By Will Pearson, europeantour.com
at PGA Catalunya Resort
Ahead of the Open de España, being held this week at the magnificent PGA Catalunya Resort in the north east of the country, europeantour.com looks at the keys to winning on the testing Stadium layout with the help of four men who have done just that…
This is the third time that the stunning resort has hosted Spain’s national Open, and first since 2009 when Frenchman Thomas Levet triumphed, but PGA Catalunya has also hosted a number of other significant professional events.
From the 1999 Subaru Sarazen World Open, won by Denmark’s Thomas Björn not long after the course was inaugurated, to The European Tour Qualifying School Final, held here every year since 2008, the Stadium Course has always provided a stern but fair challenge to those who take to its undulating, lush fairways.
With the 89th edition of the Open de España set to kick off on Thursday morning, we talked to Björn and Q-School winners Simon Khan, Simon Wakefield and Carlos Del Moral to hear tales of their victorious visits and explore the unique challenges of Spain’s Number One course…
Thomas Björn
The Great Dane won his fourth European Tour event at PGA Catalunya 15 years ago, when a stunning first-round 66 helped Björn towards a two-shot victory over Paolo Quirici and Katsuyoshi Tomori just a couple of years after the course –now a European Tour Destination in The European Tour’s network of world-class golf properties– was opened.
“It was a while ago so I have to stretch my memory back,” said Björn, who won the Open de España in 1998 and finished third the last time it was held at PGA Catalunya Resort in 2009.
“I remember I came and I had gone through a bit of a rough spell and felt I wanted to play in a golf tournament where I could give myself a chance of competing.
“I got here, had a nice look at the golf course and immediately thought it suited my eye well and just found some game that week. In the end it became a bit of a cruise but it was one of those where I came with a great, strong frame of mind and wanted to prove a point to myself and managed to pull it off.”
Designed by European Tour legends Angel Gallardo and Neil Coles and opened in 1996, the course – nestled amongst native forest in the foothills of the majestic Pyrenees mountain range – was relatively young when Björn won here.
“It was new but the course was still very good even back then,” Björn remembered. “And now it has matured as a whole and it is a very, very good track, a proper golf course. You have to think your way around, drive the ball very well to keep yourself out of trouble here and obviously try to get yourself in the right positions on the greens.
“They have lengthened it a bit over the years and it is a big golf course today. There are no two ways about it, you just have to play well.”
Simon Khan
Five years after winning his first European Tour event at the Wales Open in 2004, Khan found himself fighting for his card at the 2009 Qualifying School Final in Girona.
Unfazed, the Englishman bounced back in emphatic fashion, winning the six-round marathon contest to regain his playing rights for 2010 – a season which may yet define the now 41 year old’s career as he went on to triumph at the flagship BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth Club.
“Good memories coming back, even though it was Tour School and obviously that gives the whole thing a different feel,” said Khan. “They’ve done a lot of work to the course but it is a great venue and the layout has always been a good all-round test of golf.
“You have to be straight, it’s not just ‘bombs away’. A little like Wentworth, it tests all parts of your game and if your irons are on then you can do well.”
Khan is hoping the connection between his win here and his subsequent triumph in Surrey can be a source of inspiration both this week and next when he returns to his favoured BMW PGA Championship.
“Being back reminds me of my attitude that week and my approach,” he continued. “If I can do that at Q-School I can do that at the Spanish Open and beyond.
“It’s nice to be back in Europe and obviously next week at Wentworth is always a huge week for me. I feel very comfortable playing the course and always try to have the same approach; it doesn’t matter how good the field is, it’s about me and the golf course.”
Simon Wakefield
Englishman Wakefield claimed the 13th card at last year’s Q-School Final so has recent experience of the challenges of PGA Catalunya Resort.
Three years previously, however, the 40 year old went 12 spots better by topping the lot in winning the gruelling finale in Girona, and Wakefield feels that Qualifying School veterans have a distinct lead over the field this week.
“As I drove through the gates yesterday I had a bit of a shiver,” said Wakefield. “To see the course in its full spring glory is spectacular because it’s one of the best tracks in Europe and certainly in Spain.
“Being in May here the course is in even better condition than we have for Q-School, the rough is thicker and it’s going to be a big challenge. The guys who have been here before and played a lot of rounds across the Stadium course have a big advantage over those that haven’t.
“Keeping the ball in the fairway is key here and, as current leader of the Driving Accuracy category on Tour, I’m going to try to use that to my advantage!”
Carlos Del Moral
Del Moral of course has the most recent history of success across PGA Catalunya’s verdant links, having romped to a five-shot victory at the 2013 Qualifying School Final here last November.
The Spaniard is something of an expert when it comes to performing on the testing Stadium course, having regained his card at PGA Catalunya four times in the past six years.
“It’s quite amazing, this place is one of a kind,” said Del Moral. “It brings me good feelings and every time I play here it feels like home.
“The greens roll so nicely and the layout suits my eye, my draws. Strategically I am very clear when I approach this course and it seems to come naturally to me.
“I am going to keep everything the same, it would be an error to change anything! The misses are tough here and the greens are quick and tricky so you have to play smart all the way around. It really has every shot in the bag.”
