The forthcoming Seve Trophy contest between Continental Europe and Great Britain & Ireland at the Campo de Golf Parador El Saler, Valencia, Spain will now be played over four days in early November (6th to 9th), rather than three.
Event promoters, Amen Corner and MediaPro, believe that the addition of an extra day’s play will generate significant additional exposure for the event and its sponsors and serve to avoid any problems with fading light during the fiercely-contested matches between Europe’s top golfers.
The new timetable has been endorsed by The European Tour and the leading broadcasters, including host broadcaster Canal Plus and the BBC, who will screen an additional two and a half hours of live coverage – bringing the total up to more than 11 hours of prime time exposure in the UK. Coverage will also be beamed to major networks in the USA, Latin America, Australia, Japan and Asia.
Once again, the Seve Trophy pitches a team representing Continental Europe and led by Severiano Ballesteros against a team drawn from Great Britain & Ireland captained by Colin Montgomerie in a Ryder Cup-style format of match-play golf. The Great Britain & Ireland team will attempt to retain the Seve Trophy after winning with a score of 14 ½ points to 11 ½ at Druids Glen, Ireland, in April 2002.
The Comunitat Valencia, official sponsor of this year’s Seve Trophy event, sees the tournament as part of its promotional strategy to position and maintain itself as a prime tourist, golfing and leisure destination worldwide.
The imposing Golf Course Parador El Saler is ranked among the top ten golf courses in Europe. A venue for Spanish Open championships in 1984, 1989 and 2001, the course record is held by Bernhard Langer, who shot a sensational 62 (ten under par) in 1984.
Prize money for the Seve Trophy stands at €2.2 million – with €150,000 for each member of the winning team.
Seve Trophy www.sevetrophy2003.com