Tuesday, June 24, 2008
The World Matchplay Moves To Spain

Golf’s richest tournament has scarpered to sunnier climes.

The World Match Play Championship, which has been held at Wentworth in England since its inception in 1964, will not take place this year but is to move to Spain in 2009 under a round-robin format.

The International Management Group said on Tuesday the event, with a prize fund of $5 million, would be staged at the Finca Cortesin club near Marbella with a new sponsor, Volvo.

This year's season-ending Volvo Masters in Valderrama will be the last, to be replaced in 2009 by the Dubai World Championship forcing Volvo to get back on the sponsors merry go round and switch backing to a revamped Match Play.

A field of 16 will be split into four groups of four over the first two days over 18 holes with group winners progressing to the 36-hole semi-finals on the Saturday.

"Now I have to get up three hours earlier."

Arnold Palmer won the first Match Play title in 1964. South African Ernie Els, last year's champion, has a record seven victories to his credit dating back to 1994.

We suspect the ‘Big Easy’ will be a bit gutted about the move. Some put his success to the fact the tournament was played in his back yard.

We imagine it would help.


Els feeling mardy about the move. Probably. To be fair we haven’t talked to him about it.


6/24/2008 12:43:18 PM (GMT Standard Time, UTC+00:00)  #  Comments [0] 

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