The Real Club de Club Guadalmina, in the Malaga municipality of Marbella, will host the Andalucía Costa del Sol Open de España Femenino 2017, a competition framed within the European Women’s Circuit that will take place between September 21 and 24 with the main sponsorship of Turismo de Andalucía, Turismo Costa del Sol and Mancomunidad de Municipios de la Costa del Sol Occidental.
The choice of the Real Club de Golf Guadalmina and the presence of the best players on the European continent ensure that “the tournament will be a great show”, a common statement made by the institutions involved in the press conference to present the tournament, this morning at the headquarters of the Provincial Council of Malaga.
The designation of the Real Club de Golf Guadalmina, a course of recognized prestige, renews the commitment to quality that emanates from the Costa del Sol, one of the most important destinations in Europe, to the point that it responds perfectly to the slogan coined in its day -Costa del Sol, Costa del Golf-, which has made this beautiful area of the Spanish geography famous.
This fact was highlighted by Francisco Javier Fernandez, Minister of Tourism and Sport of the Junta de Andalucia, who stressed that this event represents “an opportunity to continue linking the Andalusia brand to sport, high competition and international leadership in a segment for which all destinations compete” before recalling that Andalusia “is one of the largest and most recognized golf destinations, leader in continental Europe, with a complete offer of quality in terms of facilities and services and a portfolio of complementary tourist attractions difficult to compare among our competitors, which enrich any visit to our land to practice this sport.
For his part, the president of Turismo Costa del Sol, Elías Bendodo, said that “the celebration of this event undoubtedly contributes to increasing the love of golf in the female segment of the population, which is already strong on the Costa del Sol, but also represents a further step in our work to advance in better management of seasonality in the destination”. Elías Bendodo also stressed that “golf has a fundamental role in the sustainability of the Costa del Sol. On the one hand, it promotes traffic to the province of Malaga in the low season months and, on the other hand, it has a medium-high demand profile with a higher expenditure than the average visitor”.
In her speech, Margarita del Cid, president of the Association of Municipalities of the Western Costa del Sol, said that “this is a great example of joining forces of various institutions in a work of sports and tourism promotion as we are aware that golf is an activity that makes the Costa del Sol an attraction for domestic and foreign tourists choose us as a tourist destination. I also want to emphasize that Acosol will be part of and lead initiatives at provincial, regional and in the future national level thanks to the work it does in the irrigation of golf courses using recycled water”.
On a more sporting level, Jaime Salaverri, first vice president and president of the Professionals Committee of the RFEG, stressed that “we are delighted to return to the Costa del Sol to celebrate this edition of the Open de España Femenino. From the RFEG we greatly appreciate the main sponsorship of the three Andalusian institutions that make possible the organization of this tournament and the Real Club de Golf Guadalmina for its firm commitment to host one of the best tournaments of the year on the Ladies European Tour. It will be the perfect showcase to continue showing the Costa del Sol as a unique destination for tourism and specifically for the practice of golf”.
Pablo Mansilla, president of the Royal Andalusian Golf Federation, emphasized that “it is an immense joy to be able to work together, with the enthusiasm and continuity that we are doing, to support and give visibility to Spanish and Andalusian golf and women’s golf in particular. As if that were not enough, at the same time, we are showing abroad our wonderful golf tourist destination, with magnificent courses such as the Real Club de Golf Guadalmina, and our unbeatable climate. For all this, I can not fail to thank the extraordinary commitment and support provided by the Ministry of Tourism and Sport of the Junta de Andalucía, Tourism and Planning Costa del Sol and the Association of Municipalities of the Costa del Sol West.
Finally, Juan Ramón Martínez, president of the RCG Guadalmina, stated that “on behalf of the members of our club, I would like to convey all the excitement with which we received this designation. It is well known that we develop an intense sporting activity, with more than 400 tournaments organized annually in our two courses and that we have an extraordinary international social life thanks to the 20 nationalities represented by our members. This Spanish Open will be a great opportunity to demonstrate the capacity of both our maintenance team and all the members of our organization, who will be delighted to collaborate in the smooth running of the tournament”.
Azahara Muñoz will be present to defend the title
The Malaga-born Azahara Muñoz has announced, through a video, that she will play the Andalucía Costa del Sol Open de España Femenino next September with the intention of defending the title won in 2016 that made her the first Spaniard to inscribe her name on the list of winners of this competition after establishing an epic duel with the American Beth Allen. “I am very happy that the Spanish Open will be held again in Andalusia and more specifically in my club, the RCG Gualdalmina. Therefore my illusion is double and for that reason I want to thank all the institutions that make it possible,” he said.
The Andalucía Costa del Sol Open de España Femenino occupies the fourteenth place in the calendar of the Ladies European Tour 2017 and will be attended by the best professional golfers of the Old Continent.
This will be the fourth time in history that the Costa del Sol hosts the celebration of a Women’s Spanish Open after those held at Flamingos in 2010, at La Quinta in 2011 and at Aloha Golf in 2016. In the first of the cases the triumph corresponded to the legendary Laura Davies, while in the second the trophy ended up in the hands of her English compatriot Melissa Reid.
Special mention for the outcome of this tournament last year, when Azahara Muñoz, after a spectacular duel with the American Beth Allen, inscribed her name in the list of winners of this competition, becoming the first Spaniard to achieve this feat throughout history.
Essential support
The support of Turismo de Andalucía, Turismo Costa del Sol and Mancomunidad de Municipios de la Costa del Sol Occidental is part of a sports and tourism promotion effort, aware of the attraction of golf among national and foreign tourists, who find in this sport another incentive when choosing this Spanish region as a destination.
This important competition also has the support of Reale Seguros, Royal Spanish Golf Federation, Royal Andalusian Golf Federation, RCG Guadalmina, Consejo Superior de Deportes and Ladies European Tour. The organization is in charge of the company Deporte & Business.
TOURNAMENT HIGHLIGHTS
Real Club de Golf Guadalmina
Inaugurated in 1959
Address: Urbanización Guadalmina Alta s/n. 29678 San Pedro de Alcántara (Málaga)
Telephone: 952 883 375
Fax: 952 883 483
e-mail: secretaria@guadalminagolf.com
web: www.guadalminagolf.com
Nearest airport: Málaga (70 km)
Designer: Javier Arana
Number of holes: 2 rounds of 18 and one of 9
Institutional sponsors: Turismo de Andalucía, Turismo Costa del Sol and Mancomunidad de Municipios de la Costa del Sol Occidental.
Tournament sponsors: Reale Seguros, Real Federación Española de Golf, Real Federación Andaluza de Golf, RCG Guadalmina, Consejo Superior de Deportes and Ladies European Tour.
Promoter: Royal Spanish Golf Federation
About Andalusia Tourism
Andalusia is one of the most complete tourist destinations in the world, with a diverse and quality offer that places it among the main preferences of foreign and domestic tourists. In addition, Andalusia is an international reference in golf tourism. Its unbeatable climate allows golf to be played during all months of the year in more than a hundred courses, located in privileged areas, with landscapes of great beauty or close to paradisiacal beaches.
About Costa del Sol Tourism
Its nearly 70 golf courses have made the province of Malaga-Costa del Sol the first destination in Europe as far as golf is concerned, hence it is known as the Costa del Golf. Few places like the Costa del Sol gather in the same destination so many attractions, because our province not only offers a magnificent infrastructure for the practice of this sport, but also a privileged climate that allows the game throughout the year.
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