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Every year, thousands of golfers visit Portugal hoping for the perfect round. But it’s not only the Algarve that offers world-class courses. Bruce Selcraig tees off at five of the best golf courses in Lisbon
Did you know that some of the best golf in continental Europe in Lisbon? That may come as a shock to those who think Portugal’s only golf region is the well-publicised Algarve, which hums with tourists and at least two dozen resort courses that would be right at home in California. But further north, surrounding the impressive capital and its medieval castle-studded charm, is a bounty of eclectic and demanding golf venues that have slipped under the radar. In fact, one golf website reveals that seven of the top twelve rated courses in Portugal are near Lisbon.
With some 20 post-1980s golf courses tucked among tawny foothills and along the Atlantic, the Lisbon area might qualify as continental Europe’s best-kept golf secret, attracting an international crowd of those-in-the-know, including Brits, Swedes and Dutch. The courses have well-maintained, un-crowded layouts featuring seaside links, pine-lined country clubs and rolling parkland. Most are priced between *60-*100. It’s certainly cooler here than the Algarve, but the whole coast is warmed by the Sahara somewhat, so there’s still quality golf weather all year.
The Belas Country Club opened in 1998 and was designed by US architect Rocky Roquemore. Ranked ninth in the country, it’s situated in a Lisbon suburb surrounded by eucalyptus trees and red-tile-roofed vacation homes, just a mile downstream on the Tagus River from the impressive April 25th Bridge, built by the company behind San Francisco’s Golden Gate. The two nines are fairly distinct, with two splendid watery par 5s on the front, but both sides are quite hilly and tough (at 6,952 yards), having been carved from the foothills of the Sintra Mountains. The back nine had a few too many views of the suburbs, but the new planting of a thousand trees may help that. If playing here, try to make time to visit the hilltop town of Sintra, a UNESCO World Heritage village which inspired poets such as Lord Byron.
Travel an hour west of Lisbon, towards the Atlantic coast, through a rich agricultural area of tomato greenhouses and wild cane fences. Admire tall pines, maples and olive trees dotted around the rolling blonde hills until you come close to the walled medieval town of Obidos. Conquered from the Moors in 1418, this is a touristy but wonderful stop after your round. Here, you’ll find one of Portugal’s only true links courses, the Praia d’El Rey (King’s Beach) Golf Club.
Designed by American Cabell Robinson (opened 1997), who has landscaped courses in Cyprus, Morocco and Spain, Praia d’El Rey offers some lovely parkland holes lined with stately pines and grapefruit-coloured mansions then it flows wonderfully along the gentle dunes, giving spectacular views of some of the best surfing waters in Europe.
“We call it links golf with sun,” says the director of golf, Eduardo Johnston da Silva, who is proud of his Penncross bentgrass greens and rye fairways. Be wary of the impenetrable ice plant clinging to the dunes. It’ll rip your shoulders from their sockets if you try to hit out of it. Da Silva says his biggest markets at this upscale community course were England, Scandinavia and Holland, and that the peak seasons are March to May and September through November.
“I’m not putting down the Algarve,” da Silva says, “but Lisbon and the west region offer our real culture, our cooking; the essence of the country. We are very much a young democracy. We first had to feed our children and solve our political problems. Then we could begin promoting tourism, which really didn’t happen until the mid-1980s.” Walk-in rates at this uncrowded top-ten course are roughly €65 to €85, without cart, but golf packages will be cheaper. Other excellent nearby courses are Penha Longa and Quinta da Marinha, with another six in the design stages.
Spend day three at the Quinta do Peru Golf Club – ‘turkey farm’ in Portuguese – another Rocky Roquemore track that is so good the Portuguese, Welsh and Irish national squads sometimes practise here. Though just 6,500 yards from the tips, Quinta’s beautiful parkland layout, abundant ponds and shallow gray-sand bunkers force strategic shaping of your shots all day long. Make sure you enjoy a coffee on the veranda.
The fourth course worth a jaunt around is the almost venerable Troia Golf Club, among the 500 worldwide designed by Robert Trent Jones, Sr., who spread this 1980 design over an ecological preserve about an hour from Lisbon, on the coast. Now, the sandy secluded beaches offer hints of dolphins playing in the waves and Troia is a joy, an interesting blend of parkland and seaside holes.
Save the best for last: Ammaia, the golf club of Marvao. This delightful hilly course – designed by Jorge Santana da Silva, a Trent Jones student – is what you want from a golf trip. After a night of smoky fado nightclubs and octopus appetizers, drive deep through groves of cork trees (the bark of each tree is painted with a date and only harvested every nine years) and a field of Longhorn cattle into what was once a first-century Roman settlement and is now a national park.
