Prize guy Iain Beckingham had every reason to be flying high recently; having won the MedLife inflight magazine competition, 20-handicapper Iain, from West Surrey Golf Club in England and five colleagues test drove mainland Europe’s number one golf course on the eve of the 21st and final Volvo Masters at Valderrama.
And they found it to be in immaculate condition and playing tough as the finishing touches are put to the course that hosts its 16th Volvo Masters from 30th October – 2nd November before testing the players in the Volvo Masters Amateur World Final on 3rd November.
“As we entered the golf club, we passed the famous Valderrama wall and that’s when the nerves kicked-in,” recalls the 27-year-old competition winner, adding, “It felt as if we had the place to ourselves and that’s when the nerved kicked-in.”
Joining Beckingham for the round-of-a-lifetime were 12-handicapper Simon Wright, a veteran of Valderrama having played there four times before plus his fellow debutants Joshua Singer (13), Tony Billing (6), Mark Singer (8) and Tom Welch (9).
“Valderrama was in amazing condition and will get even better for the Volvo Masters,” said the Englishman, adding, “After a bit of a nervous start, we all settled down and played some decent golf between us, although Valderrama certainly lives up to its reputation and continental Europe’s best course.”
On hand to welcome the prize guys was Monique Kuse, the Volvo Masters Project Manager, making the final preparations for the €4.25million end-of-season showpiece and she presented the players with their Volvo Masters mementos and a set of Waterford Crystal glasses for competition winner Beckingham.
“It was great to see the guys having such a fantastic day out courtesy of Volvo and Valderrama and their feedback on the condition of the golf course was very useful,” she said, concluding, “Engaging with golfing enthusiasts in this way is every bit as important as welcoming the professionals here in a few weeks time and everyone at Volvo thanks Iain, Simon, Joshua, Tony, Mark and Tom for being such great sports.”
And the news from the golf course was that no clear winner was to emerge from the six and no scores were being revealed and Iain Beckingham recalls, “The first, we were all a bit nervy, I just missed a birdie at the second, but when it came to Valderrama’s notorious 17th, Los Gabiones was far too good for us.”
He concluded, “It was a wonderful experience and will be in our memories for a long time to come, not just the chance to test drive the Volvo Masters course but also the VIP treatment we received from beginning to end.”
The 21st and final Volvo Masters takes place at Valderrama from 30th October – 2nd November 2008 with the concluding round of the Volvo Masters Amateur being staged, under Volvo masters conditions the following day, Monday 3rd November 2008.
www.volvomasters.com / www.volvomastersamateur.com / www.valderrama.com