Italy will be seeking a hat-trick of victories in the North West of Ireland Open at Slieve Russell Hotel Golf and Country Club this week following wins by Costantino Rocca and Massimo Scarpa in the first two years of the event.
Twelve months ago Scarpa followed in the footsteps of Rocca, winner of the inaugural event at Galway Bay in 1999, when he finished with a 13 under par total of 275, one shot clear of Sweden's Mikael Lundberg with England's Andrew Beal taking third a further stroke behind.
Scarpa defends his title this week and he is joined by nine of his compatriots in this "double badge" event.
Leading the home challenge is Ireland's Des Smyth, who earlier this season won the Madeira Island Open at the age of 48 years and 34 days to become the oldest winner on The European Tour. He will be bidding for a ninth European Tour title in front of his home fans this week.
As well as the prize fund of 350,000 euro on offer and a one year exemption on The European Tour, the additional interest centering around this year's event is provided by the proximity of the 34th Ryder Cup Matches.
The tussle between Europe and the United States at The De Vere Belfry begins only six weeks after events in County Cavan and as a result the North West of Ireland Open will play an important role in determining the composition of Sam Torrance's European team being, as it is, one of the last counting events.
Two years ago Padraig Harrington earned his place in the European team by finishing second at Galway Bay and then taking second place the following week in the BMW International Open. Once again valuable Ryder Cup points are on offer in this third edition of the North West of Ireland Open.
The North West of Ireland Open is a double badge event with the field spilt between The European Tour and the Challenge Tour, and as such presents Challenge Tour players with an opportunity to test their skills at a higher level.
Last year Sweden's Henrik Stenson established a new course record of 65, equalled by Tobias Dier, on his way to finishing joint 11th. Stenson went on to win the Challenge Tour Rankings to graduate to The European Tour where he has flourished, winning the Benson and Hedges International Open in his rookie season.
