La Cala GolfWorld Open attracts players from all over Europe

The 6th La Cala GolfWorld Open played at the end of November attracted players from all over Europe. This extremely successful 54-hole event is unique in the region as the competitors play the three La Cala 18-hole courses: Campo America, Campo Asia and Campo Europa over three days. There is a real party atmosphere for the tournament with the pairings changing each day and this combined with the unique format and excellent weather, means many of the players now consider it a permanent fixture in their diaries. Apart from the hardy annuals, there were many new faces this year and all welcomed the addition of a Texas Scramble on the eve of the competition proper and saw it as a great way to get to know the other competitors.

There was an increase in the number of Finnish and Spanish players this year in addition to golfers from all over the UK and Ireland, Russia, The Netherlands, Belgium, Scandinavia and France.

The overall winner was Liam Marnane from Dublin, Ireland. Liam and his wife, Rosemary, were playing in their first GolfWorld Open. Liam says, “The first time we played at the resort was in March of 2009. We picked up some information about the GolfWorld Open then but we couldn’t come last year. We were very happy with the event. It was so well organised and the weather was superb too. The official welcome reception was great to tell us how it would be run and to meet some of the other players.” As part of his prize Liam has been invited to play the competition and stay in Hotel La Cala next year, free of charge.

Other competitors explained how the competition was one that appealed so much they even brought their friends this year. “We first played in the GolfWorld Open in 2007 and couldn’t get back until this year. We are members of Leighton Buzzard GC and we have brought six fellow members with us. We have an apartment in Alhaurin Golf but we love it here. We have seen so many people we recognise from three years ago. It’s been great and everyone is really enjoying it. It’s a brilliant format and it was a good idea to have a Texas Scramble on the eve of the competition proper, as it gave us all a chance to meet each other.” (William & Julie Smith, Bedfordshire, England).

“This is our fifth year coming we love it and really look forward to meeting up with everyone from the year before. This year we also brought six friends over from our club, Lanhydrock GC, and they are all having a fantastic time. It is just so well organised. I liked the addition of a Texas Scramble this year. It was good fun and a nice way to meet the other players.” (Ian & Lesley Pocklington, Cornwall, England).

La Cala’s Director of Leisure is José Navas. “One of the reasons this competition is such a success is that we adapt it to meet the requests of the players. To increase further the social element, we replaced the practice day with a Texas Scramble and it was a great success, giving the competitors a chance to play with even more people. We also believe the package is unbeatable for value and enjoyment and just by word-of-mouth this has become one of our biggest competitions of the year.”

Over the past 20 years, La Cala Resort has developed into the biggest golf and leisure destination in Spain with 3x18 hole course, a luxury hotel & spa plus a David Leadbetter Academy. The resort is ideally located in the heart of the Costa del Sol between Marbella and Mijas and only 30 minutes from Málaga Airport.

Visit www.lacala.com for more information.