Madrid’s own Angel Hidalgo is turning heads at the 2024 Acciona Open de España, where he’s soared to a four-shot lead that feels more like he’s flying than simply walking the course.
After wrapping up the second round with a nifty 67, he’s sitting pretty at ten under, while the rest of the field seems to be in a bit of a scramble to keep up.
Angel Hidalgo: Today I played really good. Today I played really good. Two bad drivers to finish the round on 4 and 7, two pretty easiest, probably, the birdie chances from the back nine for me today. But yeah, really happy with the way I play, and yeah, it’s good.
I need to play good from the tee. Especially this week, the rough is not the same on every part, so you can have a really luck or bad luck, so you are in position with the preferred lies, is a big advantage. Yeah, being in position is important this week.”
The chap trailing him, England’s Joe Dean, managed to finish the day at a respectable six under.
Meanwhile, Jon Rahm, the three-time darling of this tournament, is nestled in a pack just a hair’s breadth further back.
Jon Rahm: It’s a little frustrating after such good work yesterday in the heavy winds to not take advantage of the easier conditions today, especially the first — my first 11 holes, barely any wind. Did a little bit of a good job early, but I just couldn’t get the round going.
Overall, everything just felt one or two levels below what I would have liked to feel.
Wasn’t really quite comfortable all day on the course. But there’s a couple moments where I still had some good swings, and making that eagle putt was something that kind of renewed the energy in me for the rest of the round.
But just a few too many mistakes, I would say, in general, but a lot of the short irons, like missing the green on 12, missing the green on 18, five, hitting it 40 feet long, missing the green on seven with a nine-iron being a par five and missing the green on eight as well.
There’s too many short irons, I’m not saying I need to hit it close but to have a look at birdie makes a big difference.”
He’s sharing the space with Spain’s Alfredo Garcia-Heredia, Julien Guerrier of France, Sam Bairstow from England, and the American Ryder Cup standout, Patrick Reed, all clocking in at five under.
Starting his round from the back nine, Hidalgo kicked things off on the tenth tee with back-to-back birdies, though a wee bit of trouble at the 12th saw him drop a shot.
Not one to dwell on the rough, he quickly got back in stride with another birdie at the 14th and added a couple more on the front nine to seal his round in fine form.
A few steps down the leaderboard, there’s a bit of a gathering at four under, featuring Spain’s Adri Arnaus and David Puig, alongside England’s Tommy Fleetwood and America’s Jimmy Walker.
But it’s not just the pros making waves; Spanish amateur Luis Masaveu is proving his mettle too, making the cut at two under.
Now, if you want a tale of a round that’s one for the books, look no further than Japan’s Rikuya Hoshino.
The fellow went on a birdie binge with ten in his bag by day’s end, including a stunning six straight from the 14th.
And let’s not forget Jens Fahrbring from Sweden, who added a dash of hole-in-one glory at the 208-yard 11th, helping him to finish the day steady at one under.
As the tournament heads into its third day, all eyes are on Hidalgo. Can he keep this lead?
With the greens of Madrid as his stage, it’s his show to run, and we’re just here to watch it unfold.
