Ángel Hidalgo is experiencing a very special week. He returns to the Open de España presented by Madrid as the defending champion, after his brilliant victory a year ago, defeating Jon Rahm in a dramatic playoff. Today, after the official tournament presentation, he shared a press conference with the champion from Barrika, analysing his historic victory and what he expects from these days at the Club de Campo Villa de Madrid.
The tournament course: “The course, for what modern golf is, might be short. Better for me, I understand Jon prefers a longer course. The key is to hit well from the tee, everyone will have short clubs and if you’re accurate, you’ll have opportunities. I’ll practice on the course this afternoon and see how it is. I’ve been told it’s spectacular, one of the best times, looking forward to seeing it and enjoying the week”.
Repeating a finish like last year’s: “I’ll sign wherever you want. It would be a dream, I’m not going to lie, to repeat a playoff victory… If it’s against Jon, against Jon, if it’s against Pepito Pérez, Pepito Pérez. The week is very long, it will be new for me, we’ll see what position we’re in and if we reach Sunday with chances, that’s where the fun begins”
How he arrives at the tournament: “In terms of spirit, high, even if you arrive tired, playing at home with the crowd boosts your energy to 100. In terms of play, the year hasn’t been good at all, I haven’t managed to get decent results. A couple of weeks ago I played very well in Ireland, that gives confidence, but I’m eager to prepare for the tournament as best as possible these days. It’s always special to play at home, in Madrid, with the crowd supporting the Spaniards. It doesn’t matter how you arrive, you’re so motivated that the golf just flows”.
Preferred playing partners: “I already know the match, so… I’d say because of how comfortable I was playing here in Madrid and in Sotogrande, I’d say Jon, it was a pleasure, and then… I’d say David Puig, for the sake of repeating, we were comfortable and I think it would be something different, it’s not the same to play the last day as the first two rounds, it would be nice”.
The pressure of defending the title: “Well, I don’t know, as it hasn’t happened… It’s true that it happened to me that a few weeks after this tournament we played in Sotogrande and I felt a bit of pressure to do well, more than usual, I wasn’t used to arriving and having people look at me, so to speak. I learned a lot that week and although I haven’t had the luck to defend many tournaments in my life, I’ll try to enjoy it as much as possible, as always, and if the pressure affects me a lot, I’ll have to learn, and if not, even better”.
