JimenaGolf (English)

SAN ROQUE GOLFER WINS PORTUGAL MASTERS

prospero — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 13:50:57 +0000

(Agencies) Álvaro Quirós, a member of the family golfing dynasty from Guadiaro in San Roque, won the Portugal Masters tournament at Club Oceánico Victoria in Vilamoura in an epic battle that catapults him directly to the Volvo Masters to be played next week (Oct. 30th to Nov. 2nd) at Valderrama, only a few minutes’ walk from his home. He came in at 68 strokes in the last round (4 below par), which gave him an accumulated total of 19 below. This victory is astounding as Álvaro only got his European Tour card last year. Quirós also jumps from 105th on the Order of Merit leaders board to 24th.

SEVE BALLESTEROS HAS BRAIN TUMOUR

prospero — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 08:52:02 +0000

Severiano Ballesteros, 51, Spain’s most successful golfer ever, has announced on his website (photo) that he he has a brain tumour. Seve was rushed to Madrid’s La Paz Hospital last week after a fainting spell (see report here). Rumours about his health flourished after it was reported that he had been in the intensive care unit for three or four days. However, Ballesteros is known as a survivor, having defeated illness and setbacks on and off the golf course many times. It’s worth reading what he says on his official site. ¡Fuerza, Seve!

COUNTDOWN BEGINS

prospero — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 12:25:38 +0000

The ninth event of the Peugeot Loewe Golf Tour 2008 comes to Finca Cortesín in Casares next week, from Thursday 4th to Saturday 6th September. The luxury resort hosts the tour for the first time this year. Some of Spain’s best players will be present at this event, one of the last in the circuit, trying to improve their ranking for the Grand Final. A total of 132 golf pros will play three 18-hole rounds, the first two of which will mark the cut off point for the best classified 45 players. The tournament is preceded and closed by two Pro-Am events (Wednesday 3rd and Sunday 7th), that round off a week’s worth of excellent golfing.

NEW GOLF PHOTO SITE

prospero — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 09:53:46 +0000

Our friend and colleague Salvador Moreno has recently opened a new website, FotosMoreno, from which he offers his magnificent photos of polo and golf tournaments in the area and beyond. His site also contains pictures of the social events he covers throughout the year. Salva is a consumate journalist, having worked as photographer and editor for several publications, including La Revista de Sotogrande, La Bocha and Europa Sur. You can also see some of his work on JimenArte.

WORK STOPS AT SAN PABLO GOLF

prospero — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 20:00:39 +0000

Work on earth movements at Los Alcornoques Golf in San Pablo de Buceite have been stopped, apparently temporarily. The course is part of an urbanization that also includes 1400 homes and a luxury hotel in development by the Las Limas de Gaucín company owned by Irish businessman Robert Noonan. The measure affects some 40 workers, most of whom live in Jimena or San Pablo. There have also been unconfirmed reports that the developer owes the contractor payments for work already carried out.

According to a spokesman from Las Limas de Gaucín, the stoppage is owed to changes in plans and permits, and to recent heavy rains. The company says work will be renewed in one or two months, adding that “An investment of €18 million is a guarantee.” For his part, the President of the San Pablo Municipal District, Andrés Beffa, said, “The work has a schedule that must be respected. And the Partial Plan must be met.”

Robert Noonan was also the promoter of an airport at Jimena de la Frontera, a project that was rejected on environmental grounds. He was also behind a project for a Gibraltar airline, which also failed, as did a large development on the Rock, which was taken over by the colony’s government.

VOLVO HIGHLIGHTS ON VIDEO

prospero — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 22:55:46 +0000

See the first day’s play highlights on video, here.

OFFICIAL VOLVO MASTERS SCORES – Round 1

prospero — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 21:52:08 +0000

The official First Round scores, as published on the European Tour webpage. Click on pictures to enlarge.

