Ángel Ayora has just turned 21, is the best Spaniard in the Race to Dubai, and almost daily fights a fierce mental battle. Nothing serious, but it’s worth keeping in check. It has to do with the bar where he sets expectations and demands. It’s the eternal debate between seeing the glass half full or half empty. Yes, he is aware that he is having a good season, but inevitably it feels insufficient. In fact, he makes an effort to convince himself that being ranked 27th in the standings in his rookie season with three regular tournaments to go, having already secured his place in the Final in Dubai, and with the PGA Tour within reach is something very good. Very, very good.
Ayora, a native of Marbella, is pursuing the perfect balance between ambition, demands, and patience. Sometimes, it’s almost like walking a tightrope. He trusts his abilities, sees each week what his level is and how far he can go, but haste doesn’t help. He knows this and fights against it. He explained this on Wednesday to Ten Golf on the practice range at the Club de Campo Villa de Madrid. “There’s a bit of everything. I convince myself that the season is positive. If you look at it from the outside, for my age and how the year is going compared to other players I played with last year, the truth is it’s quite positive. This is very difficult. Obviously, I want to play better, but I think it’s very good. I’m aware of it, although I still have that hunger to want to do more,” he assures.
There is an obsession that haunts Ángel. Out of every five words that come out of his mouth, one is improve. He is always thinking and working with his team, led by Juan Ochoa, to find ways to grow. He knows that things don’t happen by chance, but with effort and sacrifice. He doesn’t count the hours he spends on the practice field. In fact, they have to stop him. His focus now is on the mental aspect and a little bug he has sentenced to death. “In this sport, you have to be at one hundred percent on every shot; ninety percent is not enough. I’m in search of a routine that gets you into the shot. Lately, the goal is to reach that mental state I have when I practice or play a pro-am: I want to do well, but without that ‘little bug’ in the back of my head telling me ‘be careful, you can’t miss here.’ In the pro-am, I also don’t want to miss, but I go with a certain aggressiveness and confidence that sometimes I lack in competition. It’s not easy; it’s very easy to say ‘play like you practice,’ but when it counts, it’s not that easy… That’s sport in general. You have to learn to deal with it. It’s a long road, little by little: take notes, analyze, try to improve, and that’s it.”
Ayora is having a very good season, but he wants more. The big goal hasn’t changed. It’s called the PGA Tour. “It has always been that: to get one of the ten cards. Now I’m closer than at the beginning. I still have to play very well, that’s clear, but it’s feasible, and I think I can achieve it if I keep playing as I am and with patience. You have to avoid the ‘bad’ ambition, the one that wants everything now; seek the good ambition, the one that pushes you upwards. It’s not easy; you have to find the balance and be patient when it’s difficult to be.” The mind buzzing. The tightrope. The mental battle.
The other goal is to be the rookie of the year on the DP World Tour. The Frenchman Martin Couvra has pulled away a bit (they are separated by just over 500 points), but there’s still a lot at stake. There’s enough room for the sorpasso. He thinks about it. With that goal, he will play everything: Open de España, India, Korea, Abu Dhabi, and Dubai. A victory would change everything, and he knows it. No one will explain to him how difficult it is, but no one will take away from his mind that he has the ability to win any of those five tournaments. Any.
The weakest point in Ayora’s game recently has been putting. It usually happens when someone is so good from tee to green and leaves so many opportunities. However, he has found something in recent weeks and is focusing on it the right way. “Last year, I noticed it more: I was playing incredible golf from tee to green and couldn’t make one on the green. Another golfer, with my long game, would average minus six. Now I have much more confidence. I changed putter. I’m with the Spider, the same as Rory McIlroy. I picked it up at the Open de France, and it’s been good for me. Putting is very mental: if you see it as your weak point, you have to stop believing it is. Otherwise, you go to putt thinking ‘I putt badly,’ and you have to get rid of that. On the course, even if things go wrong on the green, I go putt by putt: I arrive, see the break with Juan, choose a line, and hit it decisively. And I don’t let it affect the long game.” Good potion.
There have already been six top 10s this season and four top 5s. His goal is to win. It was also last year on the Challenge, and he ended up achieving it in Poland. Why not this week in Madrid? “I really like the course. I remember when I was in the Blume a tournament we played here. I went out in the last group with Luis de Miñón, a good friend of mine, also from the Blume, who was leading. On the last day, another player came from behind, one we didn’t know, tied with us, we went out the three of us to the playoff, and he ended up winning.” It’s time to get rid of that thorn…
If you see Ayora with short hair on Monday, maybe he has won the Open de España. “I don’t know what’s up with the curls. Everyone asks me about the same thing. It doesn’t stress me out. I’m trying it out, and when I get tired, I’ll cut it. They tell me if I win, I should cut it. We’ll see… Calm,” he assures with a laugh.
