Leadingcourses.com has published the 2022 edition of the 100 Best Golf Resorts in Europe, naming Finca Cortesin Hotel Golf & Spa as the Best Golf Resort in Europe in 2022. For an astonishing fourth time, Finca Cortesin has been awarded this ranking with a whopping overall score of 9.4. This score is based 50% on the ranking of the golf club on Leadingcourses.com (9.2) and 50% on the Booking.com rating (9.6) for the resort itself from unbiased user reviews.
It is amazing for Finca Cortesin to be named above so many other great European golf resorts at the top of the rankings. The next closest resort in Spain to be named was PGA Catalunya, situated down in 19th, whilst other key names to be listed within the top 10 include Trump Turnberry Resort (2nd), Gleneagles Hotel (5th), Costa Navarino (7th), and Dundonald Links (9th). The resort is extremely proud of this accolade and determined to maintain its position at the top. It must be stressed that this ranking wouldn’t have been achieved if it wasn’t for all the staff at Finca Cortesin providing memorable experiences for all, whether it be on the golf course or within the hotel and Spa. We would also like to extend our thank you to those who shared their reviews as we continue to provide exceptional service and experiences to all our guests. We look forward to welcoming both old and new faces to Finca Cortesin throughout the remainder of 2022 and beyond.
Date: June 30th 2022 Venue: Finca Cortesin Entry Fee: 250 euros (includes Greenfee / Buggy Hire / Post-Event Cocktail) Format: Individual Stroke-Play 18 Holes (Shotgun Start from 9.30am) Handicap Limit: 24 HCP Ladies / 18 HCP Gentlemen Entry: email proshop@golfcortesin.es to request a place in the competition
On June 30th, you have the chance to experience our world-class golf course, its immaculate conditioning and our world-class hospitality, at the Trofeo Rolex de Golf 2022.
Created by Rolex to bring together lovers of the sport across the most spectacular golf courses in Spain every year, the Trofeo Rolex de Golf forms part of Rolex’s wider aim to support the most important competitions and bodies in the world of golf, as well as the most prestigious players and courses in the world.
Ahead of next year’s duel between Team Europe and Team USA, you can experience first-hand the championship golf course that they will play on and its immaculate presentation, all whilst competing for a spot in the Rolex National Final.
All participants will also receive a free cocktail at the end of the competition, followed by a prize-giving ceremony that will take place from 2.30pm onwards.
Entry is open to golfers over the age of 18 with a handicap of no more than 18 for Gentlemen and 24 for Ladies. The winners of the local competitions will automatically qualify for the National Final that will be held at the Club de Campo La Zagaleta in Malaga later in the year.
Players wishing to enter the tournament can request to reserve a place by emailing proshop@golfcortesin.es. The deadline for entry will be 48 hours before the day of the event, and with a maximum field size of 72 players, early entry is highly recommended to secure your spot.
You have recently signed a new sponsorship agreement with Finca Cortesin. How important is it for your career to have the support of the resort and what does the sponsorship enable you to do?
Finca Cortesin has supported me ever since I turned professional in 2015 and I am extremely grateful and honoured to represent such an amazing place, not only golf and hotel wise, but also what the resort represents and the high level of customer service that they provide. I always recommend the resort to the people I play with on the Ladies European Tour and in any pro-am or event that I play. It means a lot to me and my brand to be linked with such an outstanding golf club, and even more so now as the host for the 2023 Solheim Cup. The sponsorship, apart from elevating my brand, also enables me to travel to tournaments and not to have to worry about the financial side of my career. I feel like they are a family of mine already.
Can I take you back to the time when you first visited Finca Cortesin and played the golf course? What were your first impressions?
Yes, it was some months before I first signed with them, and I was so excited to play there, because they are such a prestigious golf course and resort, and I knew I was going to have a great time. And I certainly did.
Life has changed for all of us over the last 12 months because of Covid 19. How have things changed for you as a professional golfer and what do you think life will be like on the Ladies European Tour when it resumes?
