Mel Pyatt, President and CEO of Volvo Event Management for the past two decades, presides over a very special milestone moment at Club de Golf Valderrama this week – the 20th anniversary of the Volvo Masters.
It is an especially poignant tournament for the man who has become synonymous with Volvo’s worldwide golf operation, who retires after 21 years at the helm. During that time, the hugely popular Pyatt has been the public face of Volvo during the company’s promotion of the PGA Championship, the Volvo China Open and, of course, The European Tour’s season-ending finale, the Volvo Masters.
Since 1988, the Volvo Masters has provided great drama and excitement, as the twin imposters – triumph and disaster – vied for supremacy over the perfectly manicured course which is recognised as one of the finest in Europe.
Many of Volvo's executives - past and present - joined forces with Don Jaime Ortiz-Patiño and Felipe Ortiz-Patiño, the Past and Current Presidents of Club de Golf Valderrama, representatives of the Spanish Golf Federation, The European Tour and Media in the clubhouse on Tuesday night for a special Gala Dinner.
Among the speakers on the night were Carleric Haggstrom, former President of the Volvo Car Corporation, who recruited Pyatt in 1987, George O'Grady, Chief Executive of The European Tour, Don Ortiz-Patiño and two-time Volvo Masters champion Colin Montgomerie.
Montgomerie, the only player in the field to complete in all 20 Volvo Masters tournaments, was joined by other ex-champions Ronan Rafferty, Sandy Lyle, Alex Cejka, Paul McGinley, Ian Pouolter and defending champion Jeev Milkha Singh. The Scot, in fact, revealed that this is his 54th Volvo event and that he has won ten titles with the Volvo name attached, plus seven of his eight Order of Merit crowns when Volvo was title sponsor.
O’Grady paid tribute to the commitment and dedication of a man who has become a close personal friend. He said: “In Mel Pyatt, the Board at Volvo found the person who most closely mirrored the company’s vision and desire to bring style, efficiency and quality to the staging of golf tournaments.
“Mel has achieved all those goals with his very distinctive brand of excellence and style. He was the General Manager at Atalaya Golf on the Costa del Sol when Carleric Haggstrom, the President of the Volvo Car Corporation, asked him to lead the project with The European Tour to replicate in golf what Volvo had done in tennis as the umbrella sponsor of the ATP Tour.
“I recall we signed the contract at the Monte Carlo Open tennis tournament in 1987 and the agreement that Volvo would become the Tour’s first corporate sponsor, commencing in 1988, was announced at Wentworth on the last day of the PGA Championship that year.
"At the same time that the details of the Volvo Masters were announced, we also revealed details of the Volvo Bonus pool, linked to the Volvo Order of Merit.”
O’Grady continued: “The combination of the Volvo Board, with Mel Pyatt directing the golf operation, Don Jaime Ortiz-Patiño, the past President of Valderrama, and The European Tour has stood the test of time and we are all delighted to be looking forward to the 20th edition of this superb championship, which has provided so many thrilling moments as the climax to the season.
“On behalf of the Board of The European Tour, the Tournament Committee, the Members and all staff at Wentworth headquarters, it is my privilege to say ‘Happy 20th Anniversary’ to the Volvo Masters and a very long, prosperous and happy retirement to Mel and his wife, Alicia.”
