Miguel Ángel Jimenez became the oldest DP World Tour winner at 50 years and 133 days when he lifted the 2014 Open de Espana. A record that has stood proudly for nine years and will be tough to beat, but if anyone can, he believes it will be Pádraig Harrington.
Harrington knocked on the door of that record at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship last month and Jimenez believes his old Ryder Cup team-mate will make history and knock him off his perch.
“At this moment I have the record but probably with the way he is playing and the way he hits the ball, he will probably do this. At the moment he is the only one who can break the record really,” explained the 59-year-old.
Jimenez though in the meantime hasn’t ruled out the possibility of winning on the DP World Tour again but insists there are only a select few golf courses that he has a realistic chance on.
“I’m still competitive but I only play 15 tournaments a year because over the last few years it’s been tough with the way the players play the game now. At the end of the four days I would be very tired playing on the DP World Tour which is why at 59, I focus on the Champions Tour.
“I still enjoy competing on the DP World Tour, it’s nice because I always like to be fit and keep competing. I think I can still win an event on the DP World Tour, not if it’s on a course that you have to hit the ball as far as possible. It needs to be a course where you have to place the ball like a Spanish Open or in Crans Montana.
“On courses like that, there are possibilities.”
Jon Rahm could finally return to world number one with his fifth win in eight events at the Waste Management Phoenix Open this week and Jimenez is backing his fellow countryman to deliver in a major way in 2023.
“I hope Rahm can achieve the four majors. He already has one but I hope the way he has played he will for sure win more majors and I hope he can get one this year,” explained the Spaniard who believes Rahm will be crucial for Europe in the Ryder Cup in September but is doubtful over any other Spanish representation.
“I don’t know at the moment I don’t see apart from Rahm another Spanish player making the team.
“Matchplay is a different format, a different type of game. The USA have loads of top players but Europe have very good players too in Rory, Rahm, Hovland and we will have to see how the matches go. It will be tough, it will be emotional because the Ryder Cup is unique and at the end of the day it will be very tight. I hope Europe will win.”
Jimenez was preparing for another season on the Champions Tour – where he won three times in a season for the first time in his career – at the One Green Way Invitational at Quinta do Lago.
An investment lead by SPX Capital, working closely with the Development company Green Jacket Partners, One Green Way sets out to foster a sense of community amongst its residents, balancing health and wellness with comfort and leisure.
Situated on the 12th hole of Quinta Do Lago North Golf Course, all residences offer unrivalled access to one of the world’s best golf courses. The North Course was redesigned in 2014 by acclaimed golf architect Beau Welling and former Ryder Cup captain Paul McGinley. A distinguishing design feature is its stylish contemporary Mediterranean architecture and mature landscaping by global award-winning landscaper Cracknell.
With a 2.5-hour flight time to the UK and a shared time-zone, One Green Way is a home-away-from-home for the booming second home buyers’ market in Portugal.
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