The founder of Logicalgolf, Robert Baker, visited Son Gual, in Mallorca, recently to celebrate the success of his first Spanish academy, almost two years on from its launch.
Now installed in the PGA headquarters at The Belfry – and an official PGA supplier – Logicalgolf was relatively unheralded when Son Gual opened only its third learning centre in the world in the summer of 2013.
Yet in the intervening period, amateur and professional golfers have flocked to Mallorca’s number-one golf destination to reap the benefits of the unique methods of Baker’s Logicalgolf training system, under the auspices of professional Tim Holroyd.
Holroyd, who hails originally from Birkdale, Merseyside, said: “Robert was hugely impressed by what we’ve achieved at Son Gual in such a short space of time. We’ve gone from having a six-month teaching facility to one which is rammed for 11 months of the year.
“And while the majority of business tends to be groups of amateurs we also see regularly Tour professionals popping in to iron out a few issues with their game. The Logicalgolf method is simplicity itself and I believe it is the ability to get the message over quickly and simply, using tools and messages anybody can understand, that has made the system so successful in such a short time.”
Baker’s methods are much in demand by both professionals and amateurs, and his personal client portfolio reads like a guest list at an Oscars after party. Baker has worked with – among others – four-time Major winner and former world number one Ernie Els; actors Sylvester Stallone, Michael Douglas and Samuel L Jackson; sports stars Nigel Mansell, Charles Barkley and Wladimir Klitschko; and several heads of state.
Logicalgolf is a simple teaching method that focusses on visualising complex golf techniques and develops a greater understanding of the bio-mechanics involved in making a solid swing. It creates ideas that make innovative golf training possible, concentrating on functionality, design and the development of user-friendly products.
Baker said: “It’s great to see just how busy the teaching centre is here at Son Gual. I could not think of a better venue to be the Logicalgolf standard-bearer in Spain – and, let’s be honest, who wouldn’t want to come and improve their golf on the sunshine island of Mallorca.”
The €30m Thomas Himmel-designed Son Gual course was acclaimed recently as ‘best golf course’ by the World of Leading Golf, a corporation representing some of the globe’s most distinctive clubs. And it has been turning heads since it opened in 2007.
It is listed as the eighth-best course in Spain and the top venue in Mallorca in Golf World’s benchmark Top 100 Courses in Continental Europe 2014 rankings. Golf World described the venue as “one of the finest inland courses on the continent”, and continued: “Son Gual is what a modern championship course should be, and, taken together with its fabulous clubhouse and practice facilities, is every inch a serious Tour venue … it stands comparison with our own high-octane parklands The Grove and The Belfry – not least in the conditioning stakes, which is no mean achievement.”
Born of a desire in its owner, Adam Pamer, for Mallorca to have a golf course worthy of the sunshine island, Son Gual was sculpted expertly out of a large piece of barren agricultural land. The transformation into a world-class golf course has created a venue which features large lakes, 66 bunkers, 800 olive trees – some more than a thousand years old – wild flowers in the rough and vineyards in several areas around the course.
It includes several outstanding, memorable holes including a closing hole described by one reviewer as a “serious contender for Europe’s best par-five and Spain’s most dramatic 18th”.
Son Gual is also a regular haunt for many of the island’s visiting celebrities and sports stars. Lothar Matthäus, who captained Germany to FIFA World Cup success in 1990, is among recent visitors, and he was preceded by the likes of German national team manager Joachim Löw, Spanish World Cup winner Pepe Reina, and tennis superstars Boris Becker and 14-time grand-slam event winner Rafael Nadal, who is a regular visitor, when not competing on the ATP World Tour.
Other recent visitors include the former mayor of New York City, Michael Bloomberg, and Ladies European Tour order of merit winner 2014 Charley Hull.
Son Gual also regularly hosts corporate events for big-name brands such as Rolex, Mercedes Benz and Porsche.
Son Gual www.son-gual.com
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