Kungsbacka (Gamla)

Frank Pennink’s 1974 design at Hamra outside Kungsbacka on Sweden’s west coast just south of Gothenburg (the country’s second city) is one of the most diverse layouts in Sweden. The club’s Old course (Gamla Banan) starts in a parkland setting with a par three playing to a raised green and continues in classic parkland fashion for the first five holes.

On the 6th the player catches a glimpse of the North Sea for the first time and holes 7 through 11 (opened a few years later in 1978) would not feel out of place on any seaside course. The course turns back inland on the 12th, but holes 13 to 16 are tricky with significant elevation changes laid out in the hilly coastal forest before the course finishes on parkland with a downhill par three on the 18th.

In 1990, a further nine holes opened, designed by Tommy Nordström, known today as the Nya Banan (the New Course). The club also has a nine-hole par three course and a full array of practice facilities close by the clubhouse.

Perhaps this one of the reasons why the club has fostered three successful tour players, all born in the 1970s: Sophie Gustafsson, Johan Edfors and Freddie Jacobsson, the latter regarded as one of the best putters ever on the PGA tour.

Sophie Gustafsson’s career is perhaps the most remarkable. She has a severe stutter, which made her terrified of the speech the winner traditionally has to make. After getting professional help, she recorded 14 wins on the LET and four on the LPGA tour, including the Women’s (British) Open in 2000, before that tournament was given major status. She also represented Europe in Solheim Cup on no less than eight occasions, last in 2011, when she spent eight hours to pre-record a three-minute speech.