Breakfast radio show presenter Alan Brazil of the UK sports and talk radio service talkSport will be broadcasting live for two days from this year’s Sir Ian Botham Charity Golf Classic at Desert Springs in south-east Spain.
The event at Europe’s only international award-winning luxury desert resort and championship golf course in the Almeria area of Spain takes place from Thursday, October 30 to Saturday, November 1. It will be the last of four golfing events planned this year by Sir Ian Botham to raise money for Leukaemia Research.
The others are taking place at Portmarnock Golf Club in the Republic of Ireland on Monday, June 30, Remedy Oak Golf Club in Dorset on Wednesday, July 12, and Archerfield Golf Club in Scotland on Monday, September 15 and Tuesday, September 16. Each of the winning teams from these tournaments will compete in the grand final at Desert Springs.
The decision by talkSPORT to broadcast live from the event follows a visit to Desert Springs by Alan Brazil earlier this year. He played on the 72 par 18-hole USGA Indiana golf course designed by former Great Britain and Ireland Golf Team Captain Peter McEvoy.
Simon Coaker, director of golf at Desert Springs, said this week: “Last year’s Sir Ian Botham Charity Golf Classic took place here and raised more than £47,000 (€60,000) for Leukaemia Research. The same charity is set to benefit this year and we aim to beat last year’s record.”
Some of the celebrities and professional sports personalities who will be captaining their own amateur teams at this year’s event will include Sir Ian Botham and his son Liam, Sir Clive Woodward, Paul Allot, Jimmy Case, Matt Dawson, Steve Cram and Mick Fitzgerald.
For Sir ‘Beefy’ Botham, Desert Springs is a home from home. He has bought a four-bedroom country villa alongside the seventeenth fairway which he describes as “our perfect family retreat.”
Commenting on plans to hold the Charity Golf Classic at Desert Springs again this year, Sir Ian said: "Due to the phenomenal success of last year’s event, I have selected Desert Springs to host the Grand Final of this, my 2008 ‘Charity Golf Series’.
“The Desert Springs Resort possesses all the qualities required by both the celebrity and amateur guests – the warmest of welcomes and a superb professional level of service, a venue which affords my guests both a relaxing and charming atmosphere, and a unique golfing experience, with lots of facilities for them to enjoy both pre- and post-golf.
“The event will be unique and truly first class, affording the amateur players a rare opportunity to play and socialise with some world class sports stars, as well as some of my great celebrity friends, all of whom are kindly giving up their time to play and help us raise as much as we can for Leukaemia Research!"
At the end of the event Sir Ian will present trophies to members of the winning team, and other prizes.
Commenting on the decision to broadcast from Desert Springs, Moz Dee, Programme Director of talkSPORT said: “talkSPORT are delighted to be supporting Sir Ian with his Charity golf tournament at Desert Springs.”
talkSPORT will be broadcasting from Desert Springs on Friday, October 31 from 6 am to 10 am and on Saturday, November 1 from 8 am to 12 noon. Alan Brazil will present both programmes.
For more information:
• Golf at Desert Springs: telephone +34 678 235716
• talkSPORT: telephone +44 (0) 20 7959 7800
• Property and holidays: telephone +44 (0) 1242 680116
• The Desert Springs resort: www.almanzora.com
BACKGROUND NOTES FOR EDITORS:
Celebrity players
Celebrities and professional sports personalities who will be playing in this year’s Sir Ian Botham Charity Golf Classic at Desert Springs in south-east Spain include:
| Sir Ian Botham | Cricket |
| Nasser Hussain | Cricket |
| Paul Allott | Cricket |
| Jimmy Case | Football |
| Vinny Samways | Football |
| Liam Botham | Rugby |
| Tony Cascarino | Football |
| Matt Dawson | Rugby |
| Justin Marshall | Rugby |
| Sir Clive Woodward | Rugby |
| John Inverdale | BBC |
| Paul Way | Golf |
| Peter McEvoy | Golf |
| Mick Fitzgerald | Horse Racing |
| Steve Cram | Athletics |
| DJ Russell | Golf |
| Alison Nicholas | Golf |
| Trish Johnson | Golf |
Leukaemia Research
Leukaemia Research established in 1960, is the only national research charity solely devoted to leukaemia and related blood disorders in both adults and children. The charity is committed to improving treatments, finding cures and learning how to prevent leukaemia, Hodgkin’s and other lymphomas, myeloma and other related blood disorders, which are diagnosed in 24,500 people in the UK every year. The charity’s work depends entirely on voluntary donations.
talkSPORT
talkSPORT is the UK’s only national commercial speech radio station. Its content includes sport phone-ins, live sports commentaries, and topical phone-in debate and discussions. It is transmitted on 1089 and 1053 kHz across the UK and digitally via DAB digital radio, Freeview, Sky, Virgin Media and Tiscali TV. talkSPORT is also streamed online; however, due to rights restrictions on live coverage, some live sport commentaries are not available online.
Desert Springs
Desert Springs is Europe’s only international award-winning luxury family resort and championship desert golf course in the Almanzora region of Almeria in south-east Spain.
The resort occupies more than 300 hectares (750 acres) on an elevated plateau over the Rio Almanzora, near the coast of the municipality of Cuevas del Almanzora.
The first phase of the resort – already up and running – includes the Indiana Desert Golf Course and Club House and its international award-winning El Torrente Restaurant, as well as the Crocodile Club family restaurant and bar, with its pools, sun lawns and sand play bunkers. Also open is the Sierra Sports and Fitness Club which has facilities for tennis, paddle, gymnasium and football.
Golf at Desert Springs
At the heart of Desert Springs is its 72 par 18-hole USGA Indiana golf course designed by former Great Britain and Ireland Golf Team Captain Peter McEvoy. He was inspired by the desert courses of Arizona and California.
The dramatic nature of the Desert Springs fairways, set in a landscape of cactus, rock and flowering desert, is said to have taken golf in Spain to a new level of excellence.
Golf Club joining fees for Non-resident Membership, for a family of up to four, are waived in the case of Almanzora Bay Group’s own property purchasers.
The club runs a year-round calendar of tournaments for members as well as open tournaments including The Indiana Masters, The Desert Classic and The Professional Challenge Cup. In March, 2007, it hosted – for the second time in three years – Europe’s most prestigious amateur tournament, the King’s Cup – the Copa Del Rey – which is the Spanish International Amateur Open.
Getting there
The Almanzora region is easy to reach, thanks to three international airports. The current journey time from Almeria International Airport to Desert Springs is around 50 minutes by road. Other international airports are at Murcia – 70 minutes by car on the new toll motorway direct to the Almanzora Valley (the toll is €11.5) – and Alicante which is less than two hours by road.
| UK:
Sports Masters International |
Spain:
Desert Springs Resort & Golf Club |
