Precision or punishment: that’s the Pink Course at El Prat

The Pink Course at the Real Club de Golf El Prat will host the Estrella Damm Catalunya Championship, which is set to take place from May 7-10. Designed by Greg Norman and opened in 2003, this 6,453-metre par-72 course winds through beautiful woodland but punishes any mistake without mercy. Quim Vidal, a member of the Real Club de Golf El Prat who is competing in his first season on the DP World Tour, gives us the lowdown on the challenge awaiting the players in Barcelona.

“The Pink course is very technical; you must place the ball in a specific spot every time and I don’t think long hitters have an advantage. Some of the tees are tricky and, above all, the greens are very undulating, and if you lose your concentration, you can really get into trouble around them,” warns Quim.

It was precisely the demanding nature of the courses that led this young Barcelona native to join the club.

“It’s perfect for training; it prepares you for any professional-level course in all areas of the game. If you train at El Prat, you’ll do well on any course in the world; it’s very comprehensive and has wonderful facilities.”

Since the announcement that the Estrella Damm Catalunya Championship would be held at El Prat, Vidal has been taking every opportunity to practise on the Pink course and has a clear idea of the shots that will make the difference. The trickiest on the front nine, in his view, is the hole 2 tee shot to a narrow par 4 surrounded by trees.

“It’s tricky, with a crosswind; you have to clear a bunker, there’s water on the right and woods on the left – you have to be very precise,” he explains.

“On the hole 6, a very long par 3, you’ll be hitting a 4-iron into a headwind, and if you hit a bad shot and end up in the sand, you could start sending the ball all over the place,” he adds.

The tee shots on holes 7 and 8 are also crucial, as Vidal tells us.

“You can easily end up in the woods, and if that happens, the best thing is to get back onto the fairway or try to get as close to the green as possible. Don’t do anything crazy: try to get an up and down for par or bogey and move on to the next one. If you manage to keep it on the fairway every day on these holes and on the hole 2, you’ll be saving a lot of strokes,” he warns.

The two par-5s on the front nine — holes 1 and 9 — can offer a breather, “especially the 9, which is more manageable”. Holes 4 and 5 also allow you to make up ground if you’re on the fairway, but from the 10 onwards the pressure mounts. “On the back nine, you can get into trouble at any moment if the wind is blowing.”

Moreover, the wind is a key factor on the course designed by Norman.

“It’s not the wind itself that’s the problem, but its intensity. There isn’t usually much in the morning, but it picks up from midday onwards. If the course is firm and the wind is blowing strongly, some holes —such as the 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14— can become extremely tricky. Everything will depend on the course conditions; for example, the 11th hole, normally an accessible par 3, turns into a monster with a headwind if they set the green very fast.”

On the hole 13, also a par 3, “more than one player is going to get into trouble,” he predicts. “If you miss slightly to the left, you’re done for. If the green is firm, it’s a very tricky shot,” he adds. To his list of nerve-wracking shots, we must add the second shot on the 14 in windy conditions —a par-4 dogleg to the left through trees; the tee shot on the 15, with woodland and bunkers on both sides; and holes 16 and 17, the longest on the course, “though not the most tense”.

For Quim Vidal, there is no doubt that this course can offer a great spectacle.

“It’s always possible that a player might have the week of their life and pull ahead, but if the leader doesn’t reach the back nine with more than a four-stroke lead, anything can happen. You can’t let your concentration slip for a moment.”

Few players get the chance to compete on home soil during their first season on the DP World Tour, as Quim Vidal will, an experience he is truly looking forward to.

“It’s really exciting. There’s always extra pressure because you want to do well, but I think it works in your favour because you’re more focused; sometimes pressure is a good thing. The most important thing will be to enjoy the whole process – the course, the people, signing caps for the children, them coming to watch us… the result that week will be the least of it.”

His excellent 13th place at the Hero Indian Open is a real confidence boost just a few weeks ahead of the Estrella Damm Catalunya Championship.

“I knew I could have a good tournament at any time, but achieving it helps a lot for the ones to come. I made the cut in China, I’d been playing better; it all helps to build momentum.”

Tickets for the Estrella Damm Catalunya Championship (with a 25% discount for federation members, 50% off for young people aged 13 to 17, and free entry for children under 13) are available now.

The Estrella Damm Catalunya Championship, a DP World Tour tournament included in the Race to Dubai as the first event of the European Swing, is held thanks to the essential collaboration of the Real Club de Golf El Prat. It is sponsored by Estrella Damm and will kick off the Road to 2031 Ryder Cup, a journey that will end at the 2031 Ryder Cup to be held at Camiral.