It has changed a lot for everybody and really it is quite difficult for us now because we have to be constantly in bubbles when we go to tournaments, and doing PCR tests. We can’t visit the cities that we’re playing in, so it is challenging mentally when you’ve been on the road a few weeks. But we have to be grateful just to have tournaments because we live for that and, honestly, I have to thank my sponsors, and especially Finca Cortesin, because they are a huge help during the time when you’re not competing. We need to live from something, and sponsors like them mean a lot.
Finca Cortesin will become the first course in Spain to host the Solheim Cup in 2023. What was your reaction when you first heard the news and what will staging such a prestigious event do for golf in the region?
I had no idea that this was happening because Vicente and James didn’t mention anything to me, so it was really a surprise when the announcement was made. However, I knew something like this was going to happen sooner or later because Finca Cortesin represents so many values that tournaments like the Solheim Cup have. I am very happy that Finca Cortesin is the first golf venue in Spain to host such a great event because of the huge love and respect I have for the resort. It really deserves it. Golf is going to grow a lot in this area thanks to this because it is really an amazing event in an amazing venue, and I can’t wait for it to happen.
Hosting the Solheim Cup is part of Finca Cortesin’s long-term commitment to promoting women’s golf. How important is to have one of Europe’s top resorts leading the drive to raise the profile of ladies’ golf and attracting new players into the game?
It is very important; things like this are what we need to promote women’s golf. This is like a dream come true, and Finca Cortesin has shown me how much they support women’s golf and professionals like myself, so I only have kind words for them. This is going to help the golf game itself so much and especially women’s sports.
Finca Cortesin Hotel, Golf & Spa, host venue of the 2023 Solheim Cup, has further enhanced its position at the forefront of women’s golf in Spain and Europe by finalising new 12-month sponsorship agreements with Ladies European Tour stars Noemi Jiménez and Laura Gómez.
The exclusive resort in Andalusia has extended its long-term partnership with Jiménez, 27, for a sixth year while entering into a new relationship with Gómez, 24, one of the rising talents of the ladies’ game in Spain.
Finca Cortesin – which will become the first venue in Spain to host the Solheim Cup, the biggest team competition in women’s golf – is committed to growing the ladies’ game both on a national and international level.
In addition to representing the resort worldwide, Jiménez and 2019 LET Access Tour Rookie of the Year Gómez – who were both born in Marbella – will also be at the forefront of the venue’s drive to promote women’s golf across the Andalusia region, including hosting a clinic for players of all abilities at Finca Cortesin on Global Women’s Golf Day 2021 at the start of June.
Jiménez said: “It’s a tremendous privilege for me to represent one of the best golf resorts in the world. Finca Cortesin shares my passion for increasing the popularity of women’s golf and raising its worldwide profile, and no one was happier than me when they were awarded the 2023 Solheim Cup.”
Gómez said: “To receive the backing of a resort as prestigious as Finca Cortesin is a great personal honour for me and will be a major help in achieving my ambition of becoming an established member on the Ladies European Tour.”
Vicente Rubio, president of Finca Cortesin Golf Club, said: “We’re delighted to be supporting two of the leading talents in Spanish women’s golf. Noemi and Laura are a key part in our plans to introduce golf to a new audience of female players, which includes supporting local tour professionals and amateur clinics as well as high-profile events of the stature of the Solheim Cup.”
Spain will become the sixth different European nation to stage the biggest team competition in women’s golf when the Solheim Cup heads to Andalusia in two years’ time, with the biennial contest between Europe and the United States set to take place from September 18-24, 2023.
The general recommendations of the Health Authorities have priority.
The measures described here are the result of contributions from the whole of Spanish golf, international bodies in the world of golf and specific procedures placed by Finca Cortesin Golf Club Management.
Finca Cortesin wishes to ensure the full health & safety of all guests and staff, therefore the following guide are measures and requirements for golf players at Finca Cortesin in order to guarantee social distance and minimize the risk of contagion (Covid-19).
The game of golf has some specific peculiarities that make its practice accessible and safe after the Covid-19 Among them, the following stand out:
IMPORTANT: Guests must NOT attend the facilities if they have been in contact with someone affected with COVID-19 in the last 14 days, or if they are under a period of quarantine, feel any symptoms, such as a cough, fever or breathing difficulties (either yourself, family or persons you share your residence with)
Golfers have the opportunity to enjoy one of Europe’s premier luxury golf experiences again after Finca Cortesin reopened for business following the Covid-19 lockdown.
