The wait is over. The second edition of NIN9RS Games gets under way this Wednesday at Izki Golf, venue for the first event of the year coinciding with the XXII Campeonato de la PGA de España Dobles. By coincidence, the country’s most talked-about team competition starts with a pairs tournament. It couldn’t be better.
The curtain also rises in a place with plenty of character. Izki Golf, a project signed by Seve Ballesteros, in the heart of La Rioja Alavesa and which provides scenery, history and character to the opening of the second edition
Atlas Golf by Lleida begins its bid to reclaim the title it took in the 2025 season. Eleven teams will try to stop them from the off
There is an important nuance in this first stop of the season. The PGA Dobles is played in a fourball better-ball format, that is, pairs compete and on each hole the better score of the two players counts.
How does the format of this tournament transfer to NIN9R Games? That is the particularity and it is important to be clear from the start. Team competition points are not assigned to the pair as a unit, but are split between the two players who make up that duo according to the final position they achieve in the tournament. Put simply: normally, in an individual event, the winner adds 18 points for NIN9R Games. However, since this event is played as pairs, those 18 points do not go in full to a single player, but are divided between the two members of the winning pair. The same applies to the other scoring positions: the points corresponding to the final placing are shared between both players. The total points will determine this week’s winning team.
There is one more particularity. The top twenty pairs after the first round will make the cut, although for the purposes of the overall competition standings duos finishing the first 18 holes in positions 21 to 30 will also score. Giving up if things go wrong is not an option, because even if you miss the cut you can still provide vital points for the team
That means this opening stop has a slightly different logic. It is not enough to place the five players well: it also matters how they are paired, because each pair’s performance directly affects the points haul each member receives and, by extension, the team (see line-ups below). It is an event with the scent of doubles on the course, yes, and with very real consequences for winning this first stop and making a strong start in the NIN9R Games overall standings.
The tournament, it must be said, features great names from Spanish golf such as Álvaro Quirós or Gonzalo Fernández Castaño. Ángel Hidalgo, champion of the Open de España 2024, is also competing; although he is not part of NIN9RS Games, he adds prestige to the event
The cards are on the table, the countdown is over. This Tuesday players were able to fine-tune their preparations and this Wednesday the competition gets under way. The race to Isla Canela begins, where the grand final of this edition will be played in December. The time has come to prove it on the course
Line-ups for Izki Golf
Dacar Iron Masters
- Daniel Berná
- Scott Fernández
- Pedro Oriol
- Juan Salama
- Antonio Hortal
Andalucía Penguins
- Mario García Garoz
- Enrique Marín
- Pedro Marín
- Emilio Hernández
Galicia Pulpos
- Antón Vázquez
- Luis Portela
- Tomy Artigas
- Ignacio Mateo
- Diego Moreno
Xorkyo Frogs
- Mario Galiano
- Asier Aguirre
- Jacobo Pastor
- Borja Virto
- Javier Sainz
Valencia Vikings
- Gastón
- Rubén Lafuente
- Carlos Abril
- Liam Murray
- Jordan Gibbs
Golden Lions
- Agustí Quinquilla
- Álvaro Morales
Mermaos by Aiuken
- Vicente Blázquez
- Luis Claverie
- Carlos Suneson
- Diego Dupín
- Carlos Balmaseda
Eggs Golf Marbella
- Víctor Mouttet
- Olivier Cabello
- Christian Asensio
- Casto Gómez
- Diego Torné
Codex Golf Linces
- Alfonso Buendía
- Álvaro Quirós
- Joseba Torres
- Pablo Alperi
- Álvaro Velasco
Madrid Warriors
- Sandro Barrio
- Pepe Isbert
- Marcos Banet
- Pedro Rabadán
- Javier Herrero
Dhamma Blue Barbarians
- David Salgado
- Sigot López
- Gregorio Ferrández
- Esteban Vázquez
- Julio Moreno
Atlas Golf Lleida
- Emilio Cuartero
- Gerard Piris
- Alejandro Esmatges
- Kevin Esteve
- Carlos Pigem
