La Manga Club had the enviable privilege of being associated with Severiano Ballesteros at the peak of his glorious career, and Spain’s flagship resort will pay further homage to the golfing legend by hosting a qualifying event for the 2017 Seve Ballesteros Foundation Challenge charity golf tournament.
Taking place on Saturday June 3, the qualifier is expected to attract a bumper field when it is played on the Murcian resort’s popular North Course in aid of the charity named after the star, who lost his battle against brain cancer in 2011 and would have celebrated his 60th birthday earlier this month.
This year will be the fifth time that La Manga Club has staged a Seve Ballesteros Foundation Challenge event, with the pairs competition at the resort one of 25 that will be held at clubs around the country from now until September.
The winners from each qualifier will then gather at Pedreña Golf Club in northern Spain to compete in the national final on October 28, with the winning duo going forward to play in the 2018 EurAsia Cup Pro-Am in Malaysia next year.
Ballesteros made his European Tour debut as a 17-year-old at La Manga Club in the 1974 Spanish Open – one of five successive years the resort held the prestigious tournament.
The European Tour legend was the resort’s touring professional from 1980-85, when he won three of his five Major titles, while La Manga Club honoured Ballesteros – who also owned a house at the resort – last year by exclusively dedicating a corner of its refurbished and rebranded 37 Spike & Sports Bar to his memory and achievements.
The Seve Ballesteros Foundation has been working in close collaboration with the Spanish National Oncologic Centre since 2011 and has so far raised hundreds of thousands of pounds for brain cancer research.
Javier Ballesteros, president of the Seve Ballesteros Foundation: “My brothers and I want to thank everyone for the support that the Foundation receives from entities, sponsors and many friends. We are very excited to continue with the work that my father began.”
Set across an area of 1,400 acres, La Manga Club has been at the forefront of European sports and leisure destinations since its inception in 1972.
Featuring three 18-hole golf courses, a nine-hole academy course and outstanding practice facilities, the resort has enjoyed a rich golfing history over the last four decades. Golfing legends Gary Player and Arnold Palmer also figure prominently in its past, while its array of other outstanding sports and leisure amenities, bars and restaurants has helped establish it as a firm favourite with golfers worldwide.
La Manga Club has won numerous leading international awards including, most recently, being voted ‘Spain’s Best Golf Resort’ by readers of the UK magazine Today’s Golfer for the last six years in a row and being selected to receive an‘Editors’ Choice Award for Best International Resorts 2017’ in Golf Digest’s annual list of the ‘Best Things in Golf’.
The official overseas training base of the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA), the venue’s unrivalled facilities as a sports and leisure destination also include a 28-court tennis centre and a 2,000sqm spa and fitness centre. In addition, it also features the choice of a five-star hotel, four-star serviced apartments and townhouses and more than 20 bars and restaurants.
For more details on La Manga Club, visit www.lamangaclub.com