Michigan State University students Manuel Ángel González Loma and José Antonio Martín Quirós have each won $10,000 scholarships from the Royal Spanish Golf Federation, funded by The Environmental Institute for Golf, the philanthropic organization of the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (GCSAA).
The Royal Spanish Golf Federation Scholarship for Golf Course Management is a two-year grant presented to individuals from Spain pursuing a turfgrass management degree at Michigan State University. Winners are selected by the Royal Spanish Golf Federation and also receive an all-expense paid trip to the 2009 GCSAA Education Conference (Feb. 2-7) and Golf Industry Show (Feb. 5-7) in New Orleans.
González Loma and Martín Quirós join 2007 Royal Spanish Golf Federation Scholarship winners Francisco Javier García Ircio, Jimena Blanco Jaschek and Juan Muñoz Puro, who are each receiving scholarships for the second consecutive year in Michigan State's two-year turfgrass management program.
González Loma earned an agricultural technician engineering degree from the Universidad de Sevilla and a masters in golf club management master from The Autonomous School of Business Management (Escuela Autónoma de Dirección de Empresas) in Malaga, Spain. His work experience includes the Real Club de Golf de Sotogrande and the Centro Nacional de Golf.
Martín Quirós attained his greenkeeper license from the Autonomous School of Business Management. He has worked at several golf courses in Spain, including Atalaya Golf, Valderrama, and the Centro Nacional of the Royal Spanish Golf Federation.
García Ircio, who is from Zaragoza, Spain, earned an agronomy engineering degree from Madrid Polytechnic University's crop science program. Blanco Jaschek, who is from Salamanca, Spain, earned a degree in agricultural engineering from the University of Salamanca and also took the Higher Greenkeeper Course at the Autonomous School of Business Management. Muñoz Puro, who is from Sevilla, Spain, worked for the Royal Spanish Golf Federation.