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CENTRAL ALGARVE
Although finding the middle of a fairway can be an ongoing challenge for most amateur golfers, discovering the centre of the Algarve is far more straightforward, but every bit as rewarding.
Albufeira and Vilamoura provide a wide range of accommodation, restaurants, bars, nightlife and visitor attractions, and there is a rich variety of courses almost on the doorstep.
Salgados Golf Course, just a few steps from the glorious, sandy beach of Praia de Gale, provides an excellent links-feel course and has the added challenge of a coastal breeze to contend with on club selection and accuracy, as you attempt to plot your way around.
No visit to this part of the Algarve is complete without stopping at the Martin Hawtree-designed Pine Cliffs. Among its nine holes is one of the most famous in the Algarve. The par-three sixth hole – the Devil’s Parlour – is played across what looks like the Algarve’s version of the Grand Canyon from the back tees, and remains etched in the memory long afterwards.
Also within the central hotbed is Dom Pedro Golf‘s fantastic array of championship golf courses.
With five to choose from: Millennium, Laguna, Old Course, Pinhal and Victoria, it’s a stable full of quality and diversity.
Millennium is a favourite with holiday golfers thanks to a layout which is rather more forgiving than some of the other tests around the region. It’s by no means easy and there’s still plenty of trouble lurking, but even if you have managed to avoid too many lost balls, the final two holes present a memorable finish to the round.
Nearby Laguna presents more of a water-based challenge with 11 of the 18 holes requiring accuracy and strategy to avoid the sound of an unmistakeable splash at regular intervals. Even with the odd watery grave in the round, it’s a hugely enjoyable challenge.
The Old Course is Vilamoura’s original top dog. The second oldest course in the Algarve is also one of the finest in Europe and remains on many ‘must-play’ lists. Careful club selection is paramount, with pines to thread your way through – but there is much to admire in a course which is brimming with history.
Pinhal is another strong addition to any visiting golfer’s programme. Renovated by Robert Trent Jones Senior in the 1980s, umbrella and Atlantic pines add to the natural feel of the environment.
The Portugal Masters will feature on the European Tour schedule again this year (October 24-27) at Victoria, with the likes of Padraig Harrington and Lee Westwood among those to secure the title in recent times.
Designed by Arnold Palmer, large, sloping greens are a major feature, but it has been cleverly and sensitively sculpted into the existing surroundings with ancient trees mixing perfectly with huge bunkers placed in cunning locations.
Pestana Vila Sol has three nine-hole loops from which to choose: the Prime, Challenge and Prestige. Designer Donald Steel made the most of the indigenous pine, cork, and fig trees which line every hole on the undulating layout, while expertly positioned water hazards and bunkers are in abundance.
Among the resorts in the region is Vale do Lobo, which incorporates a huge selection of sports and leisure opportunities – and two exceptional golf courses.
The Ocean has holes that weave between villas to the beach, with the par-three 15th a stunning highlight. It is every bit as iconic as the glorious 16th on its sister course, Royal, which runs along the cliff edge. There are few holes in Algarve golf which have been photographed more by those who have been lucky to stand on the imposing tee.
Another venue which lends itself to memorable snapshots is San Lorenzo, with several memorable holes set alongside the Ria Formosa estuary. For those enchanted by nature as well as golf, it is also a marshland haven for birdlife and is expertly sculpted into the natural environment.
Quinta do Lago is a sprawling leisure and sports destination with exceptional practice facilities. It also serves up a choice of three superb courses: North, South and Laranjal.
Former Ryder Cup captain Paul McGinley teamed up with American architect Beau Welling to oversee an extensive renovation in recent years and it retains a huge visual appeal and playability.
The South, which opened in the mid-1970s, has frequently hosted the Portuguese Open and doglegs are a prominent feature at this excellent resort course, where strategic hazards are dotted around to capture stray shots.
At nearby Laranjal, what was once a vast orange grove is now a testing golf course with some exciting long holes and some fabulous par-threes, with water and undulating fairways prominent throughout the round.
Three loops of nine can be found at Pinheiros Altos – the Pines, the Olives and the most recent addition, the Corks. They all share similar characteristics, but with enough variation to also give each a distinct feel.
With such a rich choice of golf all within a few minutes’ drive, it is little wonder that the central area remains such a popular destination for visiting golfers.
