Members and guests gathered impatiently to once again take a crack at their favourite sport, after so many weeks of waiting.

But first – before teeing up on Hole Nº1 – a toast to the reopening of Atalaya’s kiosk with the first coffee.

President Michael Pollak, pictured in bright yellow and orange and a member of the Bad Boys’ group, kicked off the festivities by taking the first drive on Hole Nº1.

Pollak played with Mirko Bogdanov, Nick Fulford and Peter Hood.

Pictured with Atalaya’s Managing Director Andrés Sánchez Garcia (center) – Michael Pollak and Peter Hood (on the left) – Mirko Bogdanov and Nick Fulford (on the right).

The team of four watching the last putts on Hole 18 after exactly 64 days of the State of Alarm closed the course.

And finally, the end of the game – only with smiles and a wave…..

Right now hugs and handshakes are lacking. Physical contact to say congratulations and thanks is not permitted.

All of this is temporary. Better days will come. COVID-19 will eventually pass and everything will return to normal.

La entrada The first play of the reopening during Covid-19 se publicó primero en Atalaya Golf & Country Club.

Normally this work is carried out during the summer months; however, with the closure of our courses as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the decision was made to take advantage of the time when our courses are not being used to accomplish this necessary maintenance.

The fairways and roughs on all golf courses suffer from soil compaction, and at Atalaya we are especially burdened by the problem as a result of the fine-textured, clayed soils that underlay our courses. Atalaya’s issue is further provoked by the heavily concentrated traffic patterns and extensive use of golf buggies experienced by our courses.

When soil is compacted the level of water percolation and infiltration into the soil is decreased and water loss by runoff is increased. Root systems become restricted because of a lack of aeration, and the health, vigour and density of the turfgrass declines. The combination of all of these factors causes a decrease in the quality of the playing surface.

Once a soil compaction problem is diagnosed, turf cultivation is required to alleviate it. The process involves coring, the use of solid tines, and, occasionally, slicing.

At Atalaya we initiate the process by using our mechanically powered, vertical-action coring machine to create deep-action, solid punching tines. This machine produces a relatively high density of hole openings while progressing at a reasonable forward speed.

No soil is removed with these solid tines, and the work is best accomplished during periods when the soil is moist, yet not water saturated. With the damp spring we are experiencing, our current weather conditions are proving optimal for executing this work.

The solid tines that we use are 25 mm in diameter and 200 mm in length. They are pushed deeply into our fairways and roughs, allowing the opening of holes in soil layers and dense, clay-ridden soil to depths which cannot be achieved with other coring, slicing and spiking devices.

Special attention is, of course, given to all of the areas of the fairways and roughs where golf buggy traffic is more highly concentrated.

The project is another illustration of Atalaya’s continual committent to maintaining its two championship golf courses in the best possible condition during the pandemic.

La entrada Atalaya Cultivates Fairways And Roughs se publicó primero en Atalaya Golf & Country Club.

The Ministry of Health, in coordination with the Secretary of State for Tourism, has approved the attached Technical Specifics for Golf Courses, providing guidelines and recommendations in order to minimize the risk of coronavirus contagion.

This document outlines the procedures to be taken in order to reopen golf, covering all facilities of a golf course divided into three categories: risk management, federated, and golf course.

The entry into operation of each of the different services shall be carried out in accordance with the timetable established by the Government.

Golf courses and federated players are requested to comply with the Protocols set out in this document: TECHNICAL SPECIFICS FOR GOLF COURSES: GUIDELINES AND RECOMMENDATIONS.

Being an official document of the State, the text is available only in Spanish. We apologise for any inconvenience.

La entrada The Government approves the Guide for reopening the golf courses se publicó primero en Atalaya Golf & Country Club.

Since its inception Los Bandidos has always been known as a fun group that promotes great camaraderie amongst the different clubs that participate in the Interclub competition. Atalaya’s Los Bandidos high point is remembered as being when Javier Serna Ullibarri served as captain. Reminisces of Javier, a well-loved Atalaya member, are still shared to this day. Sadly, he passed a number of years ago, and after his death Atalaya’s Los Bandidos languished.

