Kemer

The course of Kemer Golf & Country Club is part of a 500-acre site in Belgrade Forest, which lies in the foothills of the Istranca Mountains to the north of Istanbul. It is here that the Kemer property development company have established an upmarket housing project for a discerning Turkish sporting community.

The original course was a 9-hole affair designed in 1995 by Johan Dudok van Heel – better known in his native Holland for his earlier involvement in Dutch courses like Oosterhout (1989) and Herkenbosch (1992) – and his initial layout was extended to a full 18-hole layout very soon after the first nine opened.

The 6,930 yard, par 73 course – described by the club as “short but tight” – is used as a training centre by the national golf federation and is HQ to the Turkish PGA. In addition to a very good golfing facility, residents at Kemer can also indulge themselves in a variety of sports such as equestrianism, tennis, basketball, volleyball and swimming.