We reopened exclusively to members on May 25, while visitors are being invited to book and play from Monday, June 1. All players are being asked to observe the social distancing and Covid-19 measures that have been put in place.
Finca Cortesin has hosted numerous high-profile tournaments since opening in 2006 including the Volvo World Match Play Championship in 2009, 2011 and 2012.
Renowned for its five-star customer experience and attention to detail, the exclusive resort is the first golf venue in Spain to feature a new, eco-friendly variety of Bermuda grass on all its greens, while its expert maintenance team worked extensively during lockdown to ensure the course condition is the best it has ever been for reopening.
Complementing the golf course are outstanding practice facilities including the recently-upgraded Jack Nicklaus Golf Academy, which will also reopen from June 1.
James Beesley, director of golf at Finca Cortesin Hotel, Golf & Spa, said: “The last couple of months has been a difficult time for everyone and it’s a pleasure to be able to welcome golfers to the resort again. The golf course is looking beautiful and our team has worked tirelessly to make sure that it is as good as ever for everyone that visits over the coming months.”
Continuing insight into our Director of Instruction, Ricardo Jimenez Eliaeson secrets about his life in golf and coaching:
Ricardo: I was a Tour player for 25 years, playing mainly on the Spanish Tour and European Challenge Tour, but also playing some events on the main European Tour. I was fortunate enough to play with all the best players who were around then. That was an amazing part of my life and I was very grateful to all the pros who I learned so much from.
My only goal was to earn enough money so that I could play the next tournament but I also thought about raising a family and when that moment came, I, of course, realised that I had to find a more stable job. I opened a golf academy in Marbella that quickly took off and became a success and I was lucky at this time that the academy allowed me to both teach and continue to play competitions.
At the beginning of 2006, I received a call from Javier Reviriego, director of golf of a new project called Finca Cortesin. I came and played the course and was then offered a job that I simply couldn’t turn down. The project was just awesome and the rest, as they say, is history! I have been working at Finca Cortesin for 14 years and I only have thankful words for the trust they have placed in me for all of these years. In some ways, I prepared all my life to get this job. I am 100 per cent convinced that education is a key factor in becoming a good teacher and when I was playing competitively, I spent all my time researching, assisting at seminars, watching the best instructors and training myself in different areas to become a golf coach.
Best tip you ever got from a Tour pro?
The best tip I ever had was from my lovely Scottish teacher Don Ross. I was a very technical player and I was in the middle of a big slump. It was so bad that I was thinking about quitting competitive golf. He was my teacher in the last part of my amateur career and I never hit the ball and scored as well as this part of my life. He returned to Spain after six years working abroad and he gave me a call and told me to come and see him in Montecastillo. When he saw my swing and the way I was hitting the ball and performing on the course, he could not believe it. I had lost my inner essence; resilience in the search of the perfect swing. He looked deep into my eyes and told me to stop thinking and to just start hitting the bloody ball. I spent the next month with that sole thought on the golf course and it really worked. I was the perfect example of a player that had got lost trying to reach perfection.
What kind of exercises do you do to warm up?
The main exercise I focus on is stretching. I’m a true believer that the more flexible you are, the longer you can play in time, especially when you get older. I also do functional exercises and strength exercises.
Describe your golf game in four words.
Re-si-lien-ce.
What player on tour does your game most resemble?
All the players that miss a lot of greens!
What is your favourite memory of beating your fellow golf professionals?
in 2003, I won a big tournament on the Spanish circuit where I beat Pablo Larrazabal the last day. We were playing together in the last group on the Sunday and I never in my life felt so tight in my forearms than when I had a one-metre putt to win the tournament. I moved back from the ball, took a deep breath and put the ball in the hole. The job was done. I remember driving home and I was so proud because I had finished first out of 144 players playing that week. And that will never change. That was a cool feeling.
You have been a vital member of the Finca Cortesin team for 14 years. Tell us something the average golfer doesn’t know about Finca Cortesin’s golf course?