Over the next few years the situation declined to the point where Atalaya finally withdrew  altogether from the Los Bandidos Interclub league. At that time Atalaya could not even field a team of eight players, and the situation seemed hopeless.

Then, a little less that four years ago, Atalaya decided to rekindle the Los Bandidos spirit and rejoin the Interclub organisation, never looking back.

Joseph Durrmeyer took over the captaincy two years ago, and within a year Atalaya’s Bandidos had grown to 30 members, making it the largest Los Bandidos team in the league. That year, Atalaya finished in Second Place in the overall competition.

Last year, the team continued to grow even more, and now more than 40 players are on the roster, giving Atalaya the largest team in league history. The result is a very united, competitive and winning team.

During the past six consecutive years, the powerful Los Arqueros squad captured the competition’s winners trophy. This year, however, is a different story. The Atalaya Bandidos fought long and hard and successfully de-throned Los Arqueros, capturing the 2020 championship and the sought after champion’s trophy.

During the current COVID-19 lockdown, Atalaya’s Bandidos team members, who, by the way, represent more than 13 countries including Spain, remain very supportive of one another and stay in close contact via emails and telephone conversations, even though several are far away in their homelands.

Reflecting on this year’s Interclub win, captain Durrmeyer states: “I am proud of the hard work that our members put into the competitions. It wasn’t easy, and the team handled themselves well and were a credit to Atalaya. Our focus has always been on building a team that is more than just a sum of its individuals, and I believe that we have accomplished that.”

“The fabulous team spirit is completely down to our captain Joseph. When I had to stand in for him, the support I received from the team was 100%”, reports vice-captain Peter Oliver.

Many memorable moments demonstrate the fun and spirit that the Atalaya team brings to the competition, making Atalaya’s players the envy of the other Los Bandidos teams. “The most fun was when my friend Patrick (Rey) decided to take off his shoes to save the hole when his ball had fallen into a river! And it was 14 degrees outside – what dedication!,” says Philippe Vauthier. Terry Imrie remembers, “My partner John Hassay announced when I birdied a hole at an away course shouting – ‘christ, I didn’t think you had it in you.’”

What stands out above all amid this great fun is the camaraderie – the high point of everything that has been accomplished. “Los Bandidos is exciting and very unifying,” comments Jan Sillman. “The pride is well deserved, and the team is very supportive as Atalaya brings home the Interclub trophy to once again put Atalaya in a place of honour.”

So, when will we actually see this sought-after trophy? “The big event where the trophy is given was cancelled due to the coronavirus lockdown. It is currently sitting at Los Arqueros and unfortunately will remain there until our courses are open and things begin to return to normal. As soon as we can, I will collect it and bring it home to Atalaya. Hopefully, we can have an event to celebrate once social distancing is no longer a necessity,” says Durrmeyer.

La entrada Atalaya’s Cinderella Story se publicó primero en Atalaya Golf & Country Club.

Surprisingly, soil compaction is more of a problem on tees than it is on putting greens. The primary reason is that on tees fewer root zones have been modified to prevent the compaction. Another factor is that many tees are too small for the intensity of play they receive which accentuates soil compaction problems even more.

Tee box size is particularly important on par-3 holes where many deep divots are formed during play and the tee boxes are not large enough to allow adequate rotations of the tee locations. Such rotations facilitate regrowth of the grass before the tee zone is needed to be used again.

Coring and spiking are the main turf cultivation approaches that we use for the tees. We routinely employ these processes twice a year, once during the summer and again in the autumn. This year we are taking advantage of the time when our courses are closed to core and spike, carrying out this work now, since we have already completed the hollow tining of our greens.

The same high quality, silica sand that we used on the greens is being applied as a topdressing and for levelling the tee surfaces. Topdressing of divot damage improves the turf recovery rate and smooths the surface area to allow a level stance for the player. The quantity of topdressing used on tee boxes is in general higher than the quantity typically used on putting greens.

