There’s no questioning Jarmo Sandelin’s determination in teeing-up later this week in the torturous six-round Q-School final in Spain.
Sandelin, now aged 55, is among 156 players now confirmed to tee-up Friday on the Lakes Course at Infinitum in Tarragona, Spain with more players to be added ahead of Friday’s start and then at the close of qualifying on Wednesday 16th November, the leading 25 will earn full 2023 DP World Tour membership.
The madcap but very affable Swede last played a full DP World Tour season in 2011, a decade after capturing a fourth Tour title.
Sandelin has contested 457 DP World Tour events since his debut all of 30-years ago in 1992. He married Linda who later took-up the role in his European Tour career as his caddy, with the couple and their three children still residing in Stockholm.
And in speaking of Linda, she was one of the very few female caddies on Tour at the time. I can recall, and no mention here of any names, but a colleague would interview Jarmo after his rounds simply to see Linda, with Jarmo not knowing the England-born journalist didn’t have his tape-recorder on. Yes I know, too much information, but then these are the things you remember from being out on Tour.
The Finnish-born Sandelin played the Tour full-time from 1995 through to 2011 when he lost his Tour card and the highlight of Sandelin’s career, aside from his five victories, was his appearance in the 1999 Ryder Cup.
The hapless Mark James led the Europeans but seriously cocked-up in declining to play four of the seven rookies in his team till the Sunday Singles including Scotland’s Andrew Coltart, Padraig Harrington, Jean Van de Velde and Sandelin.
Without the benefit of any competition ahead of the final day it was like throwing the rookies to the wolves with Tiger Woods devouring Coltart, Van de Velde savaged by Davis Love III and Phil Mickelson showing no sympathy in handing out a 5&3 drubbing to Sandelin.
Since 2011, Sandelin has contested just 21 main tour events, the last in 2019. In recent years, he’s been plying his trade on Europe’s over-50 Legends Tour, breaking through to capture the 2019 Mauritius Championship.
Anyway, here’s good fortune for one of Europe’s more-likeable golfers teeing-up later this week in Spain.
At this early stage, three Irish will tee-up in Spain including Gary Hurley and Cormac Sharvin though that is likely to change with players added to the field in coming days.
There are a number of Irish players joining Sandelin including Gary Hurley, Jonathan Caldwell, Cormac Sharvin, Paul Dunne and John Murphy while The K Club’s Connor O’Rourke is currently sixth reserve.
Some of the ‘name’ players teeing-up at Tarragona include former DP World Tour champs in the Spaniards Alejandro Canizares, Gonzalo Fernando Castano and Alvaro Quiros along with Frenchman Gregory Bourdy, Mike Lorenzo-Vera and Adrien Saddier plus a big contingent of Englishmen headed by David Howell along with David Horsey, Tom Lewis, Ross McGowan and Oliver ‘Mr. 59’ Fisher
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