Defending champion Bob MacIntyre pulls out of Italian Open due to back strain

Bob MacIntyre’s title defence in the DS Automobiles Italian Open ended prematurely after he was forced to withdraw due to an injury before heading out in the second round early on Friday morning.

Bob MacIntyre with caddie Mike Thomson during the opening round of the DS Automobiles Italian Open at Marco Simone Golf Club n the outskirts of Rome. Picture: Andrew Redington/Getty Images.

The unfortunate news for the Oban man was announced by his management company, Bounce Sport, less than an hour ahead of his 8.20am tee time in the company of Italian Guido Migliozzi and Dane Rasmus Hojgaard.

A post on social media said MacIntryre had made the decision with a “heavy heart”, adding that it was due to a “niggling back strain that started at the beginning of the week just restricting things too much to continue”.

The left-hander had opened with a two-over-par 73 at Marco Simone Golf Club, where he held off Rory McIlroy and Matthew Fitzpatrick to land a second DP World Tour triumph last September.

Stephen Gallacher is sitting inside the 20 after an opening two-under 69 in the DS Automobiles Italian Open in Rome, where he will captain Europe in the Junior Ryder Cup in September. Picture: Octavio Passos/Getty Images.

MacIntyre looked to be moving freely enough in the early part of his opening circuit but his back strain may have contributed to a run that saw him four shots in the space of four holes on the inward half.

In a post on Twitter, MacIntyre said he hopes it is “nothing too serious” and will have a week to rest before the PGA Championship, the season’s second major, at Oak Hill in Rochester the week after next.

Stephen Gallacher, Europe’s Junior Ryder Cup captain, had upstaged his younger Scottish compatriots in the opening round n Rome.

On a day when Frenchman Matthieu Pavon set a hot pace by carding the lowest round of his DP World Tour career with an eight-under-par 63 at Marco Simone Golf Club, Gallacher fared the best among the Caledonian contingent.

Playing on the course where the Junior Ryder Cup will conclude on the eve of the Ryder Cup in September, the 48-year-old carded six birdies as he opened with a 69, which left him sitting inside the top 20.

Gallacher’s effort, which came late in the day, was one better than Scott Jamieson’s score in the morning wave, which also saw Grant Forrest sign for a par-72 after mixing five birdies with five bogeys.

Connor Syme shot a 72, one better than Richie Ramsay. Playing alongside Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald, Calum Hill had to settle for a 75, with Ewen Ferguson and Marc Warren also signing for the same score.

In a sensational opening round, Pavon cardied nine birdies and a single bogey. He turned in 29 after reeling off six birdies on the front nine before adding three more gains and one bogey down the stretch.

The 30-year-old, who is chasing a maiden win on the main tour, leads by two shots from German Maximilian Kieffer, with Frenchman Julien Guerrier and China's Wu Ashun another shot back.

“All in all, it was great playing,” said Pavon of his afternoon’s work. “Really solid off the tee, only missed two fairways today and only by a few inches. Putting was amazing also. I probably made nine putts on my front nine, which is quite funny. Everything was just excellent today.”

Elsewhere, Daniel Young returned early on Friday morning to birdie his final hole to sit handily-placed after the opening round of the Challenge Tour’s UAE Challenge at Saadiyat Beach Golf Club in Abu Dhabi.

It saw Young card a four-under-par 68, one less than compatriot Craig Howie, to leave him sitting in a tie for second spot, one shot behind Spaniard Ivan Cantero Gutierrez.