See you, Jimenez
Spanish star Miguel Angel Jiménez is easily the most recognisable tour player in modern golf. You either keep an eye out for a ginger ponytail tucked neatly under his cap, or follow the whiff of cigar smoke. As characters in golf come, they don’t get much chirpier than good old Miguel. Bryce Ritchie travelled to Spain to play 18 holes with the great man. The topic of conversation? His cult hero status, fine wine, cigars . . . and how kids these days need to learn some respect.
On starting out in the professional game
I turned professional when I was 18. In the beginning, I started golf as a caddie but then I turned professional at 18 and, when I was 21, I went to the army. I spent 15 months in the army and, when I came back, I just focused on my golf and being a good competitor on the course.
And on what lies ahead
The most important thing for me is to be happy on the golf course. You must be happy. With that you can achieve anything. Of course, you can win more tournaments and play the Ryder Cup. But to
do that you need to be true
to yourself. To win the tournament you must be happy. You have to be in
the right place at the right moment and the moment is now. It’s not three weeks after, or later in life, it’s right now. Play for now.
On rising young Spaniard, Pablo Martin
A few years ago Pablo looked very good, yes, and he played
a lot of golf. You could tell he wanted to be a professional player. He had that look.He got very focused and he took the right steps about what he wanted to do. He’s very clever. It would be good
if he could be the next star in Spain. I think he could be.
On his cult hero status with his legion of fans
Yeah, I’ve been on the tour for so many years, some 19 years now. So yes, it’s nice to have
a following at tournaments (smiles). A lot of people know me, they know my game and they follow me around. I like that. I’ve got 13 victories on the tour, that’s something to be proud of.
On making the 2008 Ryder Cup team for Valhalla
I don’t know what is going on in the future. Normally, I just play my game and try to make the team. I don’t know what’s going to happen in the future, I just try to enjoy playing my game. But I have really enjoyed playing the Ryder Cup. The most important thing is that it’s just one team, just one, with friendships. It’s like the musketeers - one for all, all for one. It’s a...
