Once again this year, the Andalucía Valderrama Masters hosted by the Sergio García Foundation, scheduled for October 18-21 at Real Club Valderrama, will become the key promotional initiative of the Junta de Andalucía for professional golf, as it showcases the region’s sports and tourism potential.
The arrival of 450,000 golf visitors from all over the world over the past year to Andalusia – spending three times more than regular tourists – highlights the importance of golf for the development of the area. Golf is a major industry in Andalusia and priority strategic sector for the Tourism and Sports Council.
With the purpose of reinforcing its attractiveness, Turismo Andaluz has set up a number of promotional actions in various regions – France, Central Europe or the Nordic countries – designed to supplement the involvement of Junta de Andalucía in top tier professional golf events such as the Andalucía Costa del Sol Match Play 9, the women’s Andalucía Costa del Sol Open de España and, last but not least, the Andalucía Valderrama Masters, the final stop in the European Tour regular schedule.
During the official tournament presentation recently held at Valderrama, Antonio Fernández, Secretary General for sports of the Junta de Andalucía said: “Sports and tourism, tourism and sports are the perfect combination in order to promote development and wealth creation. What is the worth of reaching 400 million homes, the actual outreach of the Andalucía Valderrama Masters? A huge figure that reinforces the commitment and longstanding support of the Junta de Andalucía for this golf tournament. These big international events provide the perfect showcase for our wonderful region as they associate Andalusia with quality and excellence”.
The presence of 41,494 spectators attending last year’s edition underlines the impact of these events, both direct and through the media. As the Andalucía Valderrama Masters is viewed in 400 million homes worldwide, it showcases the appeal of Andalusia, its climate, its golf courses and its rich complementary offer.
On the other hand, hosting a top-class event boosts the efforts of the Sports Council as it works to bring the game of golf to the general public. Andalusia is the Spanish autonomous region that offers the greatest number of golf courses, the second, only behind Madrid, in number of golf licenses, and boasts the greatest number of golf facilities per square metre in Continental Europe.
Statistics confirm the great job that is being done at the public golf schools fostered by the Council in order to make golf accessible to all, coupled with an increasing number of initiatives aimed at promoting the game among youngsters, women and families.
From October 18-21, all of them will have the opportunity to witness first-hand the excitement of the Andalucía Valderrama Masters, an outstanding golf event that culminates the efforts of the Junta de Andalucía in the field of professional golf.
Tickets for the 2018 Andalucía Valderrama Masters hosted by the Sergio García Foundation are available. Children under 14 are admitted to the event free of charge when accompanied by a ticket holding adult.
The Andalucía Valderrama Masters hosted by the Sergio García Foundation is sponsored by the Council of Tourism and Sport of the Junta de Andalucía through the European Regional Development Fund of the European Union, with the added institutional support of the Diputación de Cádiz, the San Roque City Council and the Royal Andalusian Golf Federation. It also enjoys the support of La Reserva de Sotogrande, Rolex, Heineken, Dubai Duty Free, Santander Private Banking, Shell, Exterior Plus and Samsic Iberia. Only Water, Grupo Hospitalario Quirónsalud, Coca-Cola, Varma and Korporate Technologies Group are official suppliers.