Inside the Puerto Rico Open

By Matt Cooper Last updated: 10th March 2010

The PGA Tour is sunning itself in the Caribbean this week. We discover 10 things you didn't know about the Puerto Rico Open.

Rocco and Big John

Known as the "Isla del Encanto" (the island of enchantment) Puerto Rico makes sure that the "Fiesta del Golf" lasts the full week. It kicked off with an exhibition match between two of the liveliest characters on the PGA Tour, Rocco Mediate and John Daly. There then followed a golf clinic held by another great character, Puerto Rico's very own Chi Chi Rodriguez who once said of Daly, "How long does John Daly hit a ball? When I was a kid, we didn't go that far on vacation."

Chi Chi

Juan 'Chi Chi' Rodriguez is Puerto Rico's greatest sports star and has had a huge influence on the Open. He taught himself to play golf with the branch of a guava tree, bashing a metal can around as the "ball". An eight time winner on the PGA Tour he had a habit of putting his hat over the hole after every birdie or eagle but when he learned this irritated his playing partners he changed to what became his signature "toreador" dance in which he would pretend the ball was a bull and his putter a sword. Comparing his own career to his father's line of work he said: "Playing golf is not hot work. Cutting sugar cane for a dollar day - that's hot work."

Party Rico

Like any self-respecting Caribbean island, Puerto Rico is proud of its reputation for knowing how to have a good time. Golf Channel called it "one of the top five places on Tour to party". Paul Stankowski confirmed on twitter that the standard is as high in 2010 as it has been in the past. "Grubbing on some Puerto Rican food at the Pro-am party," he wrote. "They do it right here in PR!"

Trumping it

The Open is played on the Trump International GC at Coco Beach. The course is named after the famous entrepreneur Donald Trump but is probably not his most famous, or perhaps infamous, course - his plans for a links course in Aberdeen, Scotland has that honour. Trump is a keen golfer and no mug - in an interview with Golf.com in 2008 he admitted to having a handicap of four. He also has some pretty well-known playing partners! "Phil Mickelson is a very good friend of mine," he said. "Michael Jordan can really play and I don't think people realize that. Bill Clinton has a really good swing. Tom Brady is the best 6-handicap I've ever seen - he swings like Ernie Els. You learn a lot about people playing golf: their integrity, how they play under pressure."

Flying the Kite

Given the windy conditions at Coco Beach it is slightly ironic that the course designer is a man by the name of Kite. Not any Kite either but Tom Kite, the winner of 19 PGA Tour titles including the 1992 US Open. The International course uses two of the four loops of nine at the resort - the Lakes and the Ocean courses. Kite clearly specialises in courses by the sea - he was also responsible for the Liberty National course that hosted The Barclays event last August (won by Heath Slocum).

Softball and the champ

Michael Bradley was a surprise winner in 2009 because it was the first time he had finished in the top ten of a PGA Tour event in nine years! The root cause of that top ten drought was a chronic back injury that required surgery. And the curious thing is that it was softball, not golf, that let him know he was ready to compete again. "I was swinging the bat really good and I realised that I can still do this and didn't need to protect my back. In a roundabout way softball was a catalyst to me believing in my swing again."

Island culture

Close to four million people live on Puerto Rico - and it is only 100 miles long and 35 miles wide. A mix of Hispanic and Anglo culture it has been part of the United States of America since 1898. The islanders have fallen for the Open - heralded as it's biggest sporting event - and over 40,000 of them attended the final day's play in 2009.

A golfing destination

There are 23 courses on the island with another six currently being developed. The biggest names in design have been responsible for the layouts - Robert Trent Jones, Rees Jones, Arthur Hills, the Fazio brothers, Greg Norman and Jack Nicklaus. With views of either the blue Atlantic or the green Caribbean, and all year round summer conditions, the island is the perfect golfing getaway.

Local boy done good

The locals are desperate for a Puerto Rican to have a good week and it could be Rafael Campos who gives them something to cheer. The 22-year-old from San Juan had a successful amateur career that saw him become the two-time winner of the Puerto Rico Amateur Championship. His second win was by a massive ten strokes and earned him a crack in this event in 2009. He missed the cut but a second round 68 gives him hope of making the weekend in 2010.

Old-timers, young guns

The first two Puerto Rico Open titles might have been won by fortysomethings, but that won't stop the youngsters hoping to claim the crown this week. This year the likes of Alex Prugh, Bryce Molder, Chad Collins, Kevin Stadler and John Merrick have been close to finally making the winner's circle and will try again at Coco Beach. But if they're not up to it, the likes of John Daly, Rocco Mediate, Mark Calcavecchia and Notah Begay might show them how it's done, inspired by the past efforts of Kraft and Bradley. To see the full field and check out the tee times, click here.

Matt Cooper