Get to know Mr. John McNamara

I had the pleasure to interview our new President, Mr. John McNamara, on the 29th October 2013, in my office. He shared some of his experiences with us:

1. John, how do you feel about being elected as the new President of Marbella Golf Country Club, after so many years of being a life member & Captain as well?

I feel much honored to be elected by the members to serve them as their President. I have enjoyed a lot my time in the Club since I joined.

2. What do you hope to achieve during your term as President?

I hope that I can continue on from where Robbert was and has helped to bring the club to where it is today. I hope to grow the club atmosphere and serve the members, as without them, there is no club. We are here to play golf, that’s why we joined, but my intention is to keep up with the spirit, that has developed over the last few years, that we have a good number of members playing together on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. I also hope to achieve that the Club Competitions were supported by a greater of the members.

3. How do think the golf course has changed over the last years?

I became a life member in 2002 after being an annual member for 2 years before that. The upturn started, when Mike Munden took over as the General Manager. In the last 3 years, things have changed a lot. When I leave the club in June to go home and then come back in September, the quality of the course is always better year after year. Our Club is now a Members’ Club, the food is good and staff excellent. It’s a great place to be a member now.

4. Do you have a favorite golf hole or area of the golf course?

The hole I love is the hole number 6, which is still the stroke index number 1 of the golf course. I think it’s one of the best holes in my opinion on the Costa del Sol. It tests every element of your game. Other part of the course I like as well is the 19th hole, our lovely terrace and bar.

5. What was your best shot or score?

My best score was 2 days before the Captain’s Day this year. I’ve never won a major and I was hoping to do so this year, as I had been playing very well. I had 43 points playing of handicap 13 on the Wednesday previous to the Captain’s Day. I got cut 4 shots, so I then played off 9 on the Captain’s Day and I didn’t even win the first prize on Wednesday as another guy had 45 points. That would have been my first real chance to win a major. So of all the stupid things to do, is to play that well just before a major tournament.

6. Finally, next week your team will be disputing the two day tournament, Ryder Cup, against the Captain’s Team. Do you dare to make a guess of the results?

The President’s Team should win of course. The Captain’s Team will not have a chance. But we’ll play fair and I really hope it goes down to the last day and to the last couple of matches to make the game interesting. We will keep fighting. As a matter of fact, I’m reading Alex Ferguson’s autobiography at the moment, who was the Manchester United Manager, and he said that “all games are won in the last five minutes.” I hope the same applies to the Ryder Cup. I really look forward to it – it will be great fun. This year it’s the Captain’s Team against the President’s Team and I think it’s more fair this way, as the spread of handicaps is more equal.

The Ryder Cup was disputed on the 4th and 6th November and the President’s Team won the cup.

Satu Kaariainen
8th November 2013