There are times in the life of an elite athlete when they have to decide whether to step up or
step aside. An instant where the line between greatness and irrelevance is practically
imperceptible. A juncture for which they have been practising day and night for 20 or 30
years, to perfect their talent and have a shot at glory… or at abject failure. It is a moment that
was experienced by Angel Hidalgo on the 8 th hole of Club de Campo in round 4 last year. In
this case, the glory in question was the Open de España title.
It was the stuff of Hollywood. Angel Hidalgo had stunned the golfing world with a dream
Saturday to earn himself a place in the final group and at the top of the leaderboard. He had
never won on the DP World Tour and he could not be faced with a tougher opponent as he
attempted to do so for the first time; Jon Rahm was just two shots back in his bid for a fourth
title at his national Open. The entire country would be watching. Surely it was a step too far
for the little-known Andalusian. The outcome seemed inevitable. Since claiming his first
home win in 2018, the Barrika native has made one thing clear; if you want to win the Open
de España, you’ll have to get past Jon Rahm first.
The spark Hidalgo was looking for came on the 8 th hole. A lesser player would have shrunk
from the task, but the Andalusian seems to know no fear. He had lost his lead on the 7 th hole
and dropped back to 3 rd . Rahm was leading. At this point he could have been forgiven for
shooting 80, cursing his luck in the locker room and leaving with an anecdote to tell his
grandchildren. But Hidalgo chose greatness. He hit his second shot to the 8 th to 3 feet and
celebrated as if he had scored the winner in the World Cup final; fist aloft, an outpouring of
emotion. The Andalusian never looked back. He dominated the rest of the round and went
on to claim the title in a nail-biting two-hole playoff against Jon Rahm, with the golfing world
watching on.
Hidalgo is now back in Madrid and he is here to win. Just a year after his famous victory, it
has been announced that the winner of the Open de España 2025 will receive a place in the
field at the US Masters and The Open. The Spaniard now has even more motivation to defend his title in Madrid.
At the recent Irish Open, Angel enjoyed something of a return to form. He surged up the
leaderboard, entertaining the fans with his swashbuckling golf, before eventually coming up
just 2 shots shy of another playoff, where a certain Rory McIlroy took the spoils. His third-
round 63 in Dublin was reminiscent of his 2024 exploits in the Spanish capital.
If you ever find yourself wondering what greatness is or how it is achieved. Look no further
than Sunday 29 September 2024 at Club de Campo Villa de Madrid, the day when Angel
Hidalgo had all the answers.Tickets for the Open de España presented by Madrid are now available here.
