Rocío Sánchez Clavijo – DE&I
Rocío Sánchez Clavijo
Assistant Golf Manager
Finca Cortesin, Casares, Spain
Q: When you were young, what did you want to be when you grew up and please explain if there was a story around that.
A: When I was a child, I dreamed of working in the Police Investigation Department; in my family there has always been a direct relationship with this job as my grandfather was the first to start in this profession. Later on, other members of my family became part of the State security forces and I loved listening to all the stories they told, although my career path eventually developed in another direction and I entered into the world of tourism, as one of my passions is to travel, discover new places and cultures.
Q: Who got you into golf and what was your first experience of golf?
A: Golf has always been very present in my life, as I have grown up living in the surroundings of Sotogrande, one of the best and most renowned golf destinations in the world.
My first contact with golf was attending professional tournaments in the area as a spectator. It was at that time that I realized that I loved everything about it, so I decided to begin my professional career in the golf industry.
I graduated in Tourism and later specialized in Golf Management. After doing my internship at golf courses in the Sotogrande area, I had the opportunity to work for the first time at the Andalucía Valderrama Masters in 2011 and little by little I have been gaining experience in this industry ever since.
Q: Was there a female mentor that helped guide you along your current path and was there a piece of advice that helped you along your way?
A: Professionally, it is a world I discovered by myself, so there was not one mentor in my early years. But currently I have several professional and experienced female colleagues in the industry who are a great inspiration for me and sharing time with them provides me with great insight and knowledge.
Personally, my mentor has always been my mother. She has always supported me in every step and decision I have taken; she has been able to advise me in the best way, inspiring me on all the values of work, perseverance and effort to get to where I have managed to get so far.
Q: What does an average day at Finca Cortesin look like for you?
A: My day-to-day life at Finca Cortesin is never the same, what I like most about my job is that every day something new comes up and you have to be aware of any unexpected situations that may arise.
The first thing I do when I arrive at work is to greet the team and see if they have any relevant information to share with me. After reading all the emails and sorting out my tasks for the day, I start to work on priorities as my tasks include; coordinating events, membership management, team meetings, marketing communications, relationship with collaborators, reporting, up to date with occupancy and reservations, etc…
Q: What do you do in your daily job or life to inspire other women to get them interested in the game of golf or into the golf business as a career?
A: This is a good question… in my day-to-day I always try to do everything with passion and with love. I think when you do everything with these natural emotions, it is very easy to inspire other people to get them interested into the golf industry.
I have been awarded with the recognition of Golf Manager of the Year 2022 from Southern Europe by 59 Club so I hope this award could be inspirational for my female colleague; when I see some colleagues that would like to improve and keep growing on this profession, I really love sharing my experience and sharing time with them.
I try to encourage some female friends to practice golf to see the value in this sport; some people think that golf could be boring but when you show them how fun it can be and that it gets you outside, in contact with nature, they really like the idea of exploring it. I have tried to inspire my niece also; when she was almost two years, I gave her a set of clubs as a present. Now when she sees me, she connects that with golf and this makes me happy! Hopefully she will be joining me on the course in no time.
Q: What is your dream foursome for golf (you and three others)?
A: My dream foursome would be to play with Carlota Ciganda, Jose María Olazabal and Jon Rahm. There is a reason for this. I had the opportunity to see Carlota Ciganda in some tournaments and she transmitted so much energy, good vibes and she seems to be a nice person. Jose María Olazabal, I have some family history and I am so grateful for him. As for Jon Rahm, he is one of the best players in the world and I saw his evolution since the beginning and I really like him.
For me this foursome will be so much fun, share time with this interesting people and I think they will have patience with me as I am not a good golfer yet!
Q: What is one interesting fact not many people know about you (that you don’t mind sharing)?
A: I am a nature lover; my family has agricultural lands and I grew up seeing my father taking care of it, so I really enjoy going there when I want to relax and disconnect.
Working in the golf industry it gives me the opportunity to work close to the green colour which is my favourite and this could be also the secret why I really enjoy my job!
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