There’s no questioning Jarmo Sandelin’s determination in teeing-up later this week in the torturous six-round Q-School final qualifing in Spain.
Sandelin, now aged 55, is among 156 players now confirmed to tee-up Friday on the Lakes Course at in Tarragona, Spain and then at the close of qualifying on Wednesday 16th November, the leading 25 will have earned full 2023 DP World Tour membership.
The sometimes madcap but always very affable Swede last played a full DP World Tour season in 2011, and a decade after capturing a fourth Tour title.
The DP World Tour Needs You! With Jarmo Sandelin looking to regain his Tour card over 10-years since last full time on the tour. (Photo – PGA Tour/Getty)
Sandelin has contested 457 DP World Tour events since his debut all of 30-years ago in 1992. He married the very attractive Linda who took-up the role in his later European Tour career as his caddy, and with the couple and their three children still residing in Stockholm.
And in speaking of Linda, there’s no denying she was one of more ‘better looking’ caddies. I can recall, and no mention here of any names, but a colleague would interview Jarmo after his rounds simply to admire Linda, and with Jarmo not knowing the England-born journalist didn’t have his tape-recorder on.
Yes, too much information but then these are things you do remember being out on Tour.
The Finnish-born Sandelin played the Tour full-time from 1995 through to 2011 when he lost his Tour card. Highlight of Sandelin’s career, aside from his five victories, should have been his appearance in the 1999 Ryder Cup.
The hapless Mark James led the Europeans but seriously cocked-up big-time in declining to not to play four of the seven rookies in his team till the Sunday Singles, Scotland’s Andrew Coltart, Padraig Harrington, Jean Van de Velde and Sandelin.
Without the benefit of being selected in any of the fourballs or foursome matches it was like throwing the rookies to the wolves with Tiger Woods devouring Coltart, Van de Velde savaged by Davis Love 111 and Phil Mickelson showing now sympathy in handing out a 5 & 3 drubbing to Sandelin.
Since 2011, Sandelin has contested just 21 main tour events and the last in 2019. In recent years, he’s been plying his trade on Europe’s over-50 Legends Tour and 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.
Joining Sandelin will be five Iris and including Gary Hurley, Jonathan Caldwell, Cormac Sharvin, Paul Dunne and John Murphy. 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 Englishman headed by David Howell along with David Horsey, Tom Lewis, Ross McGowan and Oliver ‘Mr. 59’ Fisher.
