The Commercial Bank Qatar Masters is taking place this week and the Spanish Armada is automatically sharpening its fangs. The recent (and not so recent) history throws up too significant data not to take into account. Even, it is hard to assume that it is just a twist of fate, although it is almost impossible to establish concrete, scientific causes that explain the good results of our players in Qatar, beyond the fact that, it seems, the standard Spanish player adapts with some naturalness to the playing conditions that prevail in the desert and to the style of courses that are given in those parts. Having made such a preamble, let’s now ask the question: Why is it inevitable to think that this Sunday we will have at least one Spanish player with a chance of victory at the Doha Golf Club?
– Because the history of the Spanish Armada is resounding in this regard in the last fifteen editions. Since the 2009 edition, included, and up to the last Qatar Masters, held in October 2023, there was always at least one Spanish player who went out on the last day a maximum of five strokes from the leader. Always. In all this time (2009-2023) only in one edition, that of 2021, no Spanish player finished in the top ten of the tournament, but even that year Jorge Campillo started the last round in tenth position and five strokes from the leader…
As an anecdote, the 2012 edition can be remembered, which was resolved in three rounds. On that occasion Sergio García went out to play the last round four strokes from the leader, but up to six more Spaniards went out to play it five strokes from the head (Rafa Cabrera Bello, Alejandro Cañizares, Carlos del Moral, Gonzalo Fernández Castaño, Pablo Larrazábal and José María Olazábal).
You can go much further: in twelve of those fifteen editions we had at least one Spanish player who went out in the last round less than five strokes from the leader. And in ten of them we had at least one Spaniard who went out in the last round three or less strokes from the head.
– Because in the last fifteen editions the Armada has three victories, Álvaro Quirós in 2009, Sergio García in 2014 and Jorge Campillo in 2020, which means that this happened in twenty percent of the occasions, which is already good when you are talking about winning.
– Because in addition in six of these fifteen editions at least one Spanish player finished in second position, which means that this happened in forty percent of the occasions. Another really staggering fact. The last second place, by the way, dates from the last edition (October 2023), in which Jorge Campillo lost the play-off with the Finn Sami Valimaki.
– Because in twelve of these fifteen editions at least one Spanish player finished among the top five, which means that this has happened in eighty percent of the occasions. And because in fourteen of these fifteen editions at least one Spanish player finished among the top ten, which means that this happened in 93.3 percent of the occasions. In case more revealing data were needed…
– Because all these achievements are spread among a wide list of players. Up to twelve: Álvaro Quirós, Sergio García, Jorge Campillo, Rafa Cabrera Bello, Nacho Elvira, Pablo Larrazábal, Gonzalo Fernández Castaño, Alejandro Cañizares, Adrián Otaegui, Santi Tarrio, Carlos del Moral and José María Olazábal. In this 2024 edition, of the thirteen Spaniards who are going to compete, we have the presence of up to six Spanish players who have not yet left their mark in the top part of the Qatar Masters classification, who are Alejandro del Rey, Manu Elvira, Ángel Hidalgo, Alfredo García Heredia, Iván Cantero and Sebas García. And no, it would not be strange at all if any of these six were added to the list…
– As a peculiar conclusion, let’s say that Spanish golf is the only one that has sung victory in the two scenarios that this tournament has had, the Doha Golf Club (Quirós and Sergio) and the Education City Golf Club (Campillo). It is true that in the course of the Education City Golf Club, designed by Olazábal, only two editions have been held. But let the detail be recorded.
