La Hacienda Links Golf Resort will play host to some of the biggest names in the sport and business worlds including former NBA basketball star Pau Gasol and tennis legend Rafael Nadal when the Gasol Foundation Golf Invitational is held at the top Spanish resort next month.
Taking place from June 19-22 in aid of the fight against childhood obesity, the two-day tournament will be played across both of the 36-hole resort’s acclaimed golf courses – the Links and the Heathland – with guests staying at the five-star Fairmont La Hacienda Costa del Sol Hotel, which opened this spring.
Gasol, who retired from professional basketball in 2021, is a six-time NBA All-Star and two-time winner of the championship series and has three Olympic medals to his name. Meanwhile, his Spanish compatriot Nadal – a keen golfer in his free time – retired last year as one of the most decorated tennis players of all time including winning 22 Grand Slam singles titles.
The pair will be joined at La Hacienda by Spanish basketball icon Rudy Fernanández and ex-Barcelona star Bernd Schuster, as well as ex-Chelsea and Spain international footballers Álvaro Morata and Marcos Alonso.
A strong contingent of professional golfers will also be in attendance at the team event, including a pair of seven-time DP World Tour winners in Álvaro Quirós and Gonzalo Fernández-Castaño.
Competing alongside the elite sporting line-up will be an array of executives and businesspeople who are also committed to the Gasol Foundation, supporting the tournament’s original goal of promoting healthy lifestyle habits and improving the well-being of vulnerable children. Also featured in a packed itinerary is a gala dinner and charity auction at the Fairmont La Hacienda Costa del Sol, while the tournament has the strong institutional support of the municipalities of La Línea de la Concepción and San Roque.
Located in the Cadiz municipality of San Roque close to Sotogrande, La Hacienda Links Golf Resort is a rising star in European golf thanks to a string of high-profile investments in its golf and lifestyle facilities, including the construction of what was named ‘World’s Best Halfway House’ at the 2024 World Golf Awards.
La Hacienda’s Links course runs along the beachfront with spectacular views of the Mediterranean, Gibraltar and Africa, and was taken to new heights in 2022 following a major redesign by renowned American architect Kurtis Bowman. In addition, the Heathland has also benefitted from a significant upgrade in the last 18 months, with a number of holes redesigned to improve the playing experience of the popular layout.
Javier Jimenez Casquet, director general at La Hacienda Links Golf Resort, said: “We have been inspired by the passion and dedication of Pau Gasol and everyone at the Gasol Foundation in
tackling this important issue, so it will be a pleasure to make our contribution to the cause by hosting the Gasol Foundation Golf Invitational next month.
“We are excited to welcome sporting icons like Gasol and Rafael Nadal, some of Spain’s most successful golfers and friends of the foundation to our two courses for what is sure to be an unforgettable event.”
Childhood obesity is one of modern society’s greatest threats to public health both in Spain and globally; an estimated one in three Spanish children is overweight.
In Pau Gasol’s words, the tournament was created “with a clear purpose: to raise funds to continue promoting our mission of preventing childhood obesity through the promotion of healthy lifestyle habits. For more than a decade, we at the Gasol Foundation have worked to improve the well-being of children and families in vulnerable situations, and this tournament will be a unique opportunity to raise awareness, gather support, and enjoy golf in an exceptional setting.”