Wind was the big challenge on the opening day of the Estrella Damm N.A. Andalucía Masters, especially for the afternoon starters, with gusts of up to 30 mph. Despite these conditions, defending Champion Adrián Otaegui made the most of an early start by carding a flawless six-under 66, two shots behind Englishman James Morrison (-8) and one behind German Nick Bachem (-7).
“It was a very good day from tee to green and I felt very good on the course. I gave myself lots of chances, didn’t miss many shots, didn’t miss many greens. The few greens I missed, I managed to make up and down so it was a very positive day for me.
We had a bit of everything today. The conditions were good for the first four or five holes but the wind was gradually growing. The last nine holes, for the back nine, were getting difficult and it looks like it’s going to keep getting windy in the afternoon,” said Otaegui after his round.
The Spaniard praised the course setup:
“It’s perfect. I found the greens a bit soft at the beginning of the week, but otherwise some pins would be unplayable wit this wind. The grass is excellent on fairways, roughs and greens, so thumbs up for the green keeping team.”
First round leader James Morrison shot a superb eight-under 64 also in the morning.
“I knew the draw was going to be that way and we got more holes in this morning with no wind than we actually thought we were going to get in, so we had to make hay while the sun was shining and I did that. I’m happier now with the wind and the rain starting to pick up on the last hole there.”
The Englishman, a two-time DP World Tour winner, claimed the Open de España in 2015.
“Spain’s been very, very good to me over the last 14 years. I’m guessing it’s the free-pouring gin and tonics that do it for me, which is the main thing, and the ham, obviously. I love coming here, it suits my eye. Most courses inherently aren’t as long as we play on Tour so they’re more positional sort of golf courses.”
World number 10, American Wyndham Clark, carded a two-under 70 in his first round on Spanish soil.
Three more Spaniards finished under par on Thursday: Adri Arnaus (-3), Jorge Campillo (-1) and Rafa Cabrera Bello (-1), both Jorge and Rafa more than pleased to have broken par in the gusty afternoon conditions.
Play was suspended at 19:21 due to darkness. Players will complete the first round on Friday from 9:10. Tee times for the second round remain unchanged from 8:40 on holes 1 and 10.
INSIDE THE ROPES
Wind and greens challenge Wyndham Clark
Reigning U.S. Open Wyndham Clark, posted a creditable round. World number 10 had to deal with tricky gusts of wind and greens too slow for his liking.
“It was a tough day but shooting two under is a good round for the conditions. Just in the middle part of the round I just really struggled with the wind. I like to think I’m a pretty good wedge player but three wedges I missed the green and two of them I made a bogey and that was all wind-related. It was fair with the windy conditions but for me it was a little slow. I’m used to a little bit faster greens,” said the American after his round.
Campillo and Cabrera Bello beat the course in tough conditions
Both Spaniards have shown their resilience by shooting under par on Thursday afternoon.
“Conditions were on the limit, but I enjoyed my round. The last two or three holes were pretty hard, but it was worse in Scotland with rain on top of it,” said Campillo.
Cabrera agreed: “The Tour has done well not stopping play as the ball barely moved on some occasion. It is true that we got the worst part of the day, but we have played many times with this same wind.”
Real Club de Golf Sotogrande boasts an impressive winners’ list
Besides staging its first DP World Tour event, the Club hosts the prestigious Sotogrande Cup whose winner’s list includes the likes of Rory McIlroy, Shane Lowry or Padraig Harrington.
Winners of the Sotogrande Cup playing the Estrella Damm N.A. Andalucía Masters this week are Francesco Molinari, Julien Brun, Nino Bertasio, Marcel Siem, Guido Migliozzi, Todd Clements and Spanish amateur Jaime Montojo.
To enjoy the event you only need to purchase tickets for the 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.
