He made history and celebrated in the only way he knows how; by holstering his putter and displaying what has become his signature dance.
It’s almost seven years since Miguel Ángel Jiménez set a new record on the European Tour, now known as the DP World Tour, by surpassing Colin Montgomerie’s nine hole-in-ones with an ace at the par three second at Wentworth Club.
The Spaniard had equalled Montgomerie’s record only the week before during his home open at Real Club de Golf El Prat, and he continued his extraordinary hole-in-one record by storming past the Scot with another fine effort at Wentworth.
It was Saturday May 23 and Jiménez had just begun his third round when he walked up to the 151-yard par three second with a nine iron in hand. The then 51-year old hit his tee shot just feet beyond the flag before it checked back and rolled into the hole.
The Surrey crowds erupted in jubilation as a thrilled Jimenez flung his arms into the air – both player and fans alike knew something very special had happened.
Jiménez, a well-known cigar and red wine enthusiast, was presented with ten crates of Moët & Chandon champagne to mark his record tenth Tour ace.
And this wasn’t the first time that Jiménez had recorded a hole-in-one at Wentworth. His first came in 2008 when he carded a one on the 206-yard par three fifth hole, en route to winning the tournament.
Jiménez, who won both the 2004 BMW Asian Open and the 2004 BMW International Open, became the first player to claim the BMW treble when he tapped in for a winning birdie on the second play-off hole against England’s Oliver Wilson.
The 54 year old’s first Tour hole-in-one occurred in 1990, when Jiménez was just 26 at the Emirates Airline Desert Classic. He followed that up with aces at the El Bosque Open and the Scandinavian Enterprise Open, as ‘El Mecanico’ ended the year with three hole-in-ones.
He carded one more the following year – at the GA European Open – then had to wait 17 years before the feat happened again.
The 2008 Dubai Desert Classic witnessed his fifth Tour hole-in-one, before his BMW PGA Championship ace just months later.
The Spaniard’s seventh ace came in the final round of the 2013 Portugal Masters, when he aced the 168-yard par three eighth.
Then came his record-breaking season as he aced the 177-yard 15th at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship to move to within one of Montgomerie.
And it didn’t take long for the Spanish sensation to secure the record as those historic two weeks arrived in May 2015 at the Open de España and the BMW PGA Championship.
