La Gomera sede del Fred. Olsen Alps Tour
Final preparations at Tecina Golf before the start of the 5th edition of the Fred. Olsen Alps de La Gomera, with an intense day featuring final training sessions and the traditional ProAm tournament. This morning also saw the official press conference for the tournament, the 12th on the Alps Tour 2025 calendar, held at Hotel Jardín Tecina in La Gomera, the epicenter of the action this week on the island.
The event was chaired by María Isabel Méndez, Tourism Councillor of the Cabildo de La Gomera; Diego Cambreleng, President of the Real Canarian Golf Federation; Primos Pusnik, Director of Assets at Fred. Olsen S.A. and Director of Tecina Golf; Alessandro Pia, Director of the Fred. Olsen Alps de La Gomera; Javier Gervás, General Director of JGolf; and Álvaro Hernández Cabezuela, ranked 3rd on the Alps Tour.
The island’s Tourism Councillor, María Isabel Méndez, emphasized the importance of this tournament as a milestone in establishing the island as a leading sports destination. She highlighted that this event is not only a key date on the international sports calendar but also an opportunity to showcase the natural, landscape, and cultural richness of La Gomera to the world. She also noted the boost from public-private collaboration for the realization of this competition and reaffirmed the Cabildo’s commitment to sustainable and quality tourism, recognizing the economic and promotional impact the event has on sectors such as hospitality, commerce, and catering.
Tenerife player from Arona arrives with the intention of making a splash and securing promotion to the HotelPlanner Tour in his homeland after victories at the Red Sea Little Venice Open and the Tunisian Golf Open. «It would be a dream promotion and idyllic to do it here at home on a course I like, where I’ve played a lot, with many people I’ve known for many years. Obviously, Canarias is my home, and it would make it a bit more special.»
As a local player, Álvaro knows the main defense of the course well, but prefers to keep the secret: «The key may lie in the greens. Some players are having trouble reading the breaks this week, there’s a trick that we who come here more often know, and I think that’s where the difference might be. The course allows for aggressiveness from the tee and on approach shots on some holes, it will be important to know when to tighten the swing or play more conservatively. So we’ll see who handles the breaks on the greens better and who wins,» explains Álvaro Hernández Cabezuela.
With seven Spanish victories so far this season and five national winners present at Tecina Golf this week, the motivation to win more tournaments is contagious, and who knows if the eighth could land on Saturday in La Gomera: «We have a good sense of camaraderie among the Spaniards. After all, it’s many weeks away from home, and doing it with friends is much easier and more bearable. I think seeing the person you spend many weeks with achieving success motivates you a bit inside to do it yourself. This year it seems that we have all pushed each other a bit. I think there have been seven consecutive tournaments won, and I’m proud of my colleagues who are doing very well.»
Diego Cambreleng, President of the Real Canarian Golf Federation, commented: «Being at Tecina Golf is always wonderful, it’s an ideal destination for playing golf and spending a few days. This is a special occasion; it’s the first time we’ve held a professional event in La Gomera with the title of ‘Real,’ which has been a great joy for us. We are the third Spanish federation (after Andalusia and Madrid) to hold this title, and we carry it with more pride being so far away, we feel very Spanish and we are very happy. We wish all the players luck for tomorrow and especially the Canarians, that it will be a great golf week.»
Primos Pusnik, Director of Assets at Fred. Olsen S.A. and Director of Tecina Golf, stated: «We have made a couple of improvements to prepare the course for the high season. Now the postcard is more beautiful than a couple of years ago. Our course is enchanting, one never gets tired of this course. I am very pleased with the work done by the maintenance team both last year and this year. Regarding the preparation of the course for the tournament, they have done an extraordinary job.»
Alessandro Pia, Director of the Fred. Olsen Alps de La Gomera, expressed the «satisfaction of the entire Alps Tour team to be here for the fifth time. Our goal is to drive the players to play better each time. This tournament comes at a great time as the players are fighting for that top 5 that grants access to the HotelPlanner Tour, and after the Biarritz Cup, the top 6 is exempt for the first phase of the DP World Tour qualifying school, which is a goal our players are fighting for. We are always delighted to showcase what our former players are doing on the PGA Tour and the DP World Tour, such as Adri Arnaus, Matt Wallace, Mathieu Pavon, or Victor Perez. This is important to us. Playing on this type of course suits the level of these players, and we are sure that in the future, we will see them on the best circuits in the world.»
Javier Gervás, General Director of JGolf, expressed his «gratitude to Tecina Golf and Fred. Olsen because they have always put a lot of enthusiasm into hosting professional tournaments and promoting not only Tecina but also La Gomera. Thanks to La Gomera, represented by the councilor, Promotur, and the government of the Canary Islands. Of course, to the Alps Tour, which bets on coming back here every year, and to the Real Canarian Golf Federation, which along with the Spanish Golf Federation supports all the Alps Tour tournaments to bring out young players. From the tourism promotion side, I would like to highlight the television coverage the event has on Golf by Movistar+ and also the audiovisual team of the Alps Tour for social media. In the sports field, I would highlight the Spanish players who have already won this year; we have a pretty good roster of players. What sets this tournament apart from others is the magnificent resort that Hotel Jardín Tecina has. We have noticed that more and more players are encouraged to come to La Gomera with their companions. This golf course is possibly in better condition compared to other tournaments we organize on the Peninsula.»
The first day starts tomorrow at 8 a.m. with the first match on the tee of hole 1 at Tecina Golf with a total of 36 matches consisting of three players. At the end of the first two days, the top 40 players and ties will play the third and final round on Saturday at Tecina Golf.
The Fred. Olsen Alps de La Gomera starts tomorrow at Tecina Golf thanks to the support of Fred. Olsen, S.A., the Spanish Golf Federation, the Higher Sports Council, as well as the Government of the Canary Islands, Promotur Tourism of the Canary Islands, the Cabildo Insular de la Gomera, the Canarian Golf Federation, the Alps Tour, and Kyocera. The promoter and organizer of the tournament is JGolf.
