Today starts the Open de Andalucía Costa del Sol in the spectacular course of Aloha Golf, an excellent challenge for the 144 registered players. Those who want to fight for the victory on Sunday, will have to deal with this Javier Arana’s course where it is essential to place the ball in the right place. The fast and undulating greens of the Marbella course promise a spectacle from Thursday to Sunday. Among the great players who have come to Aloha is Mike Weir, winner of the 2003 Augusta Masters and a regular player on the PGA Tour, who is recovering his best game after suffering a complicated elbow injury that has kept him out of competition for two years. Weir has come to the Open de Andalucía thanks to an invitation, and is delighted to return to Spain, where he won one of the most important titles of his career, the WGC American Express Championship in 2000 at Valderrama. Weir also has eight PGA Tour titles and five other international victories.
“I am recovering from an operation on my elbow that I had after the tendon popped out of the bone, it was a very painful injury. I’m not 100% recovered but I feel much better than I have for the last year and a half. When I started training after the operation I could only hit 5 balls with the wedge, now I can hit 70, I’m going little by little.
“I came to the Andalucia Open because I need to play tournaments, I want to compete as much as I can before the Augusta Masters. Also, I would like to play in Europe towards the summer, in France, Germany, Ireland and of course the British Open. I will come with my family, I have two daughters aged 11 and 14 and they are my priority. My goal is to return to the PGA Tour because I like to be with them as much as I can, for me, family is very important.
“I don’t mind having to ask for invitations to play tournaments even if I’ve won a major. It took me six years to get a PGA Tour card since I turned pro and in that time I played all the mini tours I could, so I’m used to working my tail off.
“I have great memories of my victory at Valderrama in 2000. I especially remember Saturday because on Friday I shot 8 on the 17th after playing quite well. On Saturday I shot 65 and saved a miraculous par on the 17th. It was fantastic to beat great players like Tiger, Westwood or Nick Price”.
Official Presentation of the Andalucía Costa del Sol Open
Yesterday took place the presentation of the Open de Andalucía Costa del Sol, with the presence of Rafael Granados, General Director of Planning and Promotion of Sport of the Junta de Andalucía; Elías Bendodo, President of the Diputación de Málaga; Rafael Fontán, President of Aloha Golf; Miguel Ángel Jiménez, Golf Champion and responsible for the organization of the tournament; José Luis Hernández, Councillor of Tourism of the Marbella Town Hall; José María Zamora, Tournament Director; and Federico Vallés, Sports Delegate of the Marbella Town Hall.
Miguel Ángel Jiménez: “I want to thank the Junta de Andalucía for their support one more year, this is the sixth edition I organize and the third in Aloha. I am very grateful to the Club because at the end of the year we had no field to hold the tournament and thanks to the efforts of the president, Antonio Fontán and the manager, Luis Navarro, with the members, they gave us the field. They always welcome us with open arms.
Thanks are also due to the Diputación de Málaga, who I hope will continue in this adventure for many years to come, to the Marbella Town Hall, and to all the co-sponsors.
As I always say, I am from this land and with the Andalusia Open I want to give back a little of what I have received. The golf industry is the only one that can’t go anywhere else, because the sun and the courses are here, but we have to take care of it, we have to pamper it and reinvent ourselves. The tournament is an opportunity to show everyone again what we have.
It is never easy to bring players together because of the schedule we have, but it is very important to have three Majors winners here because that makes the tournament more attractive and gives it more media coverage. We also have Spaniards who are playing very well, such as Rafa Cabrera or Pablo Larrazábal, who will surely be fighting this weekend.
This week is complicated because there are a thousand things to attend to. I have a fantastic team and I have full confidence in the European Tour and Aloha, but one is human and I can’t avoid having my head everywhere. The game, this week, is on the back burner.”
Rafael Granados, General Director of Planning and Promotion of Sport of the Andalusian Government: “The success of this tournament is assured with a promoter like Miguel Angel Jimenez and it is very important for us to have events like this that give so much prestige to Andalusia and that is already fully consolidated.
Andalusia is the best golf destination in Europe, we have 24.2% of the Spanish golf courses and our golf facilities are rated with an average of 8 out of 10. Golf generates 687 million euros annually and brings us half a million tourists who have an above average spending capacity.
It is time for the different administrations to join forces and for our part, we want to continue supporting the Open de Andalucía, a tournament that has a potential audience of 300 million households”.
Elías Bendodo, President of the Diputación de Málaga: “I would like to express my special thanks to Miguel Ángel Jiménez for being an example of love for his land and his province, and for making this tournament a must on the calendar, managing to bring all the institutions together.
The sun and the sixty-two golf courses in Malaga, make this city a reference for Spanish tourism. This event, of great international importance, is the best way to promote our land. Golf in Malaga generates around one billion euros and more than two million jobs, so it is very important that the Costa del Sol is increasingly linked to the sport.
Rafael Fontán, President of Aloha Golf: “It is a great honor to hold this championship at Aloha. It has also been a challenge for us to prepare the course in record time and to combine it with the exterior works. This is the third year we have hosted this event and I want to thank Miguel Angel Jimenez for choosing us and for trying to convince Tiger Woods to come. Although he didn’t succeed, at least he tried”.
José Luis Hernández, Councillor for Tourism of the Marbella Town Hall: “I want to publicly thank the organization for choosing our city. The golf follow-up is important for Andalusia and for its promotion. The tournament is a window that shows the world the image of Andalusia and the Costa del Sol. On this occasion it is important to highlight the cooperation between the public and private sectors, with the hope that it will be repeated in the future.”
José María Zamora, Tournament Director: “From the European Tour we can only thank the support of all those who make the tournament possible, especially I want to thank Aloha and the maintenance team who have done an extraordinary job on the course. This winter has been cold and that has not helped at all, but even so, the course is presented in an excellent way, the greens are extraordinary.
I also want to thank Miguel Angel Jimenez for his commitment, I am convinced that the tournament will be a success”.
Golf in Andalusia
In 2010, the golf industry generated 687 million euros of benefits in Andalusia and attracted 425,000 tourists. The golf tourist has a purchasing power above average and generates more overnight stays, so it is very important for the tourism sector. Specifically, golfers stay an average of 11.7 days in Andalusia, 3 days more than other types of tourists.
Andalusia is the leading golf region in Spain with 106 courses representing 22% of the total. Most of the players who visit this region come from Great Britain and play in more than two courses, which multiplies the benefits in other sectors, restaurants, commerce, etc.
Golf tourism accounts for 1.9% of the total number of tourists in Andalusia and 4.5% of tourism revenues.
Golf in Malaga
The province of Malaga has 62 golf courses and enviable weather conditions. The economic impact of golf on the Costa del Sol exceeds 940 million euros.
More than 50% of the golf tourists coming to Malaga come from Great Britain, followed by travelers from Scandinavian countries. In 39% of the cases, they stay in 4 or 5 star hotels with an average stay of 14 days. In addition, golf also generates an important residential tourism, since 38% own a house near a golf course.
Golf generates a total of 2,020 direct jobs in the province of Malaga, to which must be added those generated in resorts, restaurants, stores, etc.
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