Northern Irish golfer and former Ryder Cup player and European No 1 golfer Ronan Rafferty is to become the official touring professional to Monte Rei, Portugal’s Luxury Golf Resort.
Speaking of the new partnership, Rafferty stated: “I’m delighted to be announcing this partnership with Monte Rei given the quality and excellence of this estate and the fantastic facilities that they have to offer here. I am proud to wear the Monte Rei shield out on tour and I’m excited by their ambitions for the development of their academy facilities and hope to be a part of their plans for many years to come.”
With thirteen tournament wins and seven on the European Tour, plus a host of silverware, including the Order of Merit in 1989, Rafferty was a natural choice for Monte Rei given his love of the resort and its facilities as a practice venue of the highest quality, having visited regularly.
Rafferty will now concentrate his efforts on his first year on the European Seniors tour and looks forward to the first event of the new season in Bermuda as well as his invitation to the Seniors USPGA Championship and Seniors Open Championship later this season.
David Shepherd, Director of Golf at Monte Rei, commented: “We are very pleased to be working with Ronan as he embarks on the next phase of his playing career and look forward to welcoming Ronan to Monte Rei throughout the season. Ronan is the perfect ambassador for us because of his personality, with his well known success throughout Europe and his knowledge of golf across the UK. We believe we offer a complete golf experience and with Ronan’s involvement we look forward to enhancing Monte Rei´s reputation as one of Europe’s leading golf resorts”
Monte Rei has gained recognition around the world as a premier golf and family destination and, since its opening 7 years ago, it has been ranked several years in a row as the number one golf course in Portugal. Monte Rei continues to grow and the past few years have seen a number of developments throughout the resort, with the introduction of fully serviced rental villas, along with the opening of Veranda, which includes a restaurant and bar, tennis courts, pools, gymnasium and spa.
Monte Rei www.monte-rei.com