{"id":7573,"date":"2014-06-19T13:25:16","date_gmt":"2014-06-19T12:25:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/golfcircus.com\/?p=7573"},"modified":"2014-06-19T13:25:16","modified_gmt":"2014-06-19T12:25:16","slug":"miguel-angel-jimenez-pata-negra-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/golfcircus.com\/en\/miguel-angel-jimenez-pata-negra-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Miguel \u00c1ngel Jim\u00e9nez, pata negra"},"content":{"rendered":"

Three decades after launching his golf career, Miguel \u00c1ngel Jim\u00e9nez is embarking on a new professional and personal era. At 50, and after finishing fourth in the US Masters at Augusta, winning on his US Champions Tour senior debut and securing his first Spanish Open title, the M\u00e1laga-born golfer talks to Golf Circus about his current thoughts and aspirations, during an interview at his golf academy in Torremolinos. <\/strong><\/p>\n

He arrives in a slightly hurried state. \u201cNow I\u2019m with you. Sorry for the delay,\u201d<\/strong><\/em> he says to our publisher and editor, Jos\u00e9 Mar\u00eda Ferreira, \u201cbut I\u2019ve been making myself look handsome \u2013 I\u2019m getting married in a couple of days.\u201d \u201cYes, I\u2019ve head something about that,\u201d<\/strong><\/em> our publisher replies, prompting a smile from the golfing star.<\/p>\n

Now that you are getting married, how do you think it will be being away from home so often?<\/strong>
\nI don\u2019t know, we\u2019ll see, but what I do know is that catching flights is not my thing. If it weren\u2019t for the fact that this means I can do something I like doing, competing, then I wouldn\u2019t be taking any flight.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Miguel<\/a>Today you are meeting us at your academy, a dream project which has finally become a reality. Tell us a bit about how the idea evolved\u2026<\/strong>
\nI\u2019m always aware that I should return to this sport everything it has given me. This is a purely personal project. <\/p>\n

It was inaugurated about a year ago but when did the idea originate?<\/strong>
\nActually quite a while ago. Initially it was a different project which, due to the crisis, was postponed, until the opportunity arose to do what today is a reality.<\/p>\n

Has it had any kind of state backing?<\/strong>
\nWell, if you are referring to financial support I would say no \u2013 the project has been completed with its own resources. As I noted before, it\u2019s a personal project undertaken with a large dose of enthusiasm, although that doesn\u2019t mean it hasn\u2019t also had lots of support from people who have been just enthusiastic about it as me. <\/p>\n

When we look at these greens it\u2019s hard to stop thinking about how much they must have cost. Can you give us an idea how they have been built? I understand the finest materials have been used and they have been built \u201clike the best\u201d.<\/strong>
\nThe greens have been built on a foundation of rocks and smaller pebbles and with thorns for perfect drainage. It doesn\u2019t rain a lot here but it is very heavy, and no one likes to get wet, so it\u2019s been built so that when the rain stops you can come out onto the course and there\u2019s not a single drop of water. Furthermore, all the excess water goes into the recycling lake. <\/p>\n

What were you thinking about when considering the design of these holes? And the slopes of the greens?<\/strong>
\nI thought it should be a course that suits all kinds of players. The greens are designed to be challenging from the tee and, if you miss on the green, to have a chance to recover, so there are various different undulations which are ideal both for fine-tuning your game and for practice by top-level golfers. <\/p>\n

The seventh hole is copied from the 12th at August National\u2026<\/strong>
\nYes. I call it \u201cAngustias\u201d (\u201cAngst\u201d) and it\u2019s a replica of the Augusta National hole.<\/p>\n

Why specifically that one?<\/strong>
\nWell, because it\u2019s one of the world\u2019s flagship par-threes, if not the most renowned.<\/p>\n

Is it the toughest par-three you have ever played?<\/strong>
\nIt\u2019s a hole where you can hit a good shot using a nine or eight-iron. By that I mean to say that you don\u2019t need a 220-metre par-three for it to be a good par-three. In fact, there are none with these features that are classified among the best in the world. I don\u2019t know which of the two is more difficult.<\/p>\n

