The victory of Ángel Ayora in the Rosa Challenge Tour in Poland last Sunday will forever be remembered for two reasons. First, obviously, because it was the first as a professional golfer for the Marbella native. The second because it was also the first for Seve Collection, the clothing brand launched last summer on the occasion of the Open Championship and which pays tribute to the genius of Pedreña. Ayora and Seve. A beautiful partnership.
Javier Ballesteros, Seve’s eldest son, is Ayora’s agent through the company All in Sports. That’s where the opportunity arose. The option of Ángel being the first professional golfer dressed in Seve Collection clothing was put on the table. The Andalusian player didn’t hesitate. He was delighted. He debuted with the new brand a week before Poland and on the second attempt achieved victory. You don’t have to be a genius, or scratch too much to find that inspiration, an exciting connection. The Challenge Tour itself captured it in a video minutes before he went out to play the last round of the tournament in Poland.
So, Seve Ballesteros, who achieved nearly 100 victories during his career, adds another victory in this way. Ayora gave it to him. That’s the thing about legends, they keep winning even after they’re not with us. The Seve Collection brand came from the association of a Swedish company with the Ballesteros family. Their products are already on sale and a portion of the profits go to the Severiano Ballesteros Foundation. For a good cause. Ayora is, for now, the first and only professional golfer to wear the Seve Collection brand, but given the success, don’t doubt that we will soon see more players.
This is one of the untold stories of the 19-year-old Andalusian player’s victory in Poland. However, it is not the only one related to him in recent hours. This time, the one we are going to tell you about has to do with the Omega European Masters, the Swiss tournament of the DP World Tour, which of course Seve won, which is played this week and where Ayora is present with an invitation.
This Tuesday at noon the starting times and groups for the first two days were announced and the Malaga native has been placed in a match with a lot of substance. He will play Thursday and Friday with Edoardo Molinari, right hand of Luke Donald in the Ryder Cup. It’s not about putting more pressure on the young Spaniard or building castles in the air. Simply, it’s a reality. The Ryder men of Europe want to see the young Spanish talent who before turning 20 has already won on the Challenge Tour. They have been doing it with many young golfers, and not so young, for a long time and now it’s Ángel’s turn. We could say that he has earned a place in the captain’s agenda with his golf.
The third component of the match shows, in case there was any doubt, that the tee time is no coincidence, but is sought and very studied. It is the Frenchman Jeong Weon Ko, another young and emerging talent who was there last week to take the victory at the British Masters and who has caught the attention of Luke Donald and company. Ko is 26 years old and got the DP World Tour card two years ago through the Challenge Tour. An added incentive for an always interesting week in Crans Sur Sierre.
It should be remembered that Ángel Ayora, in the interview given to the Bola Provisional podcast, confessed that his greatest dream as a golfer is to play the Ryder Cup and experience the impressive experience of the 1st tee first hand.
