Jonathan Yates, Peter Dallat and Damian Murphy fell short of the final day cut mark as a familiar name in Matteo Manassero loomed large at the Toscana Alps Open.
Naas professional Yates had played himself into a strong position with an opening five-under par round of 66 but that form abandoned him with a 73 in round two.
The Kildare man, who entered the week full of confidence after claiming a podium finish at last week’s Open Mirabelle, managed four birdies on Friday but too many mistakes with a three-under par 36-hole tally falling just one shot shy of the required mark.
Peter Dallat also failed to replicate his solid showing in round one as he added a 74 to his first round 69 to miss out at one-over par while Damian Murphy endured a nightmare round of 80 to fall well short of a Saturday pay-cheque at 10-over.
At the head of affairs, Angel Hidalgo Portillo heads four-time European Tour winner and home favourite, Manassero by a single stroke heading into the final day.
The Spaniard leads the field at 14-under par but has Manassero breathing down his neck, just a shot adrift after adding a 66 to his opening 63 to move to 13-under par.
The now 27-year old, who became the youngest ET winner at just 17 years and 188 days at the Castello Masters, has been on a long road to recapture the form that saw him billed as one of golf’s hottest prospects not many moons ago. Let’s hope he can put one more round together and return to the winner’s circle in Italy.
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