Rick Adams reports:
The 10th Swiss Hickory Open golf championship, July 29-30, lured participants from throughout the Alpine nation, as well as hickory aficionados from neighboring countries Germany and France.
A contingent from the Hickory Society Cologne journeyed nearly 700 km (about 7 hours by car) from the central German city to the Swiss event site in Aigle on the shores of Lake Leman near Montreux.
Heinz Peter Thül, a PGA professional who played on the European Tour for several years, finished runner-up in the pro competition and had the longest drive for men. Others who made the trip were Peter Willems, who took home the men’s strokeplay best net and honorable “strokes minus age” prizes. Also making the trip from Germany were Andreas Biste and Mark Bailey.
Representing the French Hickory Golf Association was Joel Travers, who travelled up from the Côte d’Azur, about 500 km.
This was the first time the SHO had been played in the Suisse Romande (French-speaking) section of Switzerland and, appropriately, the men’s Stableford winner was Laurent Fesselet of the host Golf Club Montreux.
GC Montreux is the oldest golf club in the Swiss French section, initiated in September 1900 by the Club Anglais de Montreux, the second oldest golf course in Switzerland after Engadin in the St. Moritz area. Surprisingly, the flat layout is playable year-round, thanks to a micro-climate between the lake and mountains that minimizes snowfall.
Cairo, Ahlm, Quirici Earn Swiss Hickory Honors
Eleonora Cairo of Lugano (Italian-speaking section), Andreas Ahlm from Zurich in the German-speaking section (representing Gallivare GK in Malberget, Sweden), and Paolo Quirici of Lugano won the women’s stroke amateur, men’s stroke amateur, and professional divisions, respectively. Quirici, another former European Tour player and winner of the 2013 World Hickory Open, also took the trophy in the 2021 SHO.
Cairo edged Szilvia Karpati, also of Lugano, by a stroke for the women’s title. Karpati last month won the Austrian Hickory Open at Reiters Golf & Country Club, Bad Tatzmannsdorf.
Ahlm tied with Joe Lauber (Lägern) for low net amateur, and won the title in a one-hole playoff.
Quirici ran away with the professional and overall event, scoring 3-over-par 147 for the two days around the par-72 layout.
Other winners:
Women’s strokeplay net – Brigette Lauber (Schloss Langenstein)
Women’s Stableford – Susanne Lauber (Lägern)
Women’s longest drive – Michele Lauber (Bubikon)
Nearest to the pin – Thomas Huber (Davos)
The 2023 Swiss Hickory Open will be staged in October in Lugano.
Swiss Hickory Open – Swiss Hickory Golf
Watch the video for a great flavor of this wonderful hickory golf championship.