There are plenty of things that make this ACCIONA Open de España presented by Madrid stand out, a couple of them being the spectacular list of players teeing it up this week, and the commitment to being the world’s most sustainable event. Each stands up on their own, but together they make for an unbeatable combination.
The players this week have been very keen to collaborate and contribute to the sustainability initiatives implemented by the tournament and ACCIONA, despite the fact that the life of a golfer can make it a very difficult thing to do, as Tommy Fleetwood, one of the stars of the tournament, recognised:
“I’m aware of the fact that, as golfers, we travel a lot every week and work at golf courses and it can be difficult for us to speak up about sustainability. But I think the important thing is doing as much as you can, working to improve this world bit by bit. I’m proud to form part of an event like this, that seeks to be a leader in sustainability, so we’ll keep doing as much as we can”.
Looking after the planet we live on forms the foundations of the work of ACCIONA and this tournament, with multiple measures in place such as, among others, the ‘Under-par emissions’ prize, which will see the champion’s footprint offset for 10 years, a positive hydric footprint, and tree planting, which has been a tradition at the event since 2019.
Through its 2023 ACCIONA Under-Par Emissions prize, the company planted 1,266 trees at the Centro Nacional de Golf de Madrid, which will prevent the emission of 831 tonnes of CO2 every year. The initiative is offsetting the emissions of Matthieu Pavon, the champion of the Open de España in 2023, and his caddie, for ten seasons, on top of the offsetting of the 438 tonnes of CO2 associated with the staging of the tournament itself.
In that regard, the 2023 champion, Frenchman Matthieu Pavon, has reiterated the desire of the players to contribute: “We are so lucky to play on courses and in places that are so stunning like here at Club de Campo, and I think it’s essential to do everything possible to give back to the Earth some of what it gives us. Our job means we create a lot of emissions every year with so much travel, but we can help offset them and we should”.
Find out more about the tournament’s sustainability measures here.
