More than 50 liters of rain soaked the black course at the Club de Campo Villa de Madrid over the days leading up to the tournament, leaving heavy turf and deep rough that forced tournament organizers and grounds crews to run heavy machinery around the clock. The 2026 Open de España opened its doors on Wednesday, October 7, with a pro-am day that drew prominent figures including former English footballer John Terry, tennis player Juan Carlos Ferrero, former footballer Luis Figo, racing driver Carlos Sainz, and television personality Risto Mejide, ahead of the professional tournament running from Thursday, October 8, through Sunday, October 11.
The event arrives carrying a notable absence at the top of the leaderboard. Rahm had played every edition of the Open de España since 2018, claiming titles in 2018, 2019, and 2022, and his withdrawal leaves the tournament without its three-time champion and headline draw. Despite missing the Basque golfer, the 99th edition of the historic tournament retains a stellar international and domestic field.
International Field and Historic Tradition at Club de Campo
Madrid Mayor José Luis Almeida opened tournament week by comparing the Spanish capital to global hubs like Paris, New York, Los Angeles, and London. Backing up that ambition, a formidable international contingent arrived in Madrid, featuring Shane Lowry, Tyrrell Hatton, Ludvig Åberg, Justin Rose, Patrick Reed, Bubba Watson, Francesco Molinari, Nicolai Højgaard, Alex Noren, and defending champion Marco Penge. Opengolf.es notes that the tournament carries a founding date of 1912, making it the third-oldest national Open in the world and the second-oldest in continental Europe behind only the British Open and French Open.
Played on the legendary Black Course designed by architect Javier Arana and opened in April 1956, the par-71, 6,504-meter layout presents a severe test of distance and accuracy. The international stars navigating the saturated fairways on Wednesday afternoon experienced firsthand the dense rough produced by the heavy autumn downpours. With 132 players in the field—including seven inside the top 50 of the Official World Golf Ranking and 76 from the top 100 of the Race to Dubai—the tournament maintains substantial weight on the DP World Tour calendar.
Sergio García Targets the PGA Tour and Ryder Cup
With Rahm absent, veteran Spanish major champion Sergio García addressed his professional future and international ambitions during tournament interviews. García stated that his relationship with LIV Golf is moving toward a resolution, noting that todavía quedan cosas por hacer, no está del todo resuelto
(things still remain to be done, it is not entirely resolved), while expressing a desire to return to the PGA Tour in the future. Specifically, García mentioned looking ahead to the Champions Tour when he reaches age 50 to play its major championships.
Addressing the upcoming team competitions, García confirmed he has spoken with European Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald. The Castellón native stated that he intends to do everything possible to make the European team for 2027, adding that if he fails to qualify as a player, Donald can count on him to assist the team in any capacity deemed appropriate.
Eugenio López-Chacarra Competes with a Broken Finger
Eugenio López-Chacarra enters the week as the highest-ranked Spanish player in the world behind Rahm. Currently sitting third in the Race to Dubai standings with two tournament victories this season, López-Chacarra is slated to join the PGA Tour in 2027. However, the Madrid native arrives at his home event carrying an injury sustained the previous week at his home in Oklahoma after a accidental collision with the corner of a piece of furniture.
Me duele sobre todo al andar
(It hurts mostly when walking), López-Chacarra noted while displaying a photograph of the broken right foot finger on his mobile phone. Despite the fracture, he confirmed his intent to compete and continue his training under the statistical guidance of Edoardo Molinari, the European Ryder Cup team’s analytics consultant, with the goal of securing a spot on the 2027 squad.
A Robust Spanish Armada Fills the Draw
To offset the disappointment of Rahm’s withdrawal, tournament organizers assembled a deep national contingent featuring twenty Spanish professionals and amateurs. Alongside García and López-Chacarra, the local entry list includes Ángel Ayora, David Puig, Rafa Cabrera Bello, Nacho Elvira, Jorge Campillo, Ángel Hidalgo, Pablo Larrazábal, Manuel Elvira, Alex del Rey, Quim Vidal, Josele Ballester, Alfredo García-Heredia, Sebastián García, Iván Cantero, Juan Salama, and tournament invitees Alejandro Rodríguez and Sebastián Rodríguez.
The professional stroke-play rounds commence on Thursday morning at 8:40 local time (UTC+2) at the Club de Campo Villa de Madrid, where the 132-player field will contend for one of European golf’s most historic trophies.
