La Manga Club has added another chapter to its lengthy success story after enjoying a record-breaking start to its golfing year – buoyed by fantastic temperatures and endless blue skies.

With many areas of the UK were under water and courses closed, golfers flocked to the award-winning Spanish resort to lap up average temperatures in the mid-twenties and three championship courses in pristine condition.

As well as reporting a 10 per cent increase in rounds played in the period January to March, La Manga Club enjoyed its busiest week ever at the start of April, with more than 4,300 rounds played in a seven-day period. Pro shop revenue has also risen steeply by more than 12 per cent – helped by the improved quality of Callaway and TaylorMade hire club sets available.

Following an upgrade of its buggy fleet, golf cart rentals have gone up by a fifth while the opening of its new Leadbetter Golf Academy this spring – the only such facility in mainland Spain – has seen the amount of income generated through tuition grow by an impressive 300 per cent.

Other notable highlights include hosting a sell-out PGAs of Europe La Manga Club International Pro-Am, the 2014 Spanish Seniors Amateur International Championship, the 2014 Ladies Golf Cup and the climax to the ECCO Tour Winter Series.

And things are about to get even better, with the existing golf academy facilities undergoing total renovation, which will position it as the finest tuition facility in continental Europe when works are completed this summer

La Manga Club's golf segment has also enjoyed a substantial rise in its food and beverage revenues and, with its membership more active than ever due to more competitions and interaction with the management team, the resort is looking forward to the rest of 2014 with added relish.

Jose Asenjo, general manager of La Manga Club, said: “With the excellent facilities that La Manga Club has to offer golfers on and off the course, there has never been a better time to play and stay at the resort.

“We've made a flying start to 2014 and the figures are reward for the concerted programme of investment that La Manga Club has put in place over the last 18 months to ensure that it remains at the forefront of sports and leisure destination resorts in Europe and beyond.

“There really is no other place like it in Europe with guaranteed sunshine, first-class golf and other sporting facilities plus numerous bars and restaurants, and the opening of the new Leadbetter Academy will help us raise the bar even higher on the five-star experience we are able to offer to our guests.”

Three times the size of Monaco, La Manga Club's outstanding sports and leisure facilities include three 18-hole championship courses – the North, West and much-revered South – helping establish itself as a firm favourite with European golfers since opening in 1972.

Widely regarded as Spain's flagship resort, it has been voted 'Best Golf Resort in Spain' by UK readers of Today's Golfer magazine for the last three years.

In addition to golf, La Manga Club boasts unrivalled facilities as a sports and leisure destination including a 28-court tennis centre and a 2,000sqm spa and fitness centre. It also offers the choice of a five-star hotel, four-star serviced apartments and townhouses and more than 20 bars and restaurants.

For more information about the resort and to book a break, call 00 34 968 17 5577, email reservas@lamangaclub.com or visit www.lamangaclub.com.

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Release issued and distributed by The Azalea Group.

For more information on La Manga Club or images contact Pete Simm on 01730 711920 or email petes@theazaleagroup.com

La Manga Club – www.lamangaclub.com – is an unrivalled sports and leisure paradise which sits between the low hills that separate the Mediterranean from the Mar Menor Sea, just 20 minutes from Murcia airport and an hour from Alicante. 

Set out over an area of some 560 hectares (approx. 1,400 acres), it enjoys a mild year-round Mediterranean climate and offers visitors a prestigious five-star hotel, luxury vacation apartments and extensive sports facilities, including three championship golf courses, a 28-court tennis centre and eight grass sports pitches. The resort is also home to innumerable leisure facilities, such as the 2,000m2 Spa La Manga Club with its 13 luxurious treatment rooms, comprehensive fitness centre and 25m indoor swimming pool; meeting, banqueting and incentive facilities, and more than 20 restaurants and bars.

As well as hosting both Davis and Fed Cup tennis matches, La Manga Club has signed a long-term deal to be the overseas training resort of the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) until 2016. It has also staged the Spanish Open golf championship and regularly attracts professional and international football teams to the first-class year-round training facilities which are also used by rugby and cricket sides.

As a result of more than 40 years of continued investment, innovation and commitment to excellence, La Manga Club is widely recognised as Spain's flagship resort and as one of the finest sports and lifestyle destinations in the world. Evidence of this is provided by its numerous awards and accolades.

La Manga Club was the proud recipient of a 2013 Certificate of Excellence from TripAdvisor, the world's largest travel website, for the facilities and service on offer at its five-star Hotel Principe Felipe. The resort has long been a staunch supporter of women's golf, being the official overseas resort partner of the English Women's Golf Association for three years as well as hosting the Ladies European Tour (LET) Qualifying School from 2009-12. La Manga Club is also the venue for the Ladies Murcia Open, an LET Access Series event, and regularly hosts top women's amateur events and teams.