Set your golfing radar to Southern Spain. Andalucía to be precise. A destination that plays second home to world-class footballers and Hollywood celebrities, so you know it’s going to be good!

This year-round sunshine and golfing hotspot has over 120 world-class golf courses and is already Europe’s leading golf destination. But maybe you didn’t know, that you can easily fly direct from Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE straight to Malaga International Airport.

Running alongside the crystal-clear waters of the Mediterranean coast with its idyllic beaches and beautiful landscapes, Andalucía is peppered with world-class golf courses designed by both legends of the game and the world’s most sought-after designers. Meaning, you can pretty much throw a dart at a map and take your pick at a five-star course here.

Watch a wrap-up of the trip here:

Beginners, amateurs and professionals can enjoy these courses. With eight provinces to choose from, the Costa del Sol is home to more than half of Andalucía’s golf courses, Cadiz is famous for its perfect greens and white sandy beaches, the Costa Tropical lets you combine beach, golf and snow, the Almeria region holds ten courses including two Arizona desert-styles and in the province of historical Huelva not only does it have the Doñana National Park but it greets you with 11 golf courses.

Throughout an entire year, Andalucía’s golf courses hold important tournaments in both the amateur and the professional game. Andalucía has hosted several tournaments on the DP World Tour, Ladies European Tour, Challenge Tour, Legends Tour and most recently the LIV Golf League. Who can forget the 1997 Ryder Cup at Real Club Valderrama and the 2023 Solheim Cup at Finca Cortesin! It’s a golfing mecca built with the purpose of bringing together the best golfers in the world so that fans may enjoy the great beauty of this sport in the unmatched scenery of Andalucía. But the best thing is, you can choose to play any of them that you want!

Carry on reading, for more on our whistle-stop trip to your next golfing getaway!

Rested & Ready

My stay for the four-day trip was the stylish Hotel Encinar de Sotogrande. Set just five minutes drive from the beach, in the exclusive Sotogrande region, this hotel mixes contemporary design with traditional Andalucian décor.

Hotel Encinar de Sotogrande

Its modern & elegant style also features an outdoor swimming pool with a sun terrace and snack bar. From the restaurant you can enjoy views of the surrounding Sotogrande countryside and golf courses.

But the best part about it was the proximity to the encompassing golf courses. Nine of the first-class courses in Sotogrande are no more than a 12-minute drive from the hotel! Ideal!

La Reserva Club, Sotogrande

Carved into the hillside with stunning views in every direction, the La Reserva Club’s 18 hole championship course was designed in 2003 by American architect and course designer Cabell B. Robinson.

At full stretch, it’s a course that comes with length, but with it’s wide sweeping fairways, large greens with gentle but challenging undulations and tricky water features, it is a must-play for any golfer visiting the region.

La Reserva Club, Sotogrande

Having only opened just over two decades ago, La Reserva comes with professional pedigree. The DP World Tour (then European Tour) returned to Sotogrande in 2014 for a brand new professional tournament co-sanctioned with the Challenge Tour, the NH Collection. While in May 2019 the club also staged the inaugural La Reserva de Sotogrande Invitational (hosted by Annika Sorenstam), which resulted in Céline Herbin claiming her second Ladies European Tour (LET) title.

More recently, in 2021, La Reserva hosted the second of four events of the Aramco Team Series on the LET – the first team event of it’s kind on a professional golf tour – with three professionals teaming up with an amateur, delivering a fitting chapter in Sotogrande’s proud golfing legacy.

Trip Back In Time

Castillo de Castellar, Castellar de la Frontera
If you do manage to find time for a brief escape away from the golf courses, and fancy heading into a real authentic rural part of Andalucia, I couldn’t recommend this next stop enough.

Castillo de Castellar, Castellar de la Frontera

Located just a 20-minute drive from the Sotogrande region, at the heart of the Campo de Gibraltar is Castellar Castle. Which translates as the “Old Village’. This declared Monument of Historical and Artistic Importance in 1963, is situated on top of a hill surrounded by the glimmering Guadarranque reservoir.

This fortress is now home to a number of different projects, including a tourist complex of country cottages for rent and even a boutique hotel.

The ideal spot for a golfing breakaway, to put you in contact with nature.

La Hacienda Links Golf Resort

La Hacienda Golf offers an unparalleled golfing experience. With two newly renovated championship 18-hole golf courses on offer, La Hacienda’s “Links” course features a unique links course redesigned by famed American designer Kurtis Bowman. While the “Heathland”, crafted by former Ryder Cup player Dave Thomas, greats you with more of a traditional layout with wide fairways and outstanding views of the sea, Gibraltar and Africa!

