Donaueschingen, Germany – Mauro Gilardi clinched his first career victory on the Pro Golf Tour with a stunning comeback at The Cuber Open 2025. On the Old Course at Öschberghof, the Swiss player fired a sensational final-round 63 (-8) to overtake Dutchman Lars van der Vight (68) and secure the title. Michael Hirmer and Philipp Macionga (both Germany) shared third place on a rainy final day.

It was a final round that not only defied difficult conditions, but gained even more sus-pense because of them. After two pleasant tournament days, rain dominated proceed-ings at the first Pro Golf Tour event on German soil this season. In noticeably cooler temperatures, a gripping head-to-head battle for the title unfolded on the perfectly mani-cured parkland course.

One player truly thrived in the steady rainfall. Mauro Gilardi opened his round steadily with three birdies on the front nine, preventing Lars van der Vight from pulling away. The Dutchman had started the day with a three-shot lead and remained mistake-free for much of the round. The leading duo had distanced themselves from the rest of the field early on.

But it was on the back nine that the 25-year-old, who had traveled directly from the German Challenge at Wittelsbacher GC, really caught fire. Five birdies between holes 10 and 16 turned the deficit into a lead, as van der Vight couldn’t quite keep pace with Gilardi’s momentum. Then came a sudden interruption – the horn sounded due to an approaching thunderstorm, and players had to leave the course. But the nearly one-hour delay just two holes before the finish didn’t stop Gilardi. The sports soldier from Chur calmly closed with two pars to secure the win. His final score of -23 was two strokes better than van der Vight.

Leaderboard: All results at a glance
Order of Merit of the 2025 Season

"Almost felt like home"
“I still can’t quite believe it – but it feels amazing,” said Gilardi in his winner’s interview, held in one of the practical, modular trailers of title sponsor The Cuber, which served as the tournament office. “Finally, I had a week where I putted well, and everything else in my game just clicked too.”

Gilardi arrived in southwest Germany with a good feeling. Although he had missed the cut at the German Challenge, his T11 finish at the Gradi Polish Open and strong per-formance at the Swiss Challenge on the HotelPlanner Tour (T17) in June showed that he was trending in the right direction.

“I just wanted to build on those good results and focus only on myself,” Gilardi contin-ued. “I knew that with a performance similar to the first two days, I could make things interesting again. I played steadily and managed to find another gear in the middle of the round, which definitely helped. After the break, I just didn’t want to make any mistakes and bring the win home.”

Gilardi also felt very comfortable on the consistently immaculate Old Course – one of two 18-hole layouts at the top-rated resort between the Black Forest and Lake Con-stance. “I’ve played good rounds here in previous years. The course is very similar to my home club (GC Domat-Ems), so it almost felt like home.”

In the Order of Merit, Gilardi jumps up to eighth place. Filip Mruzek continues to lead the rankings, followed by Lars van der Vight. Clément Guichard, Carl Siemens, and Michael Hirmer round out the Top 5.

After a short break, the Pro Golf Tour heads to Switzerland. Starting July 28, 2025, the Bonmont Pro Golf Tour will be played at the Golf & Country Club de Bonmont in the Canton of Vaud, near Lake Geneva.