Garcia is the clear favorite in the Open de Espana, but he faces a tough challenge from the field

Open de España (May 14-17)

Course: Real Club de Golf El Prat (Terrassa, Barcelona, Spain)

Yardage: 7,326 yards

Purse: €1,500,000

The European Tour finally begins its European portion of the schedule with this week's Open de España.  The Madeira Islands Open (co-sanctioned with the Challenge Tour) was supposed to be the first event on European soil, but the tournament was canceled due to bad weather and rescheduled for July 30-August 2. Miguel Angel Jimenez is the defending champion, with world number seven Sergio Garcia and Ryder Cup stars Victor Dubuisson, Thomas Bjorn, and Francesco Molinari also taking part.  In addition to Jimenez and Garcia, the Spanish contingent also includes Pablo Larrazabal (El Prat is his home course), Rafa Cabrera-Bello, Alejandro Canizares, Alvaro Quiros, and Jose Maria Olazabal.  The course is projected to play firm and fast, which should make it a tough test for the field.  

This is Spain's only tournament on the schedule, a significant reduction from when the country staged six in 2011.  The economic recession has hit Spain particularly hard, but there are signs of improvement.  The fact that it's the only event in Spain makes the tournament extra special, especially for the home players.  The event was last held at El Prat in 2011, an event overshadowed by the death of Seve Ballesteros.  Thomas Aiken won at -10.  I would expect scoring to be around that number this week, due to the firmness of the course.  

Here are two of my dark-horse picks:

Paul Lawrie: Has only played five Tour events this season but seems to play well on tough courses.  His ball-striking is always good but his putting can be inconsistent at times.  If he can put four rounds together, the Scot could challenge for the title.  Lawrie finished T5 at this course in 2011.

Simon Dyson: The Englishman has many similarities with Lawrie.  He has had a disappointing season so far, with his best finish being T37.  He switched club companies and hasn't played since missing the cut at the Tshwane Open almost two months ago.  Dyson's ball-striking, much like Lawrie's, is always good.  But, like Lawrie, his putting is erratic.  Dyson is always a favorite on tough courses.  He, again like Lawrie, finished T5 at El Prat in 2011.

Notable groupings (Eastern Standard Time; first round/second round)

Alvaro Quiros, Thomas Pieters, Ross Fisher (2:00 AM/7:00 AM)

Thomas Bjorn, Pablo Larrazabal, Andy Sullivan (2:10 AM/7:10 AM)

Victor Dubuisson, Miguel Angel Jimenez, Tommy Fleetwood (2:20 AM/7:20 AM)

Nicolas Colsaerts, Peter Uihlein, Richie Ramsay (2:30 AM/7:30 AM)

Jose Maria Olazabal, Raphael Jacquelin, Peter Hanson (7:00 AM/2:00 AM)

Matteo Manassero, Rafa Cabrera-Bello, David Howell (7:10 AM/2:10 AM)

Francesco Molinari, Thomas Aiken, Sergio Garcia (7:20 AM/2:20 AM)

Y.E. Yang, Thorbjorn Olesen, Alejandro Canizares (7:30 AM/2:30 AM)

TV Coverage (Eastern Standard Time; Golf Channel)

Thursday: 5:30-7:30 AM, 9:30 AM-12:30 PM

Friday: 5:30-7:30 AM, 9:30 AM-12:30 PM

Saturday: 7:30-11:30 AM

Sunday: 7:00-11:30 AM