Farrelly Holds His Nerve For Italian Glory

• Craig Farrelly won the Sergio Melpignano Senior Italian Open at 23-under.
• Mark Brown and Lionel Alexandre shared second place five shots behind.
• The victory gives Farrelly full Staysure Legends Tour playing rights.

Craig Farrelly turned a two-shot overnight lead into a five-shot victory at San Domenico Golf in Puglia on Saturday, closing with a 7-under 65 to win the Sergio Melpignano Senior Italian Open for his first Staysure Legends Tour title.

The Englishman finished at 23-under. Mark Brown, whose 62 was the lowest round of the week, and Lionel Alexandre shared second on 18-under.

Farrelly arrived in Italy without full playing rights. The win secures them for the remainder of this season and for 2027.

“It’s so nice to do it in a place like this,” said Farrelly. “We’ve had a really nice week. At the beginning of the week, we had the thunderstorms and the torrential rain, but after that it’s been brilliant. It’s nice to get it over the line.”

Craig Farrelly is your Sergio Melpignano Senior Italian Open champion 🏆 Farrelly finishes on 23-under to take the title at San Domenico Golf. #StaysureLegendsTour #SeniorItalianOpen https://t.co/eQHig2rM71

— Legends Tour (@euLegendsTour) October 24, 2026

How did Alexandre get level?

Alexandre had not dropped a shot in 36 holes when he moved into second on Friday, and the Frenchman went straight after the lead with a birdie at the 1st. Farrelly answered by chipping in for eagle at the same hole, the par-5 opener.

“Lionel immediately started putting the pressure on from the 1st hole, and I just thought you’ve got to play your own game,” Farrelly said. “I chipped in for eagle and that settled me down, but he kept putting the pressure on.”

Alexandre birdied the 3rd, 7th and 8th. Farrelly matched him at the 8th and birdied the 9th as well, reaching 20-under and keeping his two-shot cushion at the turn.

It was gone three holes later. Farrelly bogeyed the 12th, and Alexandre was level on 19-under with six holes to play.

The 13th

The contest was settled on the next hole. Alexandre had to take a drop on his way to a double bogey. Farrelly found the fairway, hit his approach to five feet and holed the birdie putt, and a tie became a three-shot lead.

“That was a real turning point,” said Farrelly. “I had quite a tough tee shot because the wind was out of the left, and Jamie was just like, ‘We’ve got to hit driver.’ I hit a good drive, a good iron shot in and then holed a slippery one from five feet. I felt like I was hitting it well, so I just had to stick with it.”

An eight-footer dropped for birdie at the 14th, he picked up another shot at the par-5 15th, and an approach to eight feet at the 17th set up his last birdie of the week.

Alexandre signed for a 68.

Jamie, Farrelly’s friend and caddie, got a share of the credit. On Friday Farrelly had said that the two Yorkshiremen don’t talk much on the course. On Saturday he explained why the arrangement works.

“People say this is an individual sport, but when you’ve got someone like that on the bag who you can trust, he won’t shy away from the big moments. He’ll just tell me how it is, which is really appreciated. It’s definitely a team event.”

No more borderline

Farrelly said the playing rights mattered as much as the trophy.

“It is massive. I put down a few notes on what I wanted to achieve recently, and one of the things was to make sure that you’re not on the borderline. Even this year, I’ve always been looking to see if I’m in, whether I can book something or not. It’s nice to know that’s sorted and I can relax.”

Brown’s 29 and the chasing pack

Brown opened with a 66 on Thursday and finished with a 10-under 62. The New Zealander played his closing nine in 8-under 29, eagling the 15th and birdieing the last three holes to join Alexandre on 18-under.

Maarten Lafeber was fourth on 15-under after a 66. Alastair Forsyth, 2024 Senior Italian Open champion Thomas Gögele and Matt Cort shared fifth on 13-under.

Defending champion Andrew Marshall finished tied eighth on 12-under, alongside David Drysdale, Scott Drummond and Mikael Lundberg.

The tour moves to Portugal next for the Portugal Legends Championship at Pinheirinho Golf Course, from 30 October to 1 November.

Related: Palmares Completes Course Upgrade Across All Three Nines

Wider fairways, short grass in place of sand around many greens, rebuilt bunkers and a bigger practice area.

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