Successful bid for 2022 Ryder Cup "will change the way Spain thinks about golf", official claims

Spain are one of four countries bidding to host the 2022 Ryder Cup ©Costa Brava Barcelona 2022

Royal Spanish Golf Federation (RFEG) President Gonzaga Escauriaza believes a successful bid for the 2022 Ryder Cup from his nation “will change the way Spain thinks about golf”, adding that it would help inspire more children to take up the game should the country be chosen.

Spain is one of four nations in the running for the biennial tournament, contested between Europe and the United States, along with Germany, Austria and Italy, and the RFEG has proposed hosting the tournament at PGA Catalunya Resort, located around 85 kilometres outside of Barcelona.

Their bid comes after the RFEG installed a Golf in Schools programme, which has introduced 100,000 children to the game after the sport became a formal activity in 300 schools across the nation.

The Spanish governing body has also provided funds to schools for equipment and also to train teachers in how to make the game more enjoyable for their students.

The RFEG have started to subsidise lessons, with cost of equipment and club membership usually one of the main drawbacks of taking up the sport, and Escauriaza hopes their programme will have reached one million children by 2022.

The RFEG hope to continue the development of their Golf for Schools programme should Spain be chosen as the hosts of the 2022 Ryder Cup ©RFEG

“The 2022 Ryder Cup is not just about three days of competition,” Escauriaza said.

“If our bid is successful, it will help us secure a pre and post event legacy that will change the way Spain thinks about golf.

“If we are selected, hosting the 2022 Ryder Cup will enable us to increase our investment in the Golf in Schools programme, first in Catalunya and subsequently right across Spain.

“With the enhanced profile, awareness and investment the 2022 match can bring, we aim to have more than 3,000 schools taking part in the programme and 1,000,000 children introduced to the sport by 2022.

“This is a unique opportunity and RFEG aims to inspire the next generation of Spanish golfers to follow in the footsteps of our country’s many Ryder Cup greats.”

Spain last staged the Ryder Cup in 1997, which was held at Valderrama Golf Club, and the country boasts several of the sport’s best-known players, including Sergio Garcia, who has won over 20 international tournaments in his career to date, and iconic figure Miguel Ángel Jiménez, a member of four Ryder Cup teams.

Five-times major winner Seve Ballesteros, considered one of the all-time greats of the game, also hails from the country.

A decision on the chosen hosts for the 2022 Ryder Cup is expected this autumn.