Born in Gijón and now living in the province of Malaga, Montse San Francisco says she feels like she’s from Andalusia and particularly “from Marbella and the golf valley”. In this interview, the Director of Ladies in Golf reveals how she came up with the idea of creating the magazine that has proved to be a big hit among golf lovers in its four years of existence.
Where does your passion for golf come from?
I had always been interested in golf, but I didn’t start playing until I was 30. The Director of my company, who was a golf fanatic, gave me a bag full of clubs one day and said, “you have to start playing”. We spoke to the Director of La Valmuza course in Salamanca, which was where I was living at the time and I started taking classes there. When I decided I fancied a change of scenery and I was looking at new places to live, the Costa del Golf really captured my attention. I decided then and there that I wanted to live in a place where I could spend more time enjoying my new hobby. I had already fallen in love with Andalusia when I did an internship at Antena3 TV Sevilla, a channel in Seville, during my university studies. So I accepted the position as Head of Marketing at Incosol, put my stuff in the car and came to enjoy golf in the best place in the world.
Fuente: Instagram Montse San Francisco
How long have you been Director of Ladies in Golf?
I started thinking about the idea in August 2018. One Saturday I was flicking through Elle or Telva as I was having my breakfast. My husband was reading a golf magazine. Suddenly he looked at me and asked me why, as a golfer, I didn’t read golf magazines. I told him that they seemed highly technical, full of data about courses and interviews with important players who were far from my reality. And then he asked me why, with my background as a journalist and assistant editor of a magazine, I didn’t make my own. That’s where my dream began. In December, after the launch party at Los Naranjos in Marbella, I distributed my very first edition at the local courses. I was afraid, thinking that nobody would want to read it, but to my great surprise, it was read from the off. I think its success lies in its not just being about golf, but being about lifestyle more generally. This gave me the strength to keep fighting for a dream, for ladies’ golf, for courses and professionals, giving them visibility and supporting their work. Ladies in Golf magazine is now a national publication available in the best courses in Spain that has been listed a Proud Supporter of the Solheim Cup 2023.
Where is women’s golf at right now?
I think women’s golf is in a great place, but there’s still a long way to go. I would love to see more ladies who were members at clubs in Spain. There are a lot of women here, I’ve calculated that over a million play the courses in the area - a figure that is, of course, not insignificant - but most of these players are foreign. There are all sorts of myths that we need to debunk here in Spain, like it’s expensive, for instance, or you need a lot of time. When you do the maths, you realise that you spend the same amount of time, and perhaps even more money, having brunch with your friends than on a round of golf. In terms of the pros, I think that we’re at the dawn of something great. There are incredible players coming up and if they make it big it would be a great help for us as the general press would pay them more attention.
Fuente: Instagram Montse San Francisco
How have things evolved in recent years?
Things have changed a lot in the past four years. I think having women like Marta Figueras Dotti and Alexandra Armas in the limelight is helping a great deal. They have brought back the LET, filing the tour with tournaments and bringing four to Spain this season. Which is amazing. And the Solheim Cup is the cherry on the cake.
Do you think there’s a growing interest in women’s golf around the world? And in Spain?
There’s a great interest generally in women’s sport and golf has a promising future. I think that when companies realise the potential of the ladies’ game - which is much less costly than the men’s game - and see the opportunity within the niche, more money will start coming in and the press will follow. Institutions in the Costa del Sol and Andalusia as well as the councils are doing a commendable job too.
What do you think about the Costa del Sol being the official host of the Solheim Cup 2023?
When I started the magazine, rumours were flying about the Solheim Cup. Some people even insinuated that I knew the Cup was coming to the area because I launched at that time. Nothing could be further from the truth. In 2019, I went to Gleneagles to see the Cup for myself. I believe that the Costa del Sol still doesn’t understand the full implications of the Cup. It’s going to open the doors to some important tourist markets such as the United States, where there are 70 million players. Plus the Asian market. I think the Solheim Cup will be a watershed moment, like the Ryder Cup. At long last, the whole world will know there’s a small Florida in Spain where, in addition to the over 70 world-class courses with unparalleled services, there’s an Aprés Golf like nowhere else, full of culture, cuisine and people who know how to have a good time.
What are your favourite courses in the Costa del Sol?
All of them. Each and every one has its own charm. I would say that I adore Finca Cortesín because there’s no other resort quite like it. Hacienda La Alcaidesa is another impressive resort with its breathtaking views from the course. I love the courses in my area, the golf valley: Los Naranjos, Las Brisas and Aloha. And then El Paraíso, which was one of the first courses I played, along with Río Real, which is also superb. Los Lagos is an incredible course where I got my best score card. And finally Parador, a spectacle of nature with its sandy rough.
