The Real Club Sevilla Golf has already opened its doors to the first players who have arrived to train on the course for their big week of golf, the 25th edition of the Challenge de España, one of the most established tournaments on the European Challenge Tour.

Today, a practice day, the 156 participants arrive to assess and fine-tune their golf to the climate, the environment, and the extremely high level demanded by a course that has hosted five DP World Tour tournaments, the Spanish Open three times, the Seville Open, the Andalusian Open, and none other than the WGC World Cup. It will be a high-level tournament where players will have to shine to win a title that could be the gateway to, or a return to, the DP World Tour.

The return would be for the 20 players arriving in Seville, aiming to regain the form that allowed them to win at least one DP World Tour tournament. Due to their exceptionally high level of competition, they have since dropped down to the Challenge Tour, fighting to return to the top tier. Among them are names like the Challenge Tour's number 2, Frenchman Alexander Levy, who won 5 tournaments, his compatriot Gregory Bourdy, winner of 4, Briton Marc Warren, also with 4 victories, and Chris Wood, who triumphed in 3.

But among the most outstanding winners of the DP World Tour who are in Seville this week, three Spaniards stand out: Álvaro Quirós, Gonzalo Fernández Castaño and Alejandro Cañizares.

Fourteen years have passed since Álvaro Quirós, from Cádiz, achieved that spectacular victory at the 2010 Spanish Open, becoming the only Spaniard to win a DP World Tour tournament at Real Club Sevilla Golf. With this latest win, he now has seven titles to his name, the same number as Gonzalo Fernández-Castaño, and two for Alejandro Cañizares. All three are hoping to rediscover their best form and return to the Tour.

A challenge lies ahead for the 27 Spaniards competing in the Challenge de España, who fight each week to achieve what would be the fifth Spanish victory in the event. Carlos Suneson opened the scoring in its inaugural edition in 1999 in El Saler; the second victory came in 2010 with Álvaro Velasco in La Gomera, followed two years later by Eduardo de la Riva. Santiago Tarrío was the last Spanish winner of the Challenge de España, which he achieved in Sancti Petri.

Everything is ready by the Real Club Sevilla Golf, the Royal Spanish Golf Federation, the Challenge Tour and JGolf for Sevilla to experience one of its best weeks of golf this week, with professionals from the past, present and future.

The Royal Spanish Golf Federation is the main sponsor of the Challenge de España, which is supported by the Regional Government of Andalusia, the Royal Andalusian Golf Federation, and the Spanish National Sports Council, as well as AON, Allianz, Volvo, Mahou-Solán de Cabras, Halcon Viajes, Kyocera, Tag Heuer, Iberdrola, Loterías y Apuestas del Estado (Spanish National Lottery), Scalpers, Maximiliano Jabugo, Bodegas Marqués de Arviza, Grupo Ybarra, TOA Shoes, Titleist, Licor Mediterraneo, and Hotel Sevilla Green Suites. JGolf is the organizing company of the Challenge de España.
SOURCE: Tournament organizers.