Ángel de la Torre, Ángel Miguel, Ángel Gallardo, Miguel Ángel Jiménez and now Ángel Hidalgo. The man from Malaga is the fifth Ángel to win the Spanish Open. The fifth Ángel, in seventh heaven. Absolute happiness. He is also the twentieth different Spaniard to conquer it. And what a way…
History should forever remember what happened this Sunday, September 29, 2024, at the Club de Campo Villa de Madrid. It’s not just another victory for a Spanish player, it has been a memorable day, an extraordinary battle between Hidalgo, Jon Rahm and David Puig. A relentless fight full of alternations. Everyone led the tournament at some point in the round. Everyone had their chance to win the tournament.
The two birdies from Puig and Rahm on hole 1 and the bogey from Ángel, after missing a very short putt, made it very clear that it was going to be a long and hard round for everyone. It was Puig who started with more strength. He played like a clock the first seven holes of the day. Like a movie. One great shot after another. He signed a partial of four under and became the sole leader of the tournament. He even had a three-stroke difference. A cyclone.
However, on hole 8 there was a turning point. Puig triple-putted for bogey and birdie from Hidalgo and Rahm. The mistake hit the young man from La Garriga like a blow. He never recovered. He made a bogey on 9, after missing the shot on the left and made a new mistake on 11, long, to the path and big mess. He saved, in fact, a good bogey. But he never lifted his head to get into the fight for victory.
The tournament became a one-on-one between Hidalgo and Rahm. The man from Malaga was more lethal on the greens, although he also missed some short ones. He showed exceptional grit and courage. His birdie on 2 from the bunker, after the putt that escaped him on 1 was a statement of intent. Whoever wanted to win it, would have to knock him down. He was not going to make it easy. He was shaky with the 3 wood on the par 5s, escapes to the right, the pressure, but he also recovered wonderfully with two great birdies on holes 8 and 9.
The other key moment was Rahm’s hole 13. The man from Barrika had just missed a very clear birdie opportunity on 12 and it affected him. He played a very bad hole. He missed the tee shot, the second shot hit a tree, he went to the bunker with the third and could not make a sand save and putt. Devastating double bogey. Devastating for anyone, of course, except for Jon. Hidalgo took a breath, but there was still work to be done. Two birdies from Rahm on 17 and 18, champion’s lineage put him back in the fight.
Then came what seemed like the drama. Hidalgo, who played the last holes very well, had a putt of just over a meter on hole 72 to win the tournament, but it escaped him. Playoff. Tiebreaker. Hidalgo against Rahm. Ángel against Jon. A 26-year-old player who had not yet known victory on the DP World Tour, against a double Major winner, with a record of two out of two in tiebreaks won on the European Circuit.
It seemed that everything was for Rahm, but Hidalgo brought out his Ángel and signed two exceptional playoff holes. Birdie and birdie. They tied the first and won the second. Jon could not make the birdie from the rough on the left. It’s over. Spain adds a new player to the circle of DP World Tour winners. Number 34. Great, Ángel. Great, Jon. And great, David. Great Spanish golf.
