The Real Club Valderrama: Venue For 2024 LIV Golf Andalucia Explored

LIV Golf is all set to return to Real Club Valderrama for its upcoming event in Andalucia. Proudly hosting the likes of Richard Bland, who recently won two consecutive senior majors, U.S. Open winner Bryson DeChambeau, and 16 players who are heading out to next week’s Open Championship at Royal Troon, Valderrama has once again become the only tournament on LIV Golf’s schedule to be played in Continental Europe.

It’s quite a historic moment, isn’t it? Well, it’s nothing new for the No. 1 golf course in Spain. The event has a rich track record of hosting some of the most important events in the history of professional golf, including the 32nd Ryder Cup in 1997, wherein Europe emerged victorious under the able leadership of Seve Ballesteros. All thanks to the legendary golf architect Robert Trent Jones Sr., who carved out its championship course in 1974, for about two decades the greens were responsible for hosting the PGA European Tour’s Volvo Masters.

Located in Sotogrande, Cádiz, Spain, this par-71 course measures up to 7,010 yards. The high level of championship pedigree and maintenance offered by Valderrama has given it the alias “Augusta of Europe” within the golfing circles. Constantly ranked in the Top 100 courses in the world for decades now, Valderrama has earned the accolade of being one of the only two European GCs to receive the Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary Program Certification, recognizing its efforts to conserve and restore natural ecosystems.

The perceivably hardest hole on this golf course is the par-3 12th. Measuring up to 212 yards, this particular hole showcased a scoring average of 3.340 in 2023, featuring just 11 birdies, 81 pars, and 45 bogeys, among 8 other shots. On the flip side, some respite is offered to players on the par-5 17th. This 536-yard-long hole is considered the easiest on the competitive course. It showcased a scoring average of 4.715 in 2023, featuring a grand total of 5 eagles, an insanely high number of 57 birdies, 62 pars, and only 15 bogeys, among 5 other shots.

But who are some LIV golfers who will have the chance to tee up in front of their home fans at LIV Golf Andalucia?

What do Spanish LIV Golf pros think of The Real Club Valderrama?

A total of four Spanish-born pros are eyeing the opportunity to tee it up on their homeland’s course in the days to come. This includes talented names like Jon Rahm, Sergio Garcia, David Puig, and Eugenio Chacarra, all set to feel at home at Real Club Valderrama.

For Rahm, this is his first visit to the course since joining the LIV Golf Circle. Talking about his view of the GC, the two-time major winner said, “It’s always special to go back to Valderrama. It’s a golf course with so much history—so much Spanish history—and I’m glad to be going back with the level of field and competition it deserves.”

But this Legion XIII captain, born in Barrika in Basque Country, was not alone in his recognition of the course’s might and history. In his capacity as the honorary member at Valderrama, Sergio Garcia was also quick to declare it his most loved GC in the world. He said, “Valderrama has deserved this kind of event and this kind of field for a long, long time.”

With big names and a venue to remember, the coming days in Andalucia are set to attract the attention of many lovers of the game.