Left to right: Joao Pinto, LET Tournament Director; Margarita del Cid, CEO of Costa del Sol Tourism; Gonzaga Escauriaza, president of the Royal Spanish Golf Federation; Nuria Rodríguez, territorial delegate of Tourism, Regeneration, Justice and Local Administration of the Junta de Andalucía; Manuel Cardeña, Sports Councillor of Marbella; Julian Romaguera, Director General of Los Naranjos Golf Club; Alicia Garrido, Executive Director of Deporte and Business and Pablo Mansilla, President of the Andalusian Golf Federation.
Los Naranjos Golf Club, the venue for the Andalucía Costa del Sol Open de España, served as an optimal setting to bring together the main entities and organisations involved in its implementation ahead of the LET’s season-ending finale on the Race to Costa del Sol.
The shared excitement and harmony between all the speakers was palpable at the Marbella Club on Monday ahead of the tournament, which will feature a stellar line-up including Europe’s recent victorious Solheim Cup Captain Catriona Matthew and leading Spaniard Carlota Ciganda. In addition, three players who combine youth and quality, who have all won two LET titles this season, include the outstanding leader of the Race to Costa del Sol, Atthaya Thitikul from Thailand, Slovenian Pia Babnik and Sweden’s Maja Stark.
The collaboration between the different institutions and companies that support the Andalucía Costa del Sol Open de España and the upcoming Solheim Cup 2023 was evident in their enthusiastic statements.
“We are proud that our city is hosting a tournament of such significance as the Andalucía Costa del Sol Open de España, a competition that continues to strengthen our brand as an unrivalled destination for sports and for hosting events of international stature,” said Manuel Cardeña, Sports Councillor of Marbella.
“With the Solheim Cup 2023 in the spotlight, this Spanish Open is an ideal warm-up and a new opportunity to exhibit all our attractions,” said the councillor, who emphasised “the great level of sporting talent in the tournament field of competitors, which will be important when it comes to continuing to attract fans to enjoy golf in our city.”
For her part, Nuria Rodríguez, territorial delegate of Tourism, Regeneration, Justice and Local Administration of the Junta de Andalucía, highlighted the projection offered by the tournament to Andalusia.
“This sponsorship provides the opportunity to have an excellent platform to improve the positioning of the Andalusia brand as a leading golf tourist destination, not only for the wide variety of its 100 courses, but also for its excellent communications, its wide hotel offering and the varied complementary tourist products that accompany the sport”, explained the territorial delegate, highlighting that Andalusia is a safe destination for the celebration of large events.
Margarita del Cid, CEO of Costa del Sol Tourism, also wanted to highlight the impact and dissemination offered by both the tournament and the Race to Costa del Sol, a mainstay in its communication strategy.
“This year the Open is held at Los Naranjos Golf Club, an unparalleled setting that acts as a magnificent ambassador for the courses offered by our Costa del Sol. As you know, the tournament is also the last on the Race to Costa del Sol, the Ladies European Tour’s official ranking, sponsored by Turismo Costa del Sol, which shows our strong commitment to women’s golf and is already giving us an important projection of brand and image in markets of special interest to the destination”, commented Margarita del Cid.
“Today is undoubtedly a day of celebration and satisfaction for our joint work, a day that encourages us because it seems that we have left the tunnel and started to recover the normality of tourist activity, also in the golf segment, with our vision set on a dream that is getting closer: to receive the Solheim Cup on the Costa del Sol”.
Gonzaga Escauriaza, president of the Royal Spanish Golf Federation, praised the quality and prestige of Los Naranjos Golf Club, and highlighted the united action in organising the great women’s golf events that will take place in Andalusia and the Costa del Sol.
“We must mention the outstanding commitment made by the Andalusian and Malaga public golfing institutions, to show everyone that you can play our sport in November and December on the Costa del Sol, both for its weather and for the quality of its courses. As if that were not enough, we have the organisation of the Solheim Cup 2023 on the horizon. Together, we will become a golfing reference for the whole world, and this week’s Andalucía Costa del Sol Open de España is a great example of everyone working together for a common goal,” concluded the president of the RFEG.
The week of the Andalucía Costa del Sol Open de España has officially begun and the activities will continue on Wednesday, with Spanish Solheim Cup star Carlota Ciganda hitting a ceremonial tee shot into the marina at Puerto Banús at 5pm, in a ceremony sponsored by Reale Seguros, with the participation of Make-A-Wish Spain, the charitable foundation that collaborates with the tournament and contributes to making the dreams of children with serious illnesses come true. The Spanish star will hit the shot to a floating green and launch the challenge #birdiesforwishes to her peers, a challenge that will serve to raise funds for Make-A-Wish Spain.
Tickets for the Andalucía Costa del Sol Open de España, starting on Thursday at Los Naranjos Golf Club, are available free of charge in the Tickets section of the tournament website openfemenino.com by completing a simple registration form.
Follow all the news from the Andalucía Costa del Sol Open de España on the official tournament website, openfemenino.com, Twitter @Openfemenino, Instagram @spanishopen and Facebook @openfemenino, as well as on the official LET website ladieseuropeantour.com, Twitter @LETgolf; Instagram @LETgolf, Facebook @LadiesEuropeanTour.
