Playing the BMW International Open Pro-Am
Last week at Golfclub München Eichenried in Munich, Germany, Anthony (the boss man here at Hole19) had the privilege of a fantastic few days at the BMW International Open Pro-Am, the curtain-raiser to one of the most high-profile events every year on the European Tour.
The annual event has been organised by BMW since 1989, and this year's Pro-Am, organised by BMW Golfsport was held with support from Pacific Entertainment Media, and proved a success from start to finish. It was refreshing to see a younger audience of makers & creators playing a Pro-Am event, which was appropriately "hash-tagged" the #DriveHive.
The goal of the the #DriveHive was to get a group of like-minded people together to network around their passion: golf. The group was comprised of a mix of investors, content creators, founders and music artists that not only played golf together, but also shared ideas and thoughts around how golf can grow and change its image for the future generations. It was an extraordinary networking opportunity.
The hospitality on show by the tournament sponsors was of the highest order and the complimentary VIP shuttle service was both a convenient addition and a luxurious experience. From BMW's new electric range to the spacious X7, golfers on the grounds had the chance to travel around Munich in style.
For the two days, Anthony played alongside Fabian Sixt from goodsundays.com, Hannes Weissensteiner from Artefact and Tess Veltmann from Pacific Entertainment (who stepped in last-minute to play the first 9 holes). The team was paired with pro Jorge Campillo and his caddie Jesus Legarrea, for what turned out to be an unforgettable round on the breath-taking fairways of a proper championship golf course.
It was a real pleasure for each of the amateurs to play alongside Jorge, even though it did crank up the pressure to perform. Each player had their moment in the sun, with great golf shots being shared around but, as you'd expect, Jorge hit just a few better ones than the others 😜
There were plenty of recognisable faces along the way. We managed a snap of this year's European Ryder Cup captain Padraig Harrington and his newly-announced assistant captain (and this week's host) Martin Kaymer.
While also showcasing the historic Ryder Cup trophy, the two guys were 'photobombed' by the mightily impressive BMW iX, which also happened to be the 'Hole-in-One Car' at the 17th hole (par 3) during the official tournament.
We also caught one of the smoothest swings in golf on camera, fresh off a close battle for the US Open - Louis Oosthuizen.
Golf lovers who are equally enamoured with beautiful cars were in their element at Golfclub München Eichenried. Just look at that new electric BMW 7 Series - 'Sheer Driving Pleasure' indeed!
After the Pro-Am, we kept an eye Jorge's progress during the tournament proper. He went on to play awesome golf for the four days of the BMW International Open before falling just shy of young Norwegian Viktor Hovland's winning total.
Well played, Jorge! Perhaps it was all those playing tips Anthony gave you? 😜
Thanks to all at BMW and BMW Golfsport for the invite, hospitality and a wonderful opportunity to play in such a prestigious event.
Make sure to follow @bmwgolfsport and the hashtags #DrivenByPassion #BMWgolfsport #thedrivehive to see more action from the event!
Below some more images and video footage from the event