1975
The Las Aves ("Sotogrande New") new course - designed by Robert Trent Jones - is opened. Owned by former US Army man Joe McMicking, it was run more as a golfing facility than a club, with its Andalucian-style clubhouse also used as a cinema for local residents. During the Portugal revolution, three-times British Open champion Henry Cotton acted as golf director to help with the promotion of real estate (he was to be succeeded by Tony Jacklin).

1984
Retired banker Paul Jeanty suggests to Bolivian tin millionaire Jaime Ortiz-Patiño, who had retired to live in Sotogrande and play golf, that he should buy the then Las Aves course and run it as an exclusive club for himself and friends. Concerned that the locals might be less than keen on a foreigner owning prime real estate, Sr Ortiz-Patiño recommends that a consortium of eight high-powered businessmen - either living on the estate or frequent visitors - should buy the course.

June 1985
The new club is incorporated. Trent-Jones is commissioned to redesign the course, which is renamed Valderrama, after the finca (small country estate) originally purchased by McMicking.

1988
Sr Ortiz-Patiño decides to renumber the course - reversing the front and back nines - in order to incorporate the more testing and better finishing holes on the back.

October 1988
Nick Faldo wins the inaugural Volvo Masters - season grand-finale of the European Tour - at Valderrama (subsequent winners, in order, were: Ronan Rafferty, Mike Harwood, Rodger Davis, Sandy Lyle, Colin Montgomerie, Bernhard Langer, Alexander Cejka, Mark McNulty).

June 1989
Sr Ortiz-Patiño assumes complete control, buying out the other shareholders.

July 1992
Sr Ortiz-Patiño pays £92,400 for an ancient golf club auctioned at Sotheby’s during British Open week. Made in the late 17th or early 18th century, and owned by an Edinburgh carpenter, the rake iron beat the previous record price for a club by £40,000. It now forms a part of the Valderrama museum.

September 1991
Valderrama founder-president Jaime Ortiz-Patiño attends the Ryder Cup match at Kiawah Island, where he becomes convinced his club would be able to host the 1997 competition just as well, if not better.

April 1992
A surprise press conference is called at Valderrama, where it is announced that the club is officially applying to host the 1997 Ryder Cup. The application is reinforced by an exhaustive and elaborate presentation book outlining the advantages of holding the event at Valderrama. A press conference is also held the next day in London. Several other Spanish courses also subsequently announce their candidature. Severiano Ballesteros favours Novo Sancti Petri (Cádiz), which he designed. The Spanish Golf Federation, based in Madrid, plumps for the Real Club de Madrid. The arguments become somewhat heated.

May 1994
The European Tour announces Valderrama as the 1997 Ryder Cup venue. Executive director Ken Schofield says: “The five main criteria that went into choosing Valderrama were the preparation of the course, the quality of the course, the locality, the accessibility and the accommodation. We had a year-long review of nine venues. They are all excellent venues but only one could be chosen. The Ryder Cup Committee felt strongly that Valderrama fitted the bill in every way.”
The other eight were: Real Club de Campo de Madrid, La Moraleja II and RACE (Madrid), El Saler (Valencia), La Manga (Murcia), Montecastillo (Jerez), Novo Sancti Petri and Real Golf de Sevilla. The final decision was taken from a short-list of El Saler, La Manga, La Moraleja II, Novo Sancti Petri and Valderrama.
Ballesteros offers a truce to Valderrama, noting: “I think it is great that Spain will be the hosts of the 1997 Ryder Cup. It will take golf in my homeland to a new level of excitement and appreciation for all golfers, rich or poor. I know that all the other clubs who were hoping to be selected are greatly disappointed. I wanted Novo Sancti Petri but life sometimes is not sweet. We do not always get what we want. Everyone must forget hard feelings and work together in assisting Mr Patiño, Valderrama and the Ryder Cup Committee to show the world that Spain is worthy of hosting this magnificent golf event.” Ballesteros is commissioned by Sr Ortiz-Patiño to re-design the contentious 17th.