Because the creation of large divot damage areas is commonplace on tees, weed problems also increase. First, divot craters provide ideal sites for the invasion of weeds – blue grass, crabgrass, grama catalana and the like – as these weeds require sunlight for seed germination. Second, extensive deep divot damage on par-3 tees may also disrupt a protective surface zone of pre-emergence herbicide, which also increases the potential for weed development. To solve these problems, we at Atalaya employ the effective and proper agricultural practices to enhance turf recovery in the areas that suffer from this damage. These best practices go a long way in reducing potential maintenance problems.

When play resumes, we encourage all members and guests to participate in a divot damage and repair programme by restoring divots with replacement sand. This sand is available in containers conveniently located near the tee markers. Simply use the small shovel provided to fill and level the divots with the material provided. This important campaign will go a long way to positively maintain our tee boxes.

La entrada Spiking and Topdressing of Old Course Tees se publicó primero en Atalaya Golf & Country Club.

To enhance safety and provide an extra sense of security to both members and guests, Atalaya has purchased “touch free” ball removal devices for installation on all Old Course flagsticks. The devices will later be added to the New Course as additional stock becomes available.

With the “touch free” mechanism, players will be able to putt out into the hole and retrieve their ball without touching the flagstick.

After holing the ball, simply use the putter head to lift the ball with a “touch free” clip. The ball will eject from the hole and roll a short distance away. When using the device, the lifter never touches the flagstick nor the side of the cup, and the grass around the cup is not damaged, assisting positively in the maintenance of our greens

Atalaya’s new system not only allows players to enjoy their entire round without touching a flagstick but also without ever bending over to retrieve a ball out of the cup. What could be better!

The following VIDEO demonstrates how easy it is to use the innovative, “touch free” ball removal device.

La entrada Safety first at Atalaya – “Touch free” Ball Removal se publicó primero en Atalaya Golf & Country Club.

An important upgrade is the replacement of the ceiling in the employees’ dining room. A new, removable ceiling has been installed. The new ceiling is easily replaceable, facilitating future changes and updates. Should the eventual addition or replacement of water pipes or lights be required, workmen will be able to pop out the portion of the ceiling providing access to the areas where repairs are required. No longer will it be necessary to demolish the ceiling.

In addition to the updated ceiling, the employees’ dining room now touts a sparkling new sink, as well as a new fridge, toaster and microwave!

To top off everything new flooring has been installed not only in the dining room but also in all personnel areas.

Certainly, these improvements will bring many smiles to the faces of Atalaya’s most capable and valued staff members when they return to work in the not too distant future.

La entrada Atalaya improves facilities for employees se publicó primero en Atalaya Golf & Country Club.

A hidden problem in maintaining high functionality of our irrigation system is the expansion and contraction of its pipes. Usually, such expansion and contraction happens in the longer sections of the pipelines. When pipes expand and contract, leakage or sometimes even the complete failure of the system results. In tandem, course damage and water wastage are caused. Since failures usually occur at the system’s joints, Atalaya’s maintenance crews, as a precautionary measure, are in the process of replacing old joints with modern, moveable ones that expand and contract. These new joints will help to eliminate the problem altogether.

The system’s sprinkler heads are another problem area that require regular upkeep. (We have 2,146 sprinkler units between the Old and New Course.) To make our courses more playable and provide for drainage after rains, Atalaya uses large quantities of sand for topdressing all fairways, greens, tees and roughs. This topdressing coupled with the natural movement of clay within the soil causes the sprinkler heads to become recessed deeply into the ground. When sprinkler heads are beneath the surface, their functionality is impaired. To alleviate this problem, Atalaya’s grounds’ staff steps in and raises them back to their optimal operating height to yield proper performance.

Our irrigation system is essential to the sustainability of both of our courses, and we are proactively developing solutions to maintain the system with minimal staff while our courses are closed as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

The new reforms not only allow maintenance work to be carried out more easily but also insure that our facilities are better sustained.

La entrada Irrigation Infrastructure Updates se publicó primero en Atalaya Golf & Country Club.

Created in 1942, NO-DO (“News and Documentaries”) was a state-controlled, weekly broadcasting service of the Franco regime. Newsreels and documentaries produced in Spain were shown in cinemas before the feature film itself from 1943 until 1981.

La entrada Atalaya Receives Special Mention in 1973 NO-DO Broadcast se publicó primero en Atalaya Golf & Country Club.