The Marbella Golf and Country Club hosts the third event of the of the sixth season of the Gecko Tour this Monday and Tuesday. More than sixty golfers fight to take home the win and take the throne from Andreas Andersson, winner of the first tournament held at La Cañada, and Juan Martín Olivera, last Friday’s winner on the Dama de Noche course.
Once again, the Gecko has rounded up a distinguished group of players, some of which are already well-established and who have important wins on their track records such as Chilean golfer, Mark Tullo and Spanish golfers Manuel Quirós and Gabriel Cañizares, and other young golfers with a bright future ahead, such as Lance Salisbury, a player of which they speak highly in the neighboring country and self-proclaimed admirer of Olazábal, Jimmy Mullen, promising British golfer and Swedish golfer Marcus Svensson.
However, the spotlight will be on Mike Browne in Marbella, a 38 year-old British golfer with an incredible story. He started playing golf three years ago, just after a terrible injury that caused him to lose his left leg from the knee down. The amputation kept him from being able to continue in the British army. It was a very tough blow that he took a long time to recover from. Precisely, he found refuge in golf. His life had new meaning.
Browne dedicated his heart and soul to golf and just three years later he went professional, after a brilliant amateur career, having participated in the Great Britain teams that played in the Simpson Cup against the US. He plays with an artificial leg and the results are excellent. “My best round by far was a 65 I shot once on the Wiltshire Bowood Country Club”, he told Tengolf.
Browne decided to go for the Costa del Sol and is counting on the Gecko Tour in order to keep improving his golf. “I was severely injured on October 17th, 2011. The doctors tried to save my leg, but on May 7th, 2013, after many operations, they had to amputate. I discovered golf in October 2013, as part of the rehabilitation, and it changed my life. Before golf I was cooped up in my house for six months without leaving. It was a really low point for me and I felt terrible, and golf gave me my life back. It’s more than just a sport or a game, golf gave me back everything I had lost. Suddenly, I found a new goal, gave life a whole new meaning”, he confides.
Browne got his first handicap (28) in June 2014 and since then the improvement in his golf has been extraordinary. Now, just over two years later, he’ll make his debut as a professional in the Gecko Tour. “I almost can’t even believe I’m going to play in my first tournament as a professional in Marbella. I rented an apartment in Mijas and my objective is to play here throughout the winter. To see how far I can get, what I’m capable of. I love the area I’ve got great friends here”, he says.
The Gecko Tour will be his first series of tests as a professional. “When I decided to go pro, I was looking into where I could play and I heard nothing but good things about the Gecko. A good friend of mine helped me with the inscription and Max golf proteins help me with their products, which are fantastic. I can’t wait to get out there and play and give it my all”, he proclaims.
An extraordinary story of transcendence is the star of this third tournament of the Gecko which will start this Monday at 8:30 am. All set to go at the Marbella Golf and Country Club. Follow the tournament results in real time here.
