starting point to develop a fruitful sporting career.
Both Álvaro Mateu and María Ros have demonstrated a reality that was already expected: tremendous desire to do well, a lot of boldness and great equality in a tournament, reserved for under 10 years old, where the spectacle has been guaranteed from the first moment on the Asturian course of Deva Golf.
The first 18 holes of competition were already exciting, entertaining, full of nuances that exceeded what its young protagonists were able to express on the playing field.
They all played with an interesting mix of daring and nonchalance, a brave attitude that took Valencian Máximo Fuertes and Madrid native Sergio Vargas, the current Spanish Benjamin runner-up, to the highest point on that first day, sharing the provisional lead with rounds of 56 strokes, only two over par, an outstanding result that allowed them to be one stroke ahead of fellow Madrid native Álvaro Mateu.
The three had opened a small gap with respect to the Asturian Guillermo García and the Madrid native Iñigo Rabadán, tied in fourth place with 59, minimal differences when there were 18 holes left to proclaim the champion.
The most surprising thing, however, was yet to come in a tournament where going under par had been an impossible task on the first day. Therefore, Álvaro Mateu and Sergio Vargas surprised everyone present with precise and decisive play, reflected in scorecards that clearly demonstrated the quality of their game: a decisive 50 (4 under par) in the case of Álvaro Mateu, and a 53 (1 under par) in the case of Sergio Vargas. These outstanding performances deservedly led them to claim the top two spots in the Spanish Boys' Under-10 Pitch & Putt Championship.
María Ros surprises her rivals on the second day
Meanwhile, in the women's category the development has been curiously similar, with a devastating result from the new Spanish champion Benjamin of Pitch & Putt on the second day that blew all the initial predictions to bits.
It was no surprise, then, that the competition was already fierce on the first day, when Andrea Arnal from Castellón and Marina González from Cantabria were tied for first place with 64 strokes. Neither of them, despite the competition between them, could afford to let their guard down for the slightest, because right behind them, lurking just a breath away, was Nerea Oteo from Ibiza with 65, a minimal difference that kept her among the contenders for the final victory. That goal was a little further away, but not impossible, for Adriana Montolio from Barcelona, with 70 strokes.
Nobody at that moment, except possibly the main protagonist and her closest relatives, gave María Ros any chance, who with 72 strokes was objectively far from the lead.
However, it is more than clear that in golf anything is possible, spectacular reactions like the one starring the young golfer from Barcelona, who was so inspired as to sign a card of 58 strokes in the second and final day, 14 less than in the first but, much more importantly, just the precise ones to be ahead by one and two strokes over Andrea Arnal and Marina González in the final classification, overtaken in extremis in a round to remember.
It should be noted that a minute of silence was observed in memory of Ramón Barrenechea, president of the Vizcaya Golf Federation, who recently passed away.
Additional information, photo gallery, results and start times at the end of each day can be found below in the Related Links section.
