Rafael Nadal's all-white at Golf Son Gual

Rafa Nadal wears the Son Gual brand with pride

World number one tennis player, Rafael Nadal, swapped his tennis whites for golf whites when competing in the Torneo Blanco at the prestigious Golf Son Gual club in Mallorca.

The 2010 Wimbledon singles champion was relaxing ahead of his busy tennis schedule leading up to the US Open at Flushing Meadows at the end of the month, where he hopes to win his ninth Grand Slam title.

The annual Torneo Blanco event is open to members and VIP visitors with a white-only dress code. The ensuing on-course spectacle was enough to make any leading washing powder manufacturer jealous with envy and Nadal’s attendance put many of his fellow competitors in a spin.

Nadal is a frequent visitor to Son Gual and is the latest in a long line of celebrities charmed by the beauty, playability and serenity of the club, which is located just outside Palma on the sunshine isle.

Spanish World Cup winner and Liverpool goalkeeper Pepe Reina took time out after his exploits in South Africa; former footballers Jamie Redknapp, Andy Gray and Alan McInally were among a group of Sky Sports analysts and commentators who visited for an end-of-season golf day; and other familiar faces at the course have included comedian Jasper Carrott, tennis legend Boris Becker and German national football coach Joachim Löw.

www.son-gual.com

GolfSwitch proves the professionals’ choice

Visitors to the PGAs of Europe website can now book tee-times at more than 1,500 golf courses in Europe and the USA after the organisation signed up to GolfSwitch, the world’s largest online, real time, tee-time distribution network.

The PGAs of Europe is an association of 37 national PGAs with a combined membership in the region of 18,500 golf professionals – and the website attracts not only these professionals but also amateurs keen to learn more about the game.

Ian Randell, chief executive of the PGAs of Europe, said: “PGA Professionals often influence not only how people play golf but also where they play the game. As well as providing important information for professionals, our website is designed for anybody who is keen on developing their golf and their golfing experiences.

“By teaming up with GolfSwitch, which is rapidly expanding its reach both in terms of countries and courses, to utilise its online tee time booking engine on the PGAs of Europe website, we can provide the amateur golfer with an immediate possibility to book live rounds of golf worldwide.”

Jo Maes, GolfSwitch’s director of European development, said: “Having the game’s professional choose GolfSwitch for their online tee-time booking solution shows not only how important the whole online booking sphere has become, but also acts as a further testament to our standing as a market leader in the industry.

“GolfSwitch is undoubtedly the most sought-after solution in the online tee-time marketplace today. It is immediate, flexible and – crucially for the consumer – up-to-the-moment. Yet, with GolfSwitch it is always the course which determines the business rules regarding availability and rate, allowing them full control over their own inventory.”

GolfSwitch offers many solutions for golf clubs and resorts to market themselves online. From a single tee-time booking, a special, a golf pass combined with other courses within a region, a tour operator engine for bookings directly into the tee sheet, or a packaging engine to combine rooms and tee times to a complete yield management suite that allows the client to plan ahead and yield green fee rates against high and low in demand times.

GolfSwitch is continuing its expansion into Europe with many major golf resorts and organisations joining the network and availing themselves of the many online solutions on offer.

www.golfswitch.com | www.pgae.com