Despite being a new event on the DP World Tour schedule, the ISPS Handa Championship in Spain carries extra significance for several members as it marks the return to a venue where they have previously earned their playing privileges.
Infinitum’s two courses - The Hills and The Lakes – served as host venue to the Tour’s Qualifying School Final Stage from 2017 to 2019 and prior to that it was a Second Stage venue from 2012 onwards.
Ahead of The Lakes staging the first of two back-to-back events in Spain, Benjamin Poke, Zander Lombard and Gonzalo Fernández-Castaño reflect on their memories of surviving the six-round Final Stage, described as one of the toughest events in golf.
“It was a life changing experience for me.”
Poke won his first Tour card with an emphatic six-stroke victory at Infinitum, formerly known as Lumine Golf, when Qualifying School Final Stage was last held in 2019.
The Dane broke 70 in each round of the six-day tournament with rounds of 67-67-69-67-69-64 to win the title as 28 players earned top tier cards for the following season.
“It was a battle to the end,” he said at an on-site pre-tournament event on Tuesday. “Throughout the whole week I had never really allowed myself to look where the mark was or I what I had to do.
“I was so focused on playing each day and each round. It was only until the last round where after the 17th hole, a guy walking with the scoreboard patted me on the back and said, ‘well done’. I looked over and I was leading with five shots. Then it hit home to be honest.”
Poke, now playing on the Challenge Tour, will make his first appearance of the 2022 DP World Tour season at the ISPS Handa Championship and is hoping fond memories of the venue can inspire him to a strong showing in Spain.
“I started off in South Africa with some pretty good signs but nothing special result-wise,” he reflects. “But I feel like I am on the right track and what better place to kickstart my 2022 season than here where I have built so many good memories.”
Faced with such an arduous mental and physical challenge, what advice would Poke give to those players trying to either regain or earn their playing rights on the DP World Tour for the first time?
“As opposed to looking at it as a week to dread as such, you flip it and look at it as a great opportunity to get a Tour card,” he said.
Ready to go make some 🦅’s!
— Zander Lombard (@ZanderLombard) April 17, 2022
Excited for the next few weeks in mainland Europe on the @DPWorldTour.
Starting off with the ISPS Handa Championship in Spain 🇪🇸 pic.twitter.com/DUzqMf1gG8
A year earlier, in 2017, Lombard regained his playing privileges by winning Qualifying School Final Stage – a feat he shared with Alejandro Cañizares after the pair finished in tied first place.
Summing up his experience that week, Lombard is keen to highlight the importance of avoiding “big numbers” to successfully overcome the test of endurance.
The pressure at Final Stage of Qualifying School is arguably higher than any tournament as failing to secure a top 25 spot or ties means the player must wait another year before he can get another opportunity.
“Hardly ever do you play six rounds in a week, even if you play practice rounds it is only one 18-hole round or nine holes before the event,” he admits. “So, to play competitively for six days in a row takes a big toll on your body and your mind.”
Lombard, now 27, started the 2022 DP World Tour season in fine form with a second place finish at the Joburg Open last November, securing him qualification for the 150th Open Championship this summer, and has since backed that up with a tied third finish at the Ras al Khaimah Classic.
“It takes a lot of pressure of the rest of the year,” the South African said. “I am playing to win, not playing to lose. It is a great spot to be in and I am really looking forward to the rest of the year.”
“You are playing for your livelihood; it is the difference between having a job next year or not having a job. It is brutal.”
The first ever visit to Infinitum, which succeeded PGA Catalunya as host venue for the Tour’s Qualifying School Final in 2017, saw former multiple DP World Tour winner Fernández-Castaño regain his card, with countryman Álvaro Quirós as his caddie.
Fernández-Castaño, 41, is excited to have the chance to play in front of home crowds this week at a familiar venue.
“It is great for us, for all the Spaniards to have Tour events on our own soil,” he says.
“It makes a difference. It gives us opportunities, not only for the Tour players but also for some local players.
“I remember the days when we had up to seven Tour events in Spain. I think we were doing fine with two events in a season and then we got two more in Catalonia.”
Despite the prospect of being buoyed on by the goodwill of Spanish crowds, Fernández-Castaño admits playing on home soil is not always easy having not won a Tour event in Spain.
“It is not easy, you have got a lot of people supporting you which is nice but on the other hand you have got that pressure which I was never good at handling it in some way,” he says.
“It is something you have to learn, and I really envy the players like Rafa Cabrera Bello, Sergio Garcia, Jon Rahm, these players who have been able to do well on Spanish soil.”