Why no copies of other famous holes?<\/strong>
\nIt\u2019s not that I wouldn\u2019t have liked to, I can assure you. It was outside the budget, but all the rest are my own invention and I hope the course is a challenge for players. <\/p>\n

We normally think that a pitch and putt is for beginners or high-handicap players. Your course is extremely challenging. In fact, you use it yourself to train, even the week before leaving for August when, I\u2019ve been told, you had the greens almost as fast as over there. Why did you create it that way?<\/strong>
\nAugust is a course that requires your absolute best and calls for an incredible short game and putting. What we\u2019ve done here is to prepare the greens so you can develop your game, perfect it and experience everything that happens in the short game. <\/p>\n

\"Miguel<\/a>At this moment, his eldest brother Juan passes by and Miguel \u00c1ngel asks him to stay, for a photo to accompany our interview. He began with him as a caddie at Torrequebrada, where Juan worked.
\nYour brother Juan is perhaps one of the people who have helped you most, at a technical level, with your golf. He\u2019s the academy\u2019s technical director, no?<\/strong>
\nWithout a doubt. I\u2019m proud to say that my brother Juan is the person who has helped me most \u2013 he was the one who taught me to play golf. So I couldn\u2019t have found anyone better to run the academy. <\/p>\n

And any of us can take classes with him?<\/strong>
\nCertainly, anyone can talk to him about taking classes \u2013 that\u2019s why we\u2019re here. Juan is a complete professional in this respect: he can evaluate the level and needs of each player \u2013 either beginner or more experienced player \u2013 and in each case their progress will be significant. <\/p>\n

Do you run beginners\u2019 courses?<\/strong>
\nYes, we run all kinds of classes, beginners, fine-tuning, in groups\u2026<\/p>\n

Over the weekend I saw lots of children here. Do you have special courses for them? During the mid-term holidays and Easter you had special courses. Are you preparing something for summer?<\/strong>
\nLots of children are taking classes here. From 20 June we will have a special area for them and throughout the year, during the holidays, we\u2019ll have courses especially for children.
\nThe holidays are quite long, especially for parents, who these days have to work, and it\u2019s good for youngsters to do any kind of sport and have contact with other children.
\nGolf is a sport in which \u2013 particularly on the Costa del Sol \u2013 you tend to find children of different nationalities, and that\u2019s enriching for anyone, but especially for those who still have much to learn, and it teaches them to be tolerant. My own children have taken part in summer courses and it\u2019s been great for them. Sport, co-existence and being part of a group help you to become a better person <\/p>\n

You\u2019ve organised a circuit for children, the Miguel \u00c1ngel by Capitrans junior circuit. What is its objective?<\/strong>
\nWell, it\u2019s quite clear to me. The foundation, not only of sport but also of any society, is with children. Maybe tomorrow they won\u2019t all be elite sports stars but they\u2019ll be magnificent doctors, lawyers and plumbers, and sport helps them to excel in everything they learn. Sport gives you a clear and clean mind. <\/p>\n

What facilities will the clubhouse have?<\/strong>
\nAt first, just basic facilities, a changing room for men and another for women, a shop, an office, a storage room and a restaurant. The idea is that, if you\u2019re working and have little time, in a couple of hours you can hit a few balls, have a shower, eat something and go back to work. Or, if you have more time, come along with the family. In short, the idea is to provide services to clients and create a space where people feel comfortable. <\/p>\n

When do you expect it to be open?<\/strong>
\nWe hope the opening will be 20 or 21 June. <\/p>\n

Will people be able to see some of your personal items there \u2013 Ryder Cup bags, trophies, flags, photos of key moments in your golfing life\u2026?<\/strong>
\nOf course. The clubhouse won\u2019t be all that large \u2013 in total 300 square metres, 150 above and 150 below \u2013 but I believe it will be quite attractive. Some of my things will be on display, bags from my tournaments, from the Ryder Cup and some mementoes.<\/p>\n