The Valderrama field in Cádiz will host the LIV Andalucia this Sunday, a tournament that will feature both Basque Jon Rahm and Castellon-born Sergio Garcia. He is looking for a win – his first of the year and also on the Saudi circuit – to confirm his good form against the brand new champion of the United States Open, Bryson DeChambeau.
It will not be easy for the Spaniards, since the list of LIV players, in addition to DeChambeau, includes great personalities such as the Americans Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnshon or Tyler Gooch. In addition to Chile’s Joaquín Niemann, winner of the previous LIV AndalusiaIn a “different” and “prestigious” area, in recent months, the infamous.
“Very strategic”, “unique”, “world-class”, “different”… All the players who passed through the tournament press room during these final hours highlighted the difficulty of the course, as they recognized Rahm, it is “very special” because of the history and tradition behind it, but also because “it is one of the few in which the day ends with +1”. “You have a chance to be in the top ten.”
A complex ‘hard’
The course will have a little more “roll” than usual, especially around the greens, though it also strives to be “fair” From the ‘tee’ – the exit -, the trees have been cut higher to prevent the ball from rubbing against the cork oak or any tree in the area, so that the ball can roll more easily, explained the Director General of the area, Javier Revieiro, in the last few hours.
However, the club has tried to make the greens harder and faster “so that it’s not too easy for the players.” Those who “virguería” around the ‘green’ are however aware of the level of players who will arrive on the Cádiz field this weekend: “Any given day they could break the course record, so we’re looking for a tough but fair course.”
Thus, the golf course where the 1997 Ryder Cup was played was the first outside the British IslesSet to host the LIV for the second consecutive year, that brings Sotogrande (caddies) to a total of fourteen major winners, a classification that also stars Mickelson with six, and Brooks Koepka with five.
Rahm, the great charm
For Jon Rahm, one of the tournament’s great attractions for the Spanish public, said “if there’s a place to get your first win of the year”, “this is it”. The man from Barrica (Vizcaya) has not lived longer than 450 days and knows that on two out of three occasions Anyone who has played at Valderrama hasn’t made the cutAnd.
You won’t have that problem, Merci. Because the format of this LIV Andalusia – unlike any other, be it the PGA or the European Tour -, does not have a traditional ‘cut’ on the second dayA, as it is held over three days from Friday to Sunday.
The Basque player, who, like many others, faces, After spending a month with Valderrama, the British Open and the Olympic Games, he is looking for his turning point in Valderrama. “There’s one day, a ‘swing,’ something that changes everything and you start a good streak,” Rahm said, adding that he hopes that day will be one of the next three.
Sergio’s favorite area
It happens to be very similar to what happens to Sergio García, although in his case what he wants is to confirm his good moment. Although he will not be at the British Open, the player from Borriol (Castellón) has enjoyed a string of very good tournaments in recent months and He confirmed this by finishing tied for twelfth at the United States Open Just from a month ago.
Sergio Garcia LIV Golf is one of the great attractions of Andalusia / EFE
“Valderrama is still Valderrama, although they have made it less difficult,” García commented this Thursday.Who stressed that he did not even remember the first time he visited the club, although he would have been about thirteen years old when he attended his first tournament in the Cadiz town of Valderrama, famous for its small greens where it is difficult to go to attack the flag.
The one who also returns to Spain is David Puig. The Catalan arrives in his country after confirming himself as one of the sixty players who will compete at the Olympic Games, and although he is “aware” of the urgency of the moment, As he is barely 22 years old, he wants to enjoy the first of the four great tournaments that lie ahead.
Young Catalan golfer, David Puig, is looking for his first win at LIV Golf / EFE
Nieman also points out
This trio of Spaniards, which also includes Eugenio Charraca – the only Spaniard to win an individual LIV tournament -, want to challenge the ferocity accumulated in recent months by Chile’s Joaquin Niemann, the leader in points in LIV. LIV, A classification in which he scores 36 more points than RahmWhich ranks second after winning at Mayakoba (Mexico) and Jeddah (Saudi Arabia).
Although he is yet to win at LIV this season, one of the main contenders, American Bryson DeChambeau, has won at the US Open. For the title of this tournament in which he had finished second in his first visit last yearAt the time he was just one stroke behind his compatriot Taylor Gooch, who will defend his title.
