Elite young guns

Italian Manassero joins Ishikawa and McIlroy as a trio of promising prospects

Seventeen-year-old Matteo Manassero's remarkable four-shot win at the Castello Masters allowed him to claim a proud place alongside Rory McIlroy and Ryo Ishikawa in a trio of young golfing tyros.

The sport has had its share of shocks this year - with rank outsiders Graeme McDowell and Louis Oosthuizen winning the US Open and British Open respectively - but perhaps the least surprising "surprise" was Italian Manassero's breakthrough win on Sunday.