Mazagan

We’ve published quite a few articles on golf in the Kingdom of Morocco, most recently when we revisited Marrakech last year, then a few months ago when we teed it up on a winter weekend break to Agadir. Often overlooked by golfers looking for an alternative to the usual destinations in Portugal or Spain, Morocco has more than forty courses spread out around the country, most of them built to modern specifications and maintained to a high standard. A host of travel agencies can sort out accommodation and green fee packages but you can also make your arrangements, flying in to deal direct with clubs you’d like to visit – the only course we know of which is off limits to the public is the Palais Royal d’Agadir. All the other clubs are happy to accept a green fee and provide, at very reasonable rates, a local caddy who’ll carry your bag and offer advice as required. Some caddies have been employed for more than fifty years (at Royal Dar Es Salam, for instance) so they certainly know their way around. Last month, we were invited to join a select group from the European Golf and Travel Media Association to participate in a week-long golf trip along the Atlantic coastline of the country, starting in El Jadida and finishing in Tangier. Hopefully, the following brief account of how the tour unfolded will give you a flavour of what golf is like in the northwest corner of the African continent. Royal Golf El Jadida After flying into Casablanca airport, we drove an hour to the Royal El Jadida course outside the fortified port city of El Jadida. Built by the Portuguese in the 16th century as a staging post for mariners heading to and from South America, El Jadida is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, with the city fortifications of bastions and ramparts regarded as fine examples of military design. The golf course lies to the north of the city, where architect Cabell Robinson carved out eighteen holes from a landscape of coastal woodland thirty years ago. The golf facility is now manged by Madaëf Golfs – who operate another eight courses in five other Moroccan destinations – and a substantial investment was made a short time back which allowed James Duncan to carry out a very well-received bunker renovation, along with other infrastructure improvements made in and around the clubhouse. Mazagan The EGTMA group stayed a couple of nights at the magnificent Mazagan Beach Resort near El Jadida, which owner Sol Kerzner built in the early years of the new millennium, modelling the complex on his Sun City complex in his native South Africa. The 492 rooms and suites (plus 14 restaurants and bars) at Mazagan are spread across a huge 600-acre coastal property with the spa including a 100 square metre breath taking space of mosaic and marble in the hammam, along with a state-of-the-art gym and fitness centre. The Mazagan golf course is a Gary Player design, the longest in the country when it debuted in 2009 and fairways weave in and out of the low-lying sand dunes to the north of the resort. Holes are set out as two returning nines, each of which concludes metres from the waves crashing onto the beach, near to the clubhouse. Bahia Golf Beach Day three of the press trip got under way in rather unconventional style, attending an exhibition of horsemanship at the Tbourida (also known as Fantasia) in Bouznika. The performance consists of troupes of horse riders in traditional attire who head in a line along a 200-metre track at the same speed then, at the end of a short charge, fire their muskets into the sky. The difficulty is synchronizing the horse movement during acceleration of the charge, and especially in firing the guns simultaneously so that one single shot is heard at the end. Regional heats take place – 31 junior and senior troupes participated in this one – before the finals take place at the Mohammed VI exhibition centre outside El Jadida. After the excitement of the Tbourida in the morning, the afternoon’s play at Bahia Golf Beach was rather tame in comparison, though the course is a solid Cabell Robinson design which brings water hazards into play on several occasions. The slope for the middle set of three tees (5,060 to 6,075 metres) varies between 120 and 129 so it’s not too taxing a track but if you choose to play from the black rear tees (6,749 metres) then the challenge increases quite a bit as a slope rating of 140 will confirm. After finishing the round, it was back to relax at the on-site Vichy Celéstins Spa Hôtel, boasting 130 bedrooms and two restaurants with the country’s first Wellness Clinic also offering guests the use of a large health spa comprising an indoor pool, gymnasium, hydrothermal area, yoga studio and two large outdoor pools. Royal Golf Dar Es Salam Situated in the Zaers forest to the south of Rabat, the 45-hole golf facility at Royal Golf Dar Es Salam is a late-1960s Robert Trent Jones Senior production that concurrently hosts the Hassan II Golf Trophy and the Lalla Meryem Cup on the Red and Blue courses. The Red course was recently renovated by architect James Duncan – with substantial green contouring a major feature of the upgrade – and these wildly undulating new putting surfaces definitely added to the playing experience for the visiting journalists. There aren’t many (if any) golf clubs around the world with the resources to host international men’s and women’s professional golf tournaments in the same week on the same campus but Royal Dar Es Salam has being doing this on and off since 1993, which is a quite remarkable achievement. An impressive new national Academy setup is due to open later this year at the club (the result of a joint venture with the PGA of America) and this will include all the usual golf training and practice components, as well as a museum, library, fitness centre, spa and restaurant. Before heading back to our accommodation at the newly opened Conrad Rabat Arzana hotel outside the capital, there was time for a quick look round the medina in the old walled city of Salé, which is