PAST WINNERS

prospero — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 17:26:51 +0000

2006 - Jeev Milkha Singh (India)

2005 - Paul McGinley (Ireland)

2004 - Ian Poulter (England)

2003 - Fredrik Jacobson (Sweden)

2002 - Bernhard Langer (Germany) and Colin Montgomerie (Scotland) – agreed to share prize after darkness stopped play

2001 - Padraig Harrington (Ireland)

2000 - Pierre Fulke (Sweden)

1999 - Miguel Ángel Jiménez (Spain)

1998 - Darren Clarke (Northern Ireland)

1997 - Lee Westwood (England)

1996 - Mark McNulty (Zimbabwe)

1995 - Alex Cejka (Germany)

1994 - Bernhard Langer (Germany)

1993 - Colin Montgomerie (Scotland)

1992 - Sandy Lyle (Scotland)

1991 – Rodger Davis (Australia)

1990 Mike Harwood (Australia)

1989 - Ronan Rafferty (Northern Ireland)

1988 - Nick Faldo (England)

THE VOLVO MASTERS STORY

prospero — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 16:40:44 +0000

The Volvo Masters tournament’s history is inextricably linked to the latter part of that of the PGA (Professional Golfers Association), founded in 1901. This, and the history of the Ryder Cup are all part of the same expansion of golf throughout Europe and well beyond. Here are some of the more important dates:

1971 – Birth of the PGA European Tour
1972 – Points of the European Tour were included in the European Order of Merit
1975 – Order of Merit is now decided by prize money, not points
1976 – An annual Qualifying School is started at 3 courses in the UK with 127 cards to be won
1977 – 36-hole cut is raised from 50 to 65, plus ties
1979 – The tour title officially becomes PGA European Golf Tour. Qualifying School moved to Portugal
1982 – New title: PGA European Tour. Qualifying School opened at La Manga, Spain
1984 – European Tour becomes a limited Company. Pre-Qualifying for entry to Qualifying School begins at La Manga
1986 – Minimum number of tournaments to be played for inclusion in Order of Merit raised from 7 to 9
1988 – Volvo becomes first corporate sponsor of the European Tour with total prize money of £10 million

1990 – PGA European Tour and Professional Golfers Association form Ryder Cup Joint Venture. PGA European Tour Andalusian headquarters established at San Roque, Spain
1993 – 3-year TV agreement with Sky Sports is announced
1994 – Valderrama is declared the first Continental Europe venue for 1997 Ryder Cup
1997 – Ryder Cup played outside the UK for the first time ever at Valderrama. Prize money for this tournament alone amounted to £1 million.
1999 – World Golf Championships begin, with 3 tournaments, plus the 4 major Championships (British Open, US Open, Masters and PGA), counting towards the 11 tournaments that must be played for Membership of The European Tour
2000 – Colin Montgomerie becomes first player ever to win Volvo PGA Championship three years in a row. Record prize money, £2 million announced for Volvo Masters
2001 – Tiger Woods makes history by holding the Masters and all four Major Championships at the same time
2004 – The European Tour and Volvo announce a new global strategy for Volvo, which sees the company’s title sponsorship of the PGA Championship and the Order of Merit come to an end, but the Volvo Masters and the Volvo China Open contracted until the end of 2007, taking Volvo’s participation to a minimum of 20 years
2006 – Seve Ballesteros honoured by The European Tour to commemorate the 30th anniversary of his first Tour victory in the 1976 Dutch Open

WE’RE TEEING OFF!

prospero — Fri, 28 Sep 2007 23:33:13 +0000

WELCOME!

This is an excellent time to launch a golfing website that deals principally with the game in the southernmost part of Spain. This area, of course, includes Sotogrande, Valderrama, Alcaidesa and the future course, now under construction, in Jimena de la Frontera. You’ll agree that this is quite a panorama of some of the best golf in Europe!

Since Valderrama plays host again to the 2007 Volvo Masters Championship, that is where we’ll tee off. From here you can check each posting, updated at least twice a week. As time goes on, we’ll be offering you the latest on all the courses in the neighbourhood, the players, the pros, the shops, the clubhouses, the atmosphere and a lot more. But for the moment, let’s just concentrate on the next major event: the 20th edition of VOLVO MASTERS.

Come along for the ride, the cart’s ready! It’ll be fun!