This Friday marks the start of the professional competition at the Staysure Marbella Legends and the Legends Experience at Aloha Golf where the favourite is Miguel Ángel Jiménez. His track record, his passion for his homeland, and his start to the season mean all eyes are on the man from Málaga who returns home with the aim of winning.
And he arrives in great form after achieving his 14th victory on the Champions Tour, at the Hassan II Trophy in Morocco, and securing a 2nd place in Hawaii in this short season, making him the clear favourite at the Staysure Marbella Legends which will be held over three days at Aloha Golf.
Interview with Miguel Ángel Jiménez
“I am happy, in good shape, doing what I love in life, what more could you want? For me, golf is a way of life, golf has given me everything and I have given my life to golf and golf has given back to me as well; and here we are, bringing joy to each other, both golf to me and me to golf.
I do miss competing at the Tour level, playing four rounds, with its cut, the competitiveness, which hasn’t been lost because we are in the Champions! Here people practice, people train, people have a very high level, no one should think we are just having a casual game, because people compete at an impressive level; you only have to look at the results you get each week and those who are at the top. I miss it a little, but I am 61 years old and you can’t endure the same as when you were 30. Everything related to golf, I like it all. There is nothing I don’t miss, I keep competing and that keeps me going.
I have my academy where there are many young people and many older people too. We are producing golf players and people who enjoy playing golf. Then the rest, the future, you never know what will happen. The circuit we have and the academy is getting young people into the sport, older people too because there are many retirees who are starting, and it suits them great. But it’s true that getting young people hooked on a sport and feeling motivated is important, because they are the future, whether they become golf players or not; having the sport and practising it as professionals or amateurs is very important for them, to have a healthy life, a free mind, to have fun and whatever will be, will be.
The last time I played at Aloha Golf I was also the tournament organiser, I spent six years organising it. And the last one was here, at Aloha. A good experience… painful but an experience nonetheless. You learn from everything. Now I come in a different way, I am very excited that it is here because it is a course I love, which is in perfect condition, and this is the only Legends tournament besides the Senior Open that I play, because I am one hundred per cent involved in the Champions Tour in America.
Returning home is wonderful. I leave next week and don’t return here until the end of July, so this is a very special week for my life.
In these two years without victories, there haven’t been any adjustments, I wasn’t playing badly but the results I was looking for weren’t coming because the level is very high. And now that I am back with Cliff, my caddie, I have good support, because we know each other well, we have worked together for 10 years. He was away for 2 years and now he’s back, he knows me well, I know him too and there is very good chemistry between us, it’s important to feel comfortable on the course.
I come to win. You have to have a goal, things are achieved step by step and shot by shot, you have to concentrate on what you do every moment with the final goal, you have to have motivation. And it would be a joy to win”.
ProAm Staysure Marbella Legends
Today the second ProAm prior to the competition at the Staysure Marbella Legends at Aloha Golf took place, where the team led by professional Stephen Gallacher with amateurs Austin Carey, Rod Spinks, and Roddy Combes emerged victorious. The prize-giving ceremony was presided over by Lisandro Vieytes, Deputy Mayor and Sports Councillor of Marbella, Phil Harrison, CEO of the Legends Tour, Rafael Fontán, President of Aloha Golf, and Miguel Ángel Guerrero, Director of Golf at Turismo Costa del Sol.
First day Staysure Marbella Legends
Tomorrow from 9.00 in the morning the competition will start at Aloha Golf; the matches, in which two professionals and one amateur will play, will start from the 1st and 10th tees, from 9.00h to 11.20h. There are a total of 7 Spaniards who will participate in the professional competition: 9.30 Carlos Suneson from the 1st tee; 10.00 Santi Luna from the 10th tee; 10.10 Juan Quirós from the 1st tee; 10.30 Carlos Balmaseda from the 10th tee; 10.40 José Mª Olazábal from the 1st tee; 10.40 Miguel Ángel Martín from the 10th tee; 10.50 Miguel Ángel Jiménez from the 1st tee.
