Record Crowds Flock to the 2012 Portugal Masters at the Oceânico Victoria Golf Course
By: Golf Shake | Fri 19 Oct 2012
Irishman Shane Lowry clinched the 2012 Portugal Masters by one shot from England’s Ross Fisher in-front of record-breaking crowds at the Oceânico Victoria Golf Course this past weekend. Lowry’s win makes him only the second player to win on the European Tour as both an amateur and professional.
Confirmed again as the host venue for 2013, the Oceânico Victoria Golf Course has fast built a reputation for being one of the most popular stops on the European Tour. Blessed with magnificent weather throughout the week, record galleries flooded through the gates of the Arnold Palmer design to cheer on local hero Ricardo Santos as well as the likes of Ryder Cup captain José María Olazábal, Martin Kaymer and Francesco Molinari.
The overall attendance figure was boosted by Sunday’s gate of 11,987, an increase of 3,040 on the previous year’s total. Chris Stilwell, Oceânico Group CEO said, “These strong numbers are testament to golf’s continued popularity on the Algarve as this stellar tournament continues to go from strength-to-strength, playing a significant role in tourism development in Portugal. I would like to praise the hard work and co-ordination from the Oceânico team, the European Tour and all the volunteers whose efforts have been critical in putting on such a successful tournament.”
Oceânico Group Brand Ambassador, Ricardo Santos, led the home-grown talent with a stunning 65 in the final round to finish in tied 16th position on -6. Santos commented: “The crowds have been exceptionally supportive all week and were a pleasure to play in front of.” Following in Santo’s footsteps Portuguese amateurs Pedro Figueiredo and Ricardo Melo Gouveia finished T27 on -5 and T60 on level par respectively.
The crowd support was not limited to the Portuguese players, with winner Lowry paying tribute to the reception he received; “It was like playing in Ireland. It was crazy! It was great.”
For more information on Oceânico Victoria Golf visit: www.oceanicogolf.com
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