Matteo Manassero’s Star is Dim Stateside, but Not for Long

Matteo Manassero’s Star is Dim Stateside, but Not for Long
At 20 Years Old, the Italian Has Won Four Times Professionally, but Gets No Love in the US











Chris Chaney May 28, 2013 11:05 PM

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Matteo Manassero raises the trophy for the BMW PGA Championship.




COMMENTARY | Italy's Matteo Manassero emphatically reinserted himself into the conversation of the best young golfers in the world on Sunday, winning his fourth European Tour tournament in dramatic fashion at the BMW PGA Championship, the tour's flagship event.

At just 20 years old, Manassero has made a career of breaking records -- mostly age related -- and with his four-hole playoff defeat of Simon Kahn and Marc Warren at the B
MW, we were reminded once again just how good Manassero is at such a young age.



Currently, Manassero boasts four professional wins at an age younger than Tiger Woods had even turned pro. As for Rory McIlroy, his first win came at age 19, an age by which Manassero had already pocketed two winner's checks, en route to his third only months later.

The comparisons would come naturally -- fairly or not -- between the trio of child phenoms that realized success on the professional level have it not been for the general apathy levied by American fans towards the young Italian.

There's something about living under the 50 stars and 13 bars that we Americans tend to have a grandiose view about our sports. The MLB contends for the World Series despite all but one team hailing from a single country. Same way with the NBA. The league titleholders are hailed as World Champions. The tendency of Americans to measure success as a domestic trait has blinded our view of the truly exceptional taking place outside our borders.

Granted, golf may be one of the exceptions to the rule. The PGA Tour is widely considered to be where the best of the best come to play the top courses in the world with the most money on the line, but to zero in on one tournament a week in an American city would be doing a disservice to the global game.

The big knock on Manassero is that his success in Europe hasn't translated to success in America -- a fair gripe. Manassero's best finish in a stateside major was a T13 at the US Open in 2009. He still has only notched one top-10 in any event on American soil (T9 - 2011 WGC Match Play), yet the talent is irrefutable and thus far, practically unrecognized outside of Europe.

Manassero is still coming along, both mentally and physically. At this point in his career, the facets of the physical game that come with maturity and strength are not fully developed. His ball flight does not have the same arching trajectory that has become the norm and a necessity on many US courses.

However, the mental acuity gained in his four years traveling the world as a professional were on full display at Wentworth. Manassero simply wore down his opponents as he wore out the middle of the fairway. Steady and consistent the entire way through the four-hole playoff, Manassero proved to have the mental fortitude and discipline to outplay his opponents while still playing into his strengths.

We are well past the time when we should have noticed what Manassero has been doing. He's already the most accomplished Italian golfer on the circuit today and perhaps the best the country has produced since Constantino Rocca.

His developing physical game is catching up with his already sharp mental approach. Although he is not one of the longest hitters on Tour, tracks like Merion, the host of this year's US Open, play right into his hands.

Manassero has the ability to be the next great thing in global golf. It is time we in America pay attention.

Chris Chaney is a Cincinnati, Ohio-based sportswriter. He has written for multiple outlets including WrongFairway.com, Hoopville.com, The Cincinnati (OH) Enquirer and The Clermont (OH) Sun.

Follow him on Twitter @Wrong_Fairway.