Renata Paratore is no stranger to success with two wins on the European Tour to his name, and after a recent tip off about The International Series by a good friend, the Italian has set his sights on more glory at the Jakarta International Championship this week.
The 28-year-old first tasted victory on the tour back in 2017, claiming the Nordea Masters by one stroke over Ryder Cup stars Matt Fitzpatrick and Chris Wood. The latter also played on The International Series last season.
Paratore then won a second title at the prestigious Betfred British Masters in 2020, a tournament hosted by English Ryder Cup legend and LIV Golf star Lee Westwood. The trophy cabinet was bare for a number of years, before a sudden burst of form this year on the Challenge Tour brought back-to-back victories in the UAE in successive weeks.
The Italian, who represented his country at the 2020 Olympic Games the 2018 World Cup of Golf, is eager to experience The International Series, the elevated series of events which provide a pathway to the LIV Golf League through its season-long Rankings race.
Explaining the loss of form that led to him losing his card on the European Tour by a single place in 2022, and his recent resurgence on the Challenge Tour, he said: “It's a mix of things I cannot explain so easily, but I made a few changes also in my swing this year go really well, and now this year I have a good feeling again.
“I think when you're playing well, you have to take your chance. When golf gives the chance, you have to try to take it, because it's not easy to play a lot of time.”
Paratore made it to the weekend with a 66 on Saturday for a four-under aggregate, after going level par on round one. After another level-par round, he is now seven shots behind the leaders Gaganjeet Bhullar of India, Scott Vincent of Zimbabwe and Australian Wade Ormsby with just 18 holes left to play.
Talking about his hopes overall, he said: “The goal is simply to try and play solid and take a lot of chances. It took a while just to get to grips with the course – there is a different type of grass here to the type we normally play on in Europe so it does take some time to adjust. It’s a great course, I’m very happy to make the weekend. It is a great tournament and I enjoy it here in Jakarta.”
Paratore was tipped off to the elevated events across the Asian Tour calendar by friend and compatriot Stefano Mazzoli, who currently sits 42nd on the rankings race after a T16 at International Series India presented by DLF and a T22 at International Series Morocco.
“My friend Stefano told me before, that The International Series events are great tournaments, so I thought, why not? It is China next week also, so I’m heading out there this week anyway. It makes sense to play here.
“I'm happy for Stefano to play out here. We are good friends and he is playing well, and he told me always about the tournaments he likes out here.”
The International Series is the most prized pathway in golf. It consists of a set of elite tournaments sanctioned by the Asian Tour and offers the year-long Rankings Winner & Runner-Up promotion to the LIV Golf League.
