Adrian Meronk (-16) has won the Estrella Damm N.A. Andalucía Masters with a round of 66 strokes (-6) and one ahead of German Matti Schmid (-15) and two ahead of Englishman Richard Mansell. It is the third victory of the Pole this season and the fourth in only fifteen months, a great achievement that consolidates him among the 50 best players in the world and makes history in Polish golf.
The last and rainy day of the Estrella Damm N.A. Andalucia Masters was exciting, open, with a good handful of players in the fight for the title. Matti Schmid, a young German golf talent, had it in his hand until a bogey on the 16th left the door open for Adrian Meronk. The Pole started his round with bogeys on 1 and 3, mistakes that did not make him lose confidence in his game and he compensated with two eagles on 6 and 9. The putt was his great ally to achieve four more birdies on 10, 12, 14 and 17 with no more mistakes.
“It wasn’t easy because of the wind, it was different from other days, but I managed to hold on despite the bad start. I knew I had the game on point and I did a very good job with my caddy to stay focused. The eagle on the 6th was a turning point and from then on, I was very solid until the last putt. The shot on the 9th from the fairway, about 110 yards for eagle on the 9th was the best of the year for me. It changed everything,” he explained.
This is the fifth professional victory for Meronk, a player who opened the doors of international golf for Poland by becoming the first from his country with a DP World Tour card in 2019. This season he won the ISPS HANDA Australian Open and the DS Automobiles Italian Open. The triumph in Sotogrande places him third in the Race to Dubai.
“My goals for this season were to finish in the top three of the DP World Tour rankings and in the top 50 in the world to play the majors next season. I’m now very well placed to get the PGA Tour card and I’m going to focus on that.”
With this triumph Adrian Meronk joins the list of professionals who have won at the Real Club de Golf Sotogrande, such as Roberto de Vicenzo (Open de España 1966) and Severiano Ballesteros (Spanish Championship 1987). Interestingly, both won the British Open a year after their triumph in Sotogrande, an inspiration for the Pole.
Adrian Otaegui fought the unstoppable to retain the title, but a card of 74 strokes (+2) relegated him to ninth place tied. Nevertheless, he leaves Sotogrande satisfied.
“It was a difficult day, hard fought, but it didn’t work out. I wanted to keep doing the job as I have been doing so far, but we made a couple of mistakes. I was a little more hesitant with the wind and I didn’t feel completely at ease on the course.”
“Apart from today, the week has been very good, everything that is to continue adding points and climbing in the ranking is positive,” said the player from San Sebastian.
Behind, Adri Arnaus and Jorge Campillo also signed a remarkable performance in nineteenth position with -8.
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INSIDE THE ROPES
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The Minister of Tourism vindicates the environmental commitment of golf
The Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport of the Junta de Andalucía, Arturo Bernal, visited the last day of the Estrella Damm N.A. and took the opportunity to recognize the effort made by the golf courses to achieve sustainability. “In Andalusia there are 120 courses and most of them irrigate with reclaimed water, and those that cannot yet do so with non-potable water. The courses are great defenders of the environment and I want to thank them for their efforts”, he commented.
Arturo Bernal also highlighted the economic impact of golf in Andalusia. “Golf attracts a million people throughout the year with revenues exceeding 2,000 million euros and generates more than 50,000 jobs. Next year we will again have the Estrella Damm N.A. Andalucía Masters because we are very committed to this discipline that helps to deseasonalize traditional vacation tourism.”
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Adri Arnaus achieves a good ‘pot’ for the charity cause
One of the big news that brought this tour of two tournaments in Spain was the charity initiative that Adri Arnaus has carried out together with the Gasol Foundation, called ‘Birdies for Childrens Health’, with which the Catalan player contributed € 100 for each birdie achieved and € 250 for each eagle.
He left the Open de España with an accumulated €1,550, to which this week he has added €2,350, thanks to an eagle and 21 birdies achieved these four days at the Real Club de Golf Sotogrande. To this we must add the contributions made by other players and anyone who has wanted to join this beautiful initiative that arose a few weeks ago in a conversation between Arnaus and Pau Gasol.
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Tears for achieving a dream
The fact that this Estrella Damm N.A. Andalucía Masters is played in the autumn, and that it is one of the last tournaments of the regular calendar, makes many players suffer the tension to keep the card for next year, and some of them achieve the goal after making a good tournament here. In this 2023 edition, the one who celebrated the achievement of the card for next season was the American Chase Hanna, who with a fourth place managed to climb 40 positions in the Race to Dubai and earn the playing rights for what will be his third year on the circuit.
After the last putt, he could not hold back the tears of joy and emotion, something that was very reminiscent of what he experienced exactly one year ago in this same tournament, when the Spaniard Angel Hidalgo won his card for the DP World Tour for the first time.
Despite the disappointment of second place after almost winning, Matti Schmid did not leave Sotogrande empty-handed, as he managed to secure the card for next season.
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