Spain & Portugal: The Crowned Princes of European Golf

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Spain and Portugal, the joint tenants of Europe's most southwesterly corner - The Iberian Peninsula - are two very special countries. A pair of Europe's oldest nations, both are filled with such a wide reaching range of riches that unless experienced personally, are difficult to comprehend. This holds true for the history and culture, the ancient cities, towns and villages, the art and architecture, the food and wine, the sheer variety of natural scenic beauty and surprising for many, golf.

Real Club de Golf de Sevillla - Jose Maria Olazabal's Masterpiece.

Royal Seville is now ranked No. 3 in Spain.

Royal Seville hole No. 7.

Royal Seville's Clubhouse includes a fantastic, gourmet restaurant.

Praia d'El Rey - Portugal's stunning, top-ranked course.

Praia d'El Rey - a championship Scottish links on the sunny Lisbon Coast.

Praia d'El Rey's eighth green.

Praia d'El Rey beach.

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Golf on the Iberian Peninsula, though only just now being discovered by American golfers, is in a class entirely of its own. If that sounds like something of an exaggeration, remember, it was the British, the originators of the game more than six centuries ago, who first introduced golf to Spain and Portugal, back in the late 1800's. And it's the British with their great appreciation for quality golf, who still list Spain and Portugal as their favorite golf holiday destinations of all.

The amazing quality of the golf courses, made all the better by an ideal climate to play them year round, not only continues to attract the Brits, but has also gained the attention of American golfers. The closely guarded Iberian golf secret is a secret no more.

But what makes Spain and Portugal so very unique is the opportunity to combine world-class golf with other vacation activities and pursuits, something simply not possible in other countries. Where else in the world can you enjoy the fascination of an intriguing major city with the very best courses, all accessible to visitors and literally sitting on the doorstep? It only happens in Spain and Portugal.

Seville is one of Spain's classic historic cities that belongs on every travelers, must see list and it's surrounded by a half dozen superb courses, all within a 30-minute or so drive of the city center. There's the outstanding Gary Player design at Zaudin and nearby, the beautiful, Real Club Pineda de Sevilla. Drive a little further and Montecastillo, a frequent past host to The European Tour's prestigious, Volvo Masters, demands attention. The same is true of the stunning Arcos Gardens Golf Club, located just outside of the spectacular, ancient fortress town of Arcos de la Frontera. The appropriately named Sherry Golf, in Jerez de la Frontera, center of Spain's sherry wine production, deserves no less attention. But the course that should be at the very top of every golfers must-play list is the closest to Seville of all, top ranked, Real Club de Golf de Sevilla -- The Royal Seville Golf Club.

Courses with regal titles must be expected to carry regal qualities and Royal Seville does nothing less, despite its relatively tender age of barely 18 years. This is arguably, the best work to date of one of the greatest names in Spanish golf, Jose Maria Olazabal. A true master of the short game during his active playing years, Olazabal has very successfully transferred his unique playing skills into an innate course design talent, as Royal Seville demonstrates so clearly.

Ranked among the top 5 courses in all of Spain, Royal Seville hosted the WGC-World Cup matches in 2004 and this past May was the selected venue for The Spanish Open, an honor inevitably destined to be repeated.

This is a course for the competitive player who loves a challenge, which Olazabal has delivered through the constantly changing variety he has managed to pack into these 18 holes. The generous fairways are lined with some of the most penal rough you will ever find in Spain, a situation only complicated by the almost 100, always strategically placed bunkers, that show themselves at the most inconvenient locations. Water is another hazard to contend with, four lakes coming into play on six of the holes. Notching the test up even further are the 10,000 trees that have matured very nicely in the 18 years since they were first planted, presenting a special challenge of their own.

Despite it's almost 7,000 yards from the tips, big hitters will find no joy here, unless their brute force is accompanied by an almost surgeon-like precision. Royal Seville is a layout for the accomplished golfer who is accurate, uses strategy rather than brawn and has the ability to use every club in the bag. Just like Olazabal at his peak, an excellent short game is essential if you are to walk off the 18th with a respectable score.

For those who are up to the task, Royal Seville is one of those monsters you are not likely to forget in a hurry. For those who rise to the occasion and do well, you will have memories of a battle well fought and a newfound respect for Jose Marie Olazabal, golf architect extraordinaire.

Portugal's capital city, Lisbon, boasts even more top-ranked golf courses, with almost two dozen located within a brief, 30-minute drive of the city center. Tear yourself away from thoroughly delightful, history packed Lisbon for half a day and you can be playing any one of a selection of layouts, ranked among Europe's best. Oitavos Dunes, Troia, Penha Longa, Aroeira and Quinta do Peru are just a small sampling of some of the prime layouts just waiting to be played.

Extend your half-day golf excursion into a full day mixture of golf and sightseeing and you can experience another side of Portugal that will only enthrall. Savor top level golf on the links at Praia d'El Rey, then discover the pleasures of one of the best preserved medieval towns in the entire country, Obidos, located only a few miles away.

Praia d'El Rey is an outstanding seaside layout, ranked among the world's top 100.

Fronted by a three-mile stretch of pristine Atlantic shoreline, fringed with a pure white-sand beach that extends as far as the eye can see, cliffs and sand dunes complete the perfect, picture postcard setting. Inland a landscape of rolling hills and mature pine forest bring the variety on which Praia d'El Rey has built its reputation -- a unique combination of links, parkland, forest and a thoroughly thrill packed layout

Measuring a shade over 7,100 yards from the tips, Praia d'El Rey is by any standard, a course to contend with. But with the forward tees reducing most of the problems of length, it's a layout that has a gentler side, allowing the higher handicapper as enjoyable a round as the scratch golfer.

There may be no more stunning display of sights and sounds in golf than the string of holes running from the eleventh to the fifteenth. The fairways take you along perilous cliff-tops, with the wind whistling in from The Atlantic, the roar of the ocean crashing below and spectacular panoramas all around. Stay focused on your game however and avoid Mother Nature's cunning distractions, these are some of the trickiest holes on the course. Length without accuracy is a folly that Praia d'El Rey charges heavily for. The rough is links-like, thick and unforgiving with a voracious appetite for golf balls.

But just like any good layout, the best is saved until last, on the turn for home. The 17th, measuring almost 600 yards is nothing less than a magnificent monster -- it's one of the longest holes in Europe and the most difficult of all that amazing Praia d'El Rey has to offer.

This is a course that has the ability to exhaust from the unrelenting and ever-changing challenges it presents. Yet it simultaneously provides even the most battle weary player a unique exhilaration, knowing you have had the honor of playing a very special course that is surely, one of a kind.

There is no shame and almost an honor to being beaten by this champion, and like any true gentleman, it congratulates you on your effort and invites you to share a glass or two at a 19th hole that is as handsome and welcoming as the course itself.

There's good reason why Spain and Portugal enjoy such a high level of popularity among golf aficionados in Europe and it's spreading to golfers on our side of The Pond. Just take a small taste for yourself and I guarantee, you will soon be returning for more, together with non-golfing family and friends. The Iberian Peninsula is a unique corner of Europe that deserves everyone's attention.

For more ideas and suggestions on how to get the most out of a vacation to Spain, Portugal, or a combination of both countries, click here.

©2008 David Brice / Golf International, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

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