La Hacienda Links Golf Resort

Formerly known as Alcaidesa Golf, the European Tour Destination is part of a multi-million-Euro investment project with La Hacienda Links Golf Resort set to open the Fairmont La Hacienda hotel in the coming months. With 311 units of accommodation and a wide range of amenities, including five restaurants and bars, swimming pools, spa and fitness centre it’s a place you need to make sure you visit in the Costa del Sol!

Tapas time

Bar de Tapas Don Benito, San Roque

The food in Spain is unlike anything you would have tried before. And what better way to escape the hustle and bustle down on the coast, but to head inland a couple of miles to tickle your taste buds at some traditional Spanish cuisine.

Bar de Tapas Don Benito, San Roque

You’ll be able to test your taste buds off the beaten track with these little portions, that pack a punch of flavours.

How about some oxtail croquettes, fried calamari or even some marinated tuna to get you started?

Beware though! The menus are usually only in Spanish, so get that Google translate at the ready! That’s how real and authentic this place is, which makes it great!

García’s victory at Valderrama

As previously mentioned, the Andalucían region has played host to numerous professional golf tournaments over the past three decades. The week I attended was timed perfectly with LIV Golf Andalucía at Real Club Valderrama, the tours second time at the historical 1997 Ryder Cup venue.

LIV Golf

With Spanish fans out in full force, they of course were following the one man who already had 15 top 10’s and three titles to his name around Valderrama. Sergio García came from seven strokes back in the final round, to win his first LIV Golf Individual trophy on the second sudden-death playoff hole against Crushers GC’s Anirban Lahiri.

Also in dramatic fashion, García’s Fireballs GC teammates, Abraham Ancer and David Puig beat the Crushers duo of Bryson DeChambeau and Paul Casey in the team aggregate-score playoff, to capture the team trophy at Real Club Valderrama.

SO/ Sotogrande Spa & Golf Resort

The brand-new SO/ Sotogrande has it all, for the perfect year-round getaway. One of the many reasons to check it out is the prime location. Framed between the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean, SO/ Sotogrande is only 20 minutes away from Gibraltar Airport and just over an hour from Malaga’s International Airport.

SO/ Sotogrande Spa & Golf Resort

Who would not want to escape to the province of Cadiz?

SO/ Sotogrande Spa & Golf Resort has 152 rooms and 36 suites – all of them with a private garden or stunning terrace. The facilities include three outdoor swimming pools, beautiful private gardens, a Kid’s Club, and a Spa & Fitness centre overlooking the sea.

The culinary offerings at SO/ Sotogrande is composed of not only four restaurants and bars to savour traditional Andalucían recipes, but also more than 40 handcrafted signature cocktails!

Culinary Options:
• Cortijo Santa Maria 1962
• IXO Tapas & Bar
• Society Club House
• Rocio Garden
• Marxa Chiringuito

San Roque Club

The San Roque Club is situated with a backdrop of 340 acres of lush Andalucian hills and historic cork oak woods. With the clubhouse as the centrepiece being the Domecq family mansion, it overlooking numerous holes. The club first opened its doors in 1991 and rapidly became the golf resort of choice in the Sotogrande region.

The Old Course at San Roque has a number of elevation changes, especially on the front nine, as you find yourself having to work your way through the forests of cork oak trees. While the back nine may seem slightly less undulating, it still leaves you with deep ravines and plenty of water hazards to keep you busy!

San Roque Club

Designed by Dave Thomas and Tony Jacklin, the Old Course, along with Real Club Valderrama and Real Club de Sotogrande actually became known as the golden triangle of golf back in the 1990’s.

So much so, that during the 1997 Ryder Cup which was being held at neighbouring Valderrama, San Roque hosted both the European and American teams and their families. Still to this day, the plaques with the players names remain on the door to the suites they occupied.

Since then, this par 72 layout held its first professional event in 1993 with the DP World Tour’s qualifying school up until 2007. While not forgetting in 2005,  when it hosted the Spanish Open which was eventually won by Sweden’s Peter Hanson.

However, it is the present and looking into the future of the club that is the most exciting. With a multi-million euro renovation of all the club facilities now completed, The San Roque Club once again can be considered one of the best golf courses in the whole of Europe.

Main image: La Hacienda Links Golf Resort. Supplied