The ACCIONA Open de España presented by Madrid officially opened its 2023 edition in the presence of the best-ranked player in the field with unbeatable views of the Madrid skyline. Jon Rahm is back for his annual stop in the Spanish capital to continue the task of growing Spanish golf. He was joined by the mayor of Madrid José Luis Martínez-Almeida, the president of the RFEG, Gonzaga Escauriaza, Joaquín Mollinedo, ACCIONA’s General Director of Institutional Relationships, Communication and Brand, and Gerard Tsobanian, the CEO of Madrid Trophy Promotion.
During their short exchange, one thing was made abundantly clear, it is a privilege for the tournament and for the city of Madrid to be able to enjoy the presence of a global superstar such as Jon Rahm. Gonzaga Escauriaza summed it up perfectly: “We’ve hit the jackpot”. The president of Spanish golf also encouraged fans to make the trip to Club de Campo to watch the Barrika native ply his trade in the flesh: “In this stunning setting, with Jon here, it would be unforgivable not to come for at least one of the four days”.
The mayor of the city that is playing host to this 95th edition of the Open de España was on the same page: “Madrid aspires to be the best city in the world and the presence of Rahm helps us get closer to achieving that. This week I would tell citizens of Madrid that it’s an unbeatable opportunity to see the best in the world”. Of course, Almeida also took his opportunity to mention that it will be the fourth time he tees it up with Rahm in Wednesday’s Pro-Am: “I never win the lottery, but I am playing with Rahm once again this year, it’s an experience you don’t forget”, he joked.
The tournament’s CEO mentioned that the event has grown every year since it was acquired by Madrid Trophy Promotions in 2019. The Frenchman was keen to point out that both the numbers, the attendance, and the impact of the event have increased year upon year. “The thing I’m happiest about is the good feeling there is when people start to arrive. I feel happy that people have a good time. The weather helps us, it’s sunny and we want to make people happy. The elements are on our side and I’m proud to be sitting here. I couldn’t ask for more, I feel honoured”.
Along similar lines, Joaquín Mollinedo said he was grateful for the presence of the Basque player: “A tournament like this, which has existed for over a century, is made greater by the presence of Jon Rahm, one of the biggest names in the sport”. ACCIONA’s representative spoke about the goal of the company’s sponsorship of the tournament; a positive impact on the environment: “We want to stand out, to set ourselves apart. Over the last three years we’ve applied numerous environmental measures that have given us very positive results”. Among the most important, he mentioned that 1000 tonnes of CO2 have been prevented from entering the atmosphere, the carbon footprint of visitors has been reduced by 25%, and 6000 trees have been planted in collaboration with the Madrid City Council.