Finca Cortesin is an amazing golf course and I’m still trying to learn how to score here. I love courses which require you to play all the clubs in your bag and Finca Cortesin is one of them. You have to be long but accurate from the tee and you have to learn to attack the holes, with that I mean that sometimes you have to play away from flags if you do not want to mess a hole. When you get to the green, you have to put yourself in the right spot if you don’t want to three-putt, and if you miss the green, your short game has to be precise and creative. If you learn to play the course the way the designer wanted us to play then scoring is possible, but if you want to really enjoy your round, forget about being aggressive and think about how I can put the ball in play and play to the widest part of the green. In order to do so, you need to know the strengths of each hole and what your weaknesses are. Never try to play one of your weak shots against the strengths of the hole.
One of the things that we’re most proud of at Finca Cortesin is our Jack Nicklaus Golf Academy. With the golf course and club still shut, we took the chance to sit down with our director of instruction, Ricardo Jimenez Eliaeson, to unearth a few secrets about his life in golf and coaching.
Thanks for taking the time to sit down with us. Firstly, can you give us an insight into your family background, who inspired you to follow a career in golf and how you got into coaching?
I was born in Stockholm in Sweden but moved to Spain when I was three years old and have been here ever since.
I started to play golf in 1986 at Torrequebrada Golf Club and, believe it or not, my first teacher was Miguel Angel Jiménez. I owe so much to the Jiménez family and without their support in my youth, I would never have played golf. I did all kind of sports growing up but, when I tried golf, I was hooked immediately. From the very beginning, I understood that I could never master this fantastic game and that I was not playing against other players but that I was playing against the golf course, and I think that was one of the best lessons I have received from Miguel Angel Jimenez.
When did you know you first had a thing for golf?
This is one of those questions that is very difficult to answer but, in my case, I always knew that I could be a very competitive player because I love competition. I consider myself a very good competitor but, having said that, it’s one thing to play against amateurs and quite another to play against professionals. I remember one tournament when I hit two drives in a row to rough on the left-hand side. In both situations, my ball was deep in trouble and I had to use my sand wedge to leave myself exactly 100 metres to the flag. In both distance wedges approaches I left my ball next to the pin, that is when I knew I could become a much better player.
Being director of instruction at a Jack Nicklaus Academy, how does this association help in your coaching and your student’s development?
I have always been fortunate enough to be surrounded by great teachers. Many of them were more technical teachers while some were more ‘feeling’ teachers and others were more mental teachers. I have also been fortunate to have seen all the best teachers over the last 20 years and, together, they gave me a pretty good understanding of the whole picture.
Golf is not about instruction; it is about teaching people. If you teach people, you can help them to improve their games but if you keep teaching instruction, it will be very difficult to get good players and the best of their games. We are all different; we are built differently, we think differently, we understand differently, we learn differently so, therefore, we have to adapt to our students. Nicklaus Academies help me to deliver a more comprehensive and easier message to players. In general, coaches make golf too complicated and use terminology that doesn’t help, so I consider myself more like a skilled developer coach. If a student can improve their skills around their game, then I think they will be happier because they will feel that they can perform much better. That is my passion, to make them better.
What’s the greatest joy you get from teaching golf?
You probably will not believe it but the greatest joy I get from teaching is when you can get players striking the ball like the Tour players (with this, I mean the proper sound of the club hitting the ball and then the turf) and then turning around to me, with a big smile on their face, and telling me “What a shot”.
What’s the one thing you’d like to teach your kids about golf that will help them through life?
I believe golf is like life, a long path with a lot of obstacles in the journey. You are going to fall down plenty of times and you have to learn to stand up and keep walking. Do it step by step, grind, be resilient and enjoy the journey because that is when you are going to learn about you and your game/life.
Tell us a story about your last non-golf adventure.
Since I was 20, I always had the dream of going on holiday to the Black Forest in southern Germany. Last year, knowing that my kids were getting older, we planned the trip to the Black Forest and the Austrian Alps so we could spend 10 days traveling in a car and living together. It was a fantastic experience that I highly recommend to anyone. It was fantastic to be able to spend some quality time with my wife and children, and we fell in love with the Black Forest and the Austrian landscapes.