Carlos Alcaraz, one of the great stars of world tennis, winner of six Grand Slam tournaments (two editions of the US Open, two of Wimbledon, and another two of Roland Garros), is in the spotlight this Wednesday at the Club de Campo Villa de Madrid participating in the pro-am of the Spanish Open Golf, which starts tomorrow and is organized by the same people as the Mutua Madrid Open.
At Ten-Golf, we had the opportunity to follow on the course, shot by shot, a match in which the Murcian played with the great figure of Spanish golf, Jon Rahm, with Feliciano López, another of the great talents that tennis in our country has produced, and with a friend of Carlitos, Borja Plácido, who showcased his sensational club handling, demonstrating why he has a handicap of just 0.3 compared to Alcaraz‘s 11.2 and Feliciano‘s 21.
When the stars align at @ccvmoficial ✨ @carlosalcaraz joins the #OpenEspana pro-am with @JonRahmOfficial, @TheSergioGarcia, David Puig & @feliciano_lopez 😎@DPWorldTour | @atptour | @TennisTV pic.twitter.com/Bwx3rtyfEr
— Open de España presented by Madrid (@OpendeEspana) October 8, 2025
Upon arriving at the 1st tee early in the morning, a cheerful Carlos, who stopped at every step to greet those he met along the way, faced the harsh reality of competition. He soon confessed that it was the first pro-am he had ever played in his life, and he indeed seemed quite nervous. On his first drive, he missed the fairway by a lot, but it seemed to be a release for him, as he didn’t hesitate to express, “What a nerve-wracking first shot, honestly.”
The dynamics in the first shots were similar for him throughout much of the nine holes he shared with the champion from Barrika. And although he was very competitive at the beginning, assuring that he was going to try to “win” the pro-am, he soon relaxed and began to enjoy a match among friends and with a golfer of Jon‘s calibre, who, after practising on the course yesterday afternoon, was making his final adjustments before the tournament.
Carlitos started from the yellows on the 1st, but his friend Borja was encouraged from the whites from the second hole, and the Murcian followed him. Although from the 5th hole, he backtracked and returned to the yellows. It was the moment when he began to feel better on the course and, without the initial tension, to demonstrate that besides being an extraordinary tennis player, he wasn’t bad at hitting the ball with clubs either.
On the 6th fairway, Alcaraz hit what was probably his best shot of the day, a great 6-iron from 170 meters to leave it just over three meters from the flag. And although he didn’t manage to make the birdie, he came away with a good par, which he repeated on the 7th with another very good second shot, bringing the ball five meters from the target. On the 8th, from 100 meters, he wasn’t as precise, but he did find the green and solved the situation with two putts.
For Rahm, the pro-am was especially fruitful. Beyond being able to share a round with Carlos and start forging a friendship like the one he maintains with other stars of Spanish sport, the man from Barrika made it clear that, on a shorter course than he is used to, his power from the tee can be decisive in the fight for victory. Today he was especially precise, hitting all the fairways except the 7th, although he lacked some accuracy on the greens.
The fun moment of the round came on the 6th hole when Jon tried to clear the dry lake area from the tee, next to the bridge, but didn’t succeed. “Clearing the lake is for Schwarzenegger,” said Carlos amid laughter from his playing partners. For their second shot, they chose Feliciano‘s ball, and with a great 6-iron, Rahm left it just over three meters away. Spectacular, as usual.
The nine holes flew by due to the good atmosphere in the group. They were seen cheerful, relaxed, sharing laughs and confidences, having a good time. Feliciano proved to be very good from the tee, and in his pair, they almost always chose his ball for the second shot. And Borja, a friend of Alcaraz, dared to challenge Jon from the tee on a couple of holes, the 7th and the 8th. A sensational morning of golf between two giants of Spanish sport that the Murcian continued later by playing the next nine with Shane Lowry.
