In addition to the honour of presiding over a club such as Valderrama, it is also “an enormous responsibility”. Nuno Alberto de Brito e Cunha, Viscount of Pereira Machado, is very aware that, being at the helm of such a famous ship, means preserving, and even improving, Spain’s most famous golf course. Born in Cascais (Portugal) and a top amateur golfer, he is extremely familiar with the club, having become a member shortly after it was bought by Jaime Ortiz-Patiño.

What were your first contacts with the world of golf?

–My father was a very good player, also scratch, and he was the only Portuguese to win the Spanish Amateur International, in 1944 at Puerta de Hierro. So when we were young, rather than giving us a cuddly bear, they put a golf club in our cot. There weren’t very many golfers or courses in Portugal at the time. There was the second oldest club on the European continent, Oporto, founded by the English, there was Estoril, and a few more. The golf tourism boom really began with Penina in the early 1960s.

What titles did you win as an amateur?

–I won the Portuguese Championship various times. As they say, it was enough to have a good eye because the others were blind. I improved my game a lot when I went to Paris to continue studying. I met very good golfers there, and my club had various members of France’s national golf team. I was selected twice as a member of the European team that competed against the British Isles in the St Andrews Trophy, in 1968 and 1972. I then left golf a bit to one side as I concentrated on work. Nevertheless, I was selected several times to represent Portugal in the world and European championships. I practised one week before, went over there and did the best I could.

When did your relationship with Valderrama begin?

–A long time ago. I remember coming to the Sotogrande course for a Spain-Portugal match in the 1960s – it was an annual competition. I came with my father and I really liked the area. I have an English friend whose parents were among the first to rent a house in the area and they invited me and my wife to spend time here during summer. So I always had a strong connection with Sotogrande and when, finally, Jimmy Ortiz-Patiño bought this course with various other people, the second year the club offered shares, I became a member.

What does it mean for you to be president of a club where you have been a member for so many years?

–I’m very excited. I recognise the fact that Valderrama is a very special club for golfers, something extremely special, and I greatly admire what Jimmy Ortiz-Patiño has done here because, truly, the course would not have become what it is without him. He had the vision, the determination, the perseverance to complete a magnificent project. Times change and the moment arrived when the members had to become more involved in the day to day life of the club. For that reason it is important to hold elections, with anyone who wants to do so presenting their own list of members, and we were lucky to have the support of the majority.

Could it be said that a new era is beginning at Valderrama?

–To my way of seeing it, it’s not a new era. On the one hand we must respect and continue the work carried out by the founder: that is indispensable. We have a great course and we should maintain it take care of it and, if possible, and this is difficult, improve it. The clubhouse is stunning – with its Andalucian style, I love it – and that is also something we should preserve. The only thing that is new, in any event, is that we must be aware that we are a members’ club, and the members should be the privileged ones at Valderrama. We are happy to offer green fees, because that is something that helps the club a lot economically. We have to provide first-class service to those people who visit us – and that is something that Javier (Reviriego, the club’s new general manager) is very well aware of. We are also happy to host professional tournaments such as the Andalucía Masters, but always taking into account the fact we are a members’ club, that the members are not here to take on financial risks, and for that reason this time we had to establish some new parameters for the tournament. We are happy to have such a strong relationship with the Junta de Andalucía (regional government) and the other sponsors, but they have to bear in mind that Valderrama is a members’ club and that members are unable to play for 15 days – and nor can we sell green fees during that time.

Are you satisfied with how the second edition of the Andalucía Masters turned out?

–Impossible to have been better. It was fantastic, especially because we were fortunate to see two Spaniards fighting for the title, when no Spaniard had ever won at Valderrama before and both Sergio and Miguel Ángel had both been close to winning previously. So it was great that they were challenging for the title right to the last hole. That duel, for us, was the dream finale.

Will the Andalucía Masters continue at this course?

–On the part of Valderrama, we are ready and willing for that to happen. We are going to ensure the course is always maintained in the condition it is defined by – in the vanguard of the best courses in the world. I don’t know what the future holds, whether the Junta will continue with its sponsorship or not. A lot of things are happening in Spain at the moment but, if the Junta does want Valderrama to be the venue for the tournament, we will be happy to continue.

Are there any difficulties created by the fact that Valderrama has members of many diverse nationalities?

–None at all. This is a very special, unique, exclusive and international club, with members of many different nationalities. There is a key core of Spaniards, which is great because this is a Spanish club, but we also have members from throughout the world – the United States, Korea, South Africa – and most European countries are represented. There is a significant proportion of English, as well as Dutch, German… I like that – that it is a Spanish club open to the world.