Las Ramblas

Alicante, Valencian Community

Rankings

AddressAlicante, Spain

In the book entitled Globetrotter Golfer’s Guide Spain by David J. Whyte, the author describes Las Ramblas in the following terms: “whoever decided to build a golf course through this tract of land must have been imaginative. Las Ramblas works remarkably well and offers a completely different test from its neighbours.

“It has a complicated layout that rambles through humps, hillocks, deep ravines and rocky canyons with lots of trees and a lake. Coupled with tiny greens, this course is a nightmare for beginners and the tempestuous, so the best way to approach Las Ramblas is simply to have fun.”

Designed in 1991 by the late José "Pepe" Gancedo, former Spanish amateur champion, Las Ramblas is one of three courses (including Villamartin) operated by La Finca Golf & Spa Resort and it's certainly a layout that will test the resolve of even the most proficient golfers.

Feature holes include testing back-to-back par fives at holes 3 and 4, the only par three on the front nine at the all-carry 6th – where a gorge runs along the right side of the hole – and the demanding doglegged 7th, which is routed across a deep ravine before turning sharply right to an elevated green.

The 192-metre 12th is another tough, all-carry proposition, played from a raised tee to a plateau green. By comparison, the par three 14th is 50 metres shorter but it’s just as treacherous, with another gully fronting the putting surface. The par five 18th returns golfers to the clubhouse, doglegging slightly left and uphill to the home green.