September 1995
After losses in 1991 and 1993, captain Bernard Gallacher leads Europe to victory over the US at Oak Hill and announces his retirement. Ballesteros is subsequently named as the first “Continental” captain in the history of the event.

May 1997
Speaking during the Spanish Open, Jose Maria Olazabal says he does not believe Tiger Woods will have as much impact as many people are predicting. “The Ryder Cup is a special tournament, it’s a team of 12 players, not just one player; it’s not played medal, but matchplay; it’s not Augusta, but Valderrama. These are a series of combined factors that could mean the beast is not such a beast. You have to adapt to the team; you’re not playing alone.”
Ballesteros says he is pleased Tiger Woods will be in the team because he wants to see the best 12 American players. “I wouldn’t want to beat a team that wasn’t strong.”
Tiger Woods tries to deflect the attention centred on his Cup debut. Referring to his resounding Masters victory the month before, he says: “I don’t feel I have sent any type of message at all. It is difficult for one guy to send a message to a whole team. The Ryder Cup is totally different from the majors. When I play in a major I am just there for myself and representing the United States is a totally different experience. When the national anthems are played and the flags raised, a whole new situation develops; you are playing for others and not just yourself.”
US captain Tom Kite also enters the Tiger debate, observing: “I know Tiger is very excited about playing in the match. He said last November that his number one goal was to make the team. Matchplay against professionals, rather than amateurs, will be somewhat different but he has already proved he can handle just about any situation.”

July 1997
Accompanied by two bodyguards, Tiger Woods makes his much-awaited first appearance on the Coast for a practice session, pre British Open, with US captain Tom Kite and five other players. Before returning promptly to his private jet in Gibraltar, and the trip to Troon, Woods says he does not believe his long-hitting will be much of an advantage “because positional play is important. The greens are small and fast, and I will be hitting mainly two irons and three woods off the tee”.

September 1997
Tiger Woods fails to deliver, winning just one and a half points out of a possible five (including defeat against Costantino Rocca in the final-day singles), as the Europeans win by the barest of margins, 14 and a half to 13 and a half.

January 1999
Valderrama is included in the new-season schedule as the venue for the third of the fledgeling World Golf Championships (the other two are held in the US) - each with total prizemoney of $5 million, including $1 million for the winner.

October 1999
Payne Stewart, the reigning US Open champion, is killed in a mysterious air accident while travelling with colleagues on his private Lear jet one week before the American Express Championship.

November 1999
Several leading Americans, including David Duval and Mark O’Meara, decide to miss the WGC, but the press is still able to savour a duel between Woods and Sergio Garcia, winner and runner-up, respectively, of the year’s final major, the US PGA.
Woods opens with an even-par 71 and Garcia a 74, as 1998 US PGA champion Vijay Singh leads with a 67. Unheralded Americans Chris Perry and Tim Herron lead at the halfway point on 137 (Woods 140; Garcia 143). Miguel Angel Jimenez, fresh from becoming the first Spanish winner of the Volvo Masters the week before at Montecastillo (Jerez), moves into a share of the third-round lead (on 209) with Perry (Woods 210; Garcia 212).
Woods seems to be heading for victory until an unfortunate triple bogey on the precarious 17th. He finishes on 278, as Jimenez prepares to tee off on the 18th needing just a par-four for victory.
The Spaniard narrowly misses a long putt for par, and joins Woods on the 10th tee for the first extra hole. Woods birdies the hole and is proclaimed champion. Garcia finishes seventh (285), and the other Spaniard in the field, Jose Maria Olazabal, 11th (286). Jimenez’s consolation is a cheque for 341,276 euros (approximately 57 million pesetas) and fourth place in the final order of merit for the second consecutive year.

January 2000
Valderrama is once again included in the schedule as the venue for the American Express Championship (November 9-12).