“It’s an amazing course”, a football world champion, golf enthusiast, admirer of the Ecogolf during the French 2nd division championship

Since the beginning of the week, the Écogolf Ariège-Pyrénées has been buzzing with activity. On Tuesday and Wednesday, at the place called Unjat, in La Bastide-de-Sérou, 160 players explored the 18 holes during the reconnaissance days. Coming from all over France (Cannes, Royan, Toulouse, Lyon, La Baule, etc.), the golfers are preparing to compete in the French championship of the second division senior men (+ 50 years).

At the start of hole number 1, club in hand, a player from the Lyon Salvagny golf course has just set off for his final reconnaissance of the course. “The setting is incredible and the facilities are magnificent,” he declares enthusiastically, before going to pick up his ball sent with his drive more than 150 meters from the tee area.

On the terrace of the Ariège club, some are basking in the sun while enjoying the excellent meal offered by the catering team, others are quenching their thirst while discussing the difficulties of the course, while a few are trying out new putters on the green installed next to the clubhouse and which overlooks hole no. 1.

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“It’s a little gem”

“This course is dangerous for us, it’s the top level. It’s designed to trap us and force us to think before each shot. It’s a physical golf course,” confides Hervé Poeydomenge, captain of the Toulouse golf club team, who highlights the evolution of the Écogolf, he who comes to hit the little white ball from time to time in Ariège.

As you walk around the course, the difference in altitude and the orientation of the holes mark the golfers. “They will be worn out after four days of competition,” jokes the referee of the competition, Bernard Bonnet, who will be there to help the 96 players who are participating in this 2nd division French championship. Whether they are players from the Occitanie clubs, who know the facilities a little, or those who come from further away and are discovering the 18 holes, all praise the quality of the Ecogolf. “This club is quite capable of hosting a 1st division competition, it promises to be a great competition,” admits Bernard Bonnet.

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After two days of reconnaissance, the competition began this Thursday at 8 am. During the first two days, six players from the 16 teams will try to achieve the best possible course in order to obtain the best possible score. The eight best teams will then compete to win one of the two places synonymous with promotion to the 1st division during match-play (direct confrontation between two teams), while the clubs ranked from 9th to 16th place will try to avoid finishing among the two worst teams and thus being relegated to the 3rd division.

“It’s a bit of a golf party for us,” proudly says Écogolf president Jean-Alain Rives. “Last year, we hosted a second division French women’s championship. That allowed us to show our capabilities. Now, for people to trust us again, it’s proof that we were able to respond.”

The organization of such competitions, combined with the players’ enjoyment of the course – compared to a Formula 1 by its president – as well as the catering and accommodation aspects, increases the reputation of the Ecogolf. “It’s funny because this golf course suffers from a bad preconception while it is a little gem”, confides Bernard Bonnet, always blown away by the setting and the calm.

While the players are in full competition, and the rise will be fiercely contested until Sunday, the satisfaction of the players, in addition to putting a smile on his face, inflates the ambition of Jean-Alain Rives: “We have projects for senior internationals. However, we do not want to forget who we are. We do not want to resemble the other clubs and above all we want to continue to stand out on the biodiversity aspect by going for the gold label”.

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Alain Boghossian: “It’s a course to challenge us”

On the terraces of the club, while chatting with the participants of this French championship 2nd division senior men, one player seems to stand out: Alain Boghossian. “It’s going to be a tough competition, there are some very good players and especially Alain, you know, the football world champion in 1998”, says, with a smile, Christian Chavel, player of the club of the Château de Chailly, also seduced by the welcome and the 18 holes of the Ecogolf.

With humility, the former player of the French football team, took advantage of the two days before the competition to get to know the course. Wednesday, while he was finishing the reconnaissance of hole no. 15 with his team from Valcors, after a few “putts” on the green in perfect condition, the one who is the vice-president of the Var golf club confided: “It’s a stunning course, very atypical. It is superbly maintained.” Like all the participants, he then described: “It’s a very playful design, where you have to know how to hit the ball and play with the effects. It is made to challenge us”.

For his first time on the Ariège golf course, and in Ariège in general, the 53-year-old man comes to this French championship to have fun in a team, without much ambition. However, with an index of -1.7, he is one of the best players in the competition. “Golf is a second passion for me. I fell into it at the end of my football career. I always try to improve.” Will Alain Boghossian manage to get his Valcors team promoted to the first division? Answer on Sunday.