The influence of Severiano Ballesteros is far-reaching… very far-reaching. The pioneer of golf in our country and one of the great legends of European golf. This week at the HotelPlanner Tour we find ourselves with a piece of his history.
The Open de Portugal is being held for the sixth consecutive year on the circuit at one of his last legacies: Royal Óbidos. The course was designed by Seve, although he couldn’t see his umpteenth marvel crowned as he passed away a year before it was inaugurated. It is considered one of his flagship works and boasts stunning views of the Atlantic Ocean.
There will be eleven Spaniards trying to link their name to a legend like the genius of Pedreña. However, since this event has been held on the HotelPlanner Tour, no Spaniard has managed to win, and in the five years it has been played at Seve’s ‘home’, the results have not been particularly brilliant. The best year was undoubtedly 2020 with Pep Anglés finishing second and Carlos Pigem tied for fourth. However, since then, only two top tens have been achieved in four years, with Manu Elvira’s fourth place in 2023 and Alex del Rey’s third place in 2021. Nothing more. Additionally, in that same period, only four more top 20s have been added. That is the entire record. It’s not a walking disaster, but certainly numbers that could be improved.
It should not be forgotten that although this event is held on the HotelPlanner Tour calendar, until 2017 it was part of the European Tour calendar and in this century it has crowned two of our own. Pablo Martín in 2007 became the first player in DP World Tour history to win an event as an amateur and Miguel Ángel Jiménez…
Quim Vidal, Rocco Repetto Taylor, Santi Tarrío, Adri Arnaus, Álvaro Quirós, Luis Masaveu, Albert Boneta, Sebas García, Borja Virto, Víctor Pastor and Lucas Vacarisas will be the eleven tasked with trying to ‘reconcile’ with Don Severiano. The pressure is on, with only two tournaments left before the cut of 68 players who will play in China. It’s time to turn around the Armada’s relationship with Óbidos.
