U.S. Open Champion Wyndham Clark is relishing the opportunity to tackle the test of Real Club de Golf Sotogrande as he makes his maiden appearance on Spanish soil at his week’s Estrella Damm N.A. Andalucía Masters.
The World Number Ten has enjoyed a breakthrough year on the PGA TOUR, winning for the first time at the Wells Fargo Championship in May before claiming his maiden Major title at Los Angeles Country Club a month later. He then made his Ryder Cup debut in Rome, contributing 1 ½ points to the U.S. Team’s total.
The 29-year-old tees it up as the Estrella Damm N.A. Andalucía Masters enters a new era at Real Club de Golf Sotogrande. The Robert Trent Jones designed layout makes its debut on the DP World Tour this week, but is no stranger to hosting prestigious events.
The Andalucían venue has hosted the Sotogrande Cup for over 50 years and has a list of winners which includes Major Champions Rory McIlroy, Shane Lowry, Pádraig Harrington and Francesco Molinari, with the Italian making his first appearance in this event for 12 years.
Molinari, the 2018 Open Champion, will play the first two rounds alongside Frenchman Matthieu Pavon, who claimed his maiden DP World Tour title at last week’s acciona Open de Espana presented by Madrid, and nine-time PGA TOUR winner Matt Kuchar.
The American, who has represented the U.S. Team in the Ryder Cup on four occasions, joins countryman Clark in teeing it up in Spain for the first time, while Scotland’s Bob MacIntyre flies the European flag as the sole member of Luke Donald’s triumphant Ryder Cup team in Sotogrande this week.
New Zealand’s Ryan Fox will be looking to continue his excellent run of form which includes a Rolex Series victory – at the BMW PGA Championship – and two top three finishes in his last four starts, having climbed to third on the Race to Dubai Rankings in Partnership with Rolex.
Player quotes
Wyndham Clark: It’s beautiful. Thus far, it’s been a great experience. The food’s been fantastic, the people are amazing and as for the golf course, I was really pleasantly surprised. I really haven’t played much golf like this. The trees out there, the topography, it’s so beautiful, I’ve really enjoyed my time thus far.
At the end of the day, it’s golf, you’ve still got to get the ball in the hole. There are a lot of similarities, but I just think as a golfer you want to play against the best competition around the world and challenge yourself as a player. You want to play different environments, courses, players and put yourself in those environments and see how you handle it. I love coming over here and challenging myself. I love to travel so I like seeing the world and coming to a country that is as great as this, is a real treat for me.
“I hope there are more events we can play over here. I love the PGA TOUR, I love the United States but I also love travelling the world and to grow the game of golf, I think it’s the best thing for golf, to make it a global game. If we could play more events outside the US, who have both US players and international players, I think it’s the best thing for the game. I would love it if we had five to seven events outside the US which were in Europe, or in Asia, or the Middle East, or wherever it is.
Matt Kuchar: The topography here is beautiful – it reminds me a lot of Southern California. You’ve got mountains, you’ve got the ocean, you’ve got palm trees, it’s a pretty special place. The weather seems to be great, although they say tomorrow’s not going to be quite as good. I’m excited to be here. The weather we’ve had the last few days, the scenery that’s around. We’re staying pretty close to where Wyndham is, we saw them walking around last night near the marina.
There are a number of unique tee shots that I don’t feel like we don’t see very often on the PGA TOUR. With the elevation changes here and the severity of the dog-legs, trying to figure out whether or not to be aggressive and cut a corner or lay-up is a challenge. I feel like there’s a bit of a learning curve, I guess for everybody playing a competitive tournament here, but trying to figure out off the tee. There are still three or four holes where I’m still thinking do I lay up or do I pull drive and try and cut the corner.
Pablo Larrazabal: It is actually my first time here. My caddie lives up the road, my dad lives five minutes away and it’s the first time I’m playing this golf course. Well, I actually think I played once when I was 13 or so, but it’s been 27 years without playing here. A couple of rounds around here is enough to really love this place and to look forward to a great challenge.
This is a really cool place. It’s a beautiful piece of art. Having these golf courses around us, it’s not that famous, but this is a golden piece we have in the south of Spain.
Francesco Molinari: It’s a distant memory now but I remember it very clearly because it was my first major international amateur win. I remember the course pretty well after 19 years. I remember playing with a few guys that are out here on Tour now. They are great memories and I can say I’m pretty happy with how the last 19 years have gone since then. I think younger me would be pretty happy with how my career has been so far.
I think the course is pretty much the same. They changed the grass, so it’s slightly different grass and I think they added a couple of tees. The large part of the course is mostly the same. It’s amazing, even after 19 years, playing the course the memories come back and it’s a really good course. It’s tricky with the wind, so I think we’ll see some good things this week.
To enjoy the tournament you only need to purchase tickets for Estrella Damm N.A. Andalucía Masters, with special prices for federated golfers and free for children under 13, on the event website.
The Estrella Damm N.A. Andalucía Masters, an event in the DP World Tour’s Race to Dubai made possible by the essential contribution of the Real Club de Golf Sotogrande, is sponsored by Estrella Damm and the Consejería de Turismo, Cultura y Deporte de la Junta de Andalucía, jointly funded by the EU and was declared Event of Exceptional Public Interest by the Government of Spain.
