Atalaya Golf and Country Club and Río Real Golf Club will be the joint hosts of the fifth leg of The Gecko Tour from 24 to 26 November. Marbella is once again the focal point for Europe’s premier winter circuit. For many players The Gecko Tour is the ideal event to practice, compete and fine-tune their games in a superb climate for golf, at the same time as courses in the rest of Europe are closed due to cold weather and snow.
One of these players firmly committed to The Gecko Tour is Annabel Dimmock, a promising star of the future in Europe. She ended 2014 ranked number one on the Ladies’ Golf Union order of merit: i.e. the best amateur in Great Britain and Ireland. An outstanding achievement. Her impressive career as an amateur – including reaching 10th place in the world ranking – encouraged her to turn pro in February 2015, at just 18 years of age.
It was a relatively early move into the paid ranks but she is convinced of her possibilities. In fact, last year while still an amateur she finished in the top-30 of the Handa Ladies European Masters, a flagship event on the Ladies European Tour. In 2015 Annabel has had the opportunity of gaining further experience at the highest level, including appearances in three European Tour tournaments. She is currently preparing for the final of the Ladies European Tour Qualifying School, to be held in Morocco at the end of December.
Annabel enjoys being in Spain. Last year she was second in the prestigious Queen’s Cup match play event, losing by just 2&1 in a great final against Sweden’s Linnea Strom. She is a fine player with a highly competitive streak, particularly formidable in a match play format. She has played in the Curtis Cup and Junior Ryder Cup, and three weeks ago competed in the Gecko tournament at the Parador and Guadalhorce, won by Alfonso Gutiérrez.
Definitely one top women’s player to follow this week at Atalaya and Río Real – but not the only one, as Noemí Jiménez is also teeing up. It will be the young Málaga golfer’s final test in preparation for next week’s final of the US LPGA Qualifying School, to be held in Florida from 2 to 6 December. Noemí achieved an outstanding result in last week’s Gecko event, finishing fourth at Marbella Golf Club Resort.
Others taking advantage of the always excellent conditions at Atalaya and Río Real will be Carlos Balmaseda, Gabriel Cañizares, Manuel Quirós, Mark Tullo, who is playing for a second consecutive week, Carlos Rodiles, Marcos Pastor, Eirik Tage Johansen and Juan Parrón – to name just a few of the participants with major European Tour experience.
As is customary this season, the tournament will be played over three days. For the first two rounds the players rotate between the two courses, while the third and final round will be held at Atalaya after a cut at the conclusion of Wednesday’s play to the leading 20 plus ties. The charm and appeal of both courses – always high up on the list of players’ preferences – has resulted in a huge field. Nearly 100 players will be teeing off tomorrow at Atalaya and Río Real. The Gecko Tour moves into fifth gear.