From the cork benches in the locker room to the gregarious German couple, Christine and Max, who run the grill and pub, Ammaia feels friendly and unpretentious as well as part of the town, steeped in history. Unimposing but challenging at 6,600 yards, it’s a rolling parkland layout for 11 holes. Here, you’ll see five or six surrounding holes, ponds, tall hardwoods, and a pasture of belled goats next door that give a wind-chime effect to your round. Then with the 12th hole, the course crosses a little country road and begins climbing up foothills until it becomes a pine forest, with an achingly beautiful par-3 13th over a gentle pond.
If you’re planning a visit go to Ammaia first. Use the nearby town of Evora and the stunning Pousada de Vila Vicosa as your headquarters, then save time to enjoy downtown Lisbon and its invigorating sidewalk cafes. The Lisbon region provides everything you could want in a week of golf travel – memorable uncrowded golf, great hospitality and food, and if you happen to bring the kids along, well, there are always the beaches and Sintra’s castles.
Lisbon Golf Courses
■ AMMAIA – Clube de Golfe de Marvão Portagem 7330-328, Marvão, www.grupofbarata.com, tel. +351 245 993755
■ Belas Clube de Campo Alameda do Aqueduto, Clubhouse, 2605-193, Belas, Portugal, www.belasgolf.com, tel: +351 21 962 6640
■ Quinta do Perú Golf Course Alameda da Serra, 2, P-2975 -666 Quinta do Conde. Costa Azul, www.golfquintadoperu.com, tel: +351 21 213 4320
■ Troia Golf Course 7570-789 Carvalhal – Grândola, Costa Azul, Portugal, www.troiagolf.com, tel: +351 26 549 4112
■ Praia D’el Rey Vale de Janelas, P-2510 451 AmoreiraObidos, Costa de Prata/Estoril, www.praia-del-rey.com, tel: +351 0870 428 1178
Five of the best Algarve golf courses
Pine Cliffs Resort
Praia da Falesia, Apartado 644, 8200-909 Albufeira, www.pinecliffs.com, tel: +351 289 500 100
Recreational golfers and aspiring professionals alike will delight in the 9-hole course at Pine Cliffs Golf Resort in Algarve. Aside from the Atlantic Ocean views and towering pine trees, the world-famous “Devil’s Parlour” awaits golfers at hole 3. At this point, the golf game crosses cliffs – to succeed, the ball must fly from one to another. After a real game, have fun with the kids, or friends, at the 18-hole mini-course.
Vila Sol Spa & Golf Resort
Morgadinhos 8125-307 Vilamoura www.vilasol.pt tel: +351 289 320 320
Vila Sol’s 27-hole golf course will test the endurance of even the most seasoned golfer. The course packs enough heat to have challenged professionals at the 1992 and 1993 Portuguese Open. But, don’t fear if you’re a golfing newbie – you can play either the Prime, Challenge or Prestige loop. Or, if you prefer just strolling in the sun, clubs in hand, you can admire the design – architect Donald Steel took advantage of the course’s situation in a wide valley, on an estate with 150 hectares.
Vale do Lobo
www.valedolobo.com tel: +351 289 353 465
Two golf courses are better than one – and at Vale do Lobo you have a choice of either the Royal or Ocean golf course. The Ocean courses borders the crashing waves of the Atlantic, while the Royal course is home to three demanding par 3 holes. Lush flowers and fig trees dot the fairways of both courses. But, perfect your puts before setting out at Vale de Lobo – the sparkling blue lakes can swallow errant golf balls.
Palmares Golf Course
Apartado 74 Meia Praia 8601-901 LAGOS www.palmaresgolf.com tel: +351 282 790 500
The course at Palmares – designed by Portuguese architect Frank Pennink – has a long history of testing golfers at different levels of skill. Various tournaments, from PGA Europrotour tournaments to the distant Monchique hills set the scene, and, in the spring, the course comes alive with almond trees and flowering shrubs.
Castro Marim Golf & Country Club
Apt. 70, 8950 Castro Marim Algarve – Portugal www.castromarimgolfe.com tel: +351 281 510 330
Check out Castro Marim, the most-eastern golf course in Portugal in an area of the Algarve yet to be populated and busy with crowds of golfing tourists. The course’s location affords it a view of the Andalucia region in Spain, as well as the Atlantic Ocean and Guandiana River Estuary. Don’t let the scenery distract you – the course is notorious for its deceptive holes and twisting elevation shifts.
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