separated from Rabat by the Oued Bou Regreg where it empties into the Atlantic. Of course, for the women in the group especially, a little local shopping after a long day at the golf club was the perfect way to round things off on the Rabat leg of the tour... Royal Country Club de Tanger The penultimate morning of the trip was spent on the road, making the 3-hour journey north from Rabat to the port city of Tangier and the Royal Country Club de Tanger, which celebrated its centenary in 2014. It’s a wonderful old property in the Boubana district of the city, where the golf course has been extensively modified over the years, primarily by Hugh Alison in the 1930s, Cotton & Pennink in the 1960s then Peter Harradine twenty years ago. In more recent times, clubhouse facilities at Royal Tangier have been upgraded, cart paths refurbished and general maintenance improvements made to allow the club to keep pace with a fast-moving golf world – anybody who visited five or six years ago would now be amazed by the transformation that has taken place since then. After golf it was only a short 15-minute drive downtown to the Hilton Tanger City Center Hotel beside the Tanger Ville railway station, where the new high-speed TGV train service connects to Casablanca. It was a little too late in the day for the media group to try any of the rooftop pool, sauna and steam facilities but the long-range views at dinner from La Kasbah restaurant on the 15th floor across the Strait of Gibraltar (to Tarifa, 31 kilometres away on the Spanish mainland) were simply stunning. Hilton Tangier Al Houara Resort & Spa The final leg of the 6-day Moroccan golfing excursion entailed a mere 30-minute drive south to the Hilton Tangier Al Houara Resort & Spa, where the 18-hole golf course was officially opened nine months ago by the joint architects Graham Marsh and Vijay Singh. Funded by the Qatari Diar investment company, phase 1 of the Al Houara project includes the hotel and golf complex (extending to the 18-hole layout, 9-hole floodlit par three course and practice facilities), though the partly-built clubhouse is yet to be completed. That means holes are artificially sequenced at the moment so that a round starts and finishes on the coastline, close to the hotel, and that isn’t an ideal arrangement but it’ll have to do for the time being. Al Houara is a big budget development and it’s obvious there was no expense spared in the design and build of both the course and the surrounding infrastructure. It might lack a little character and soul right now – which Royal Tangier has in abundance – but the course itself is one of the very best in Morocco and should go on to host many prestigious championships in years to come. When the round was over (and yet another magnificent spread of Moroccan food had been devoured next to the hotel pool) it was time to hit the road south to the Barceló Anfa Casablanca for a final overnight stop before flying out from Mohammed V International Airport the following day. What a week it had been; mixing great golf with local culture and dining on Moroccan cuisine of the highest quality throughout the trip. Above all, the hospitality was unsurpassed which, for those who have been to the country before, is pretty much why they return again and again to a land that just keeps giving… Sincere thanks for overseeing such an unforgettable expedition to tour guide Khalid from the Paris bureau of the Office National Marocain Du Tourisme (otherwise known as visitmorocco.com) and to EGTMA senior member Roland Machenuad who was heavily involved in the background organisation beforehand with President Jo Maes. And just how good is Morocco as a golfing destination? Well, you’ll never know if you don’t go… If you have any comment to make on the above article then please use the “WRITE A RESPONSE” link at the bottom of this page. Jim McCann Editor Top 100 Golf Courses

Morocco, the Kingdom of Golf, is waiting to welcome you 2nd April 2012 If playing a round under the Moroccan sun has never really appealed to you before then maybe you should think again as it’s currently one of the most up-and-coming golf destinations for European golfers. More than a dozen brand new 18-hole layouts are set to open before 2015, expanding the country’s already impressive golfing portfolio to forty courses. Morocco’s golf market is growing twice as fast as the overall tourist sector so, in order to meet this increased demand, a “Blue Plan” has been drawn up to develop the seaside resorts along the Atlantic and Mediterranean coastlines and this will increase hotel capacity and improve local infrastructure. Similar measures are also being taken inland to ensure cities like Fez and Marrakech can cope with the influx of visiting golfers. Situated only a short flight away from Europe in North Africa, Morocco enjoys a rich golfing heritage that stretches back almost a hundred years to when Royal Tangiers Golf Club was inaugurated in 1917. The old course lies in the northwest corner of the country and it’s one of several splendid layouts – including Royal Cabo Negro at Tetouan and Palmeral in Saïdia – that are strung out along the rugged northern coastline. Under the Blue Plan, another two courses – Las Lagunas and El Oasis – are being built in Saïdia, two others are planned for Nador as part of the Marchica Med eco resort whilst, back in Tangier, a V.J. Singh signature course is scheduled for play when the big budget Al Houara resort opens. The late monarch, King Hassan II, was an avid golfer and top professionals compete annually for a trophy that bears his name. Since its inception in 1971, Major winners such as Billy Casper, Lee Trevino, Payne Stewart, Nick Price, Padraig Harrington and Ernie Els have all won this prestigious event. The King was shrewd enough to commission one of the world’s leading designers, Robert Trent Jones Snr, to construct a fabulous 45-hole golf complex at Dar Es Salam Golf Club in Rabat and for many years, beginning in 1971, the Red and Blue 18-hole layouts co-hosted the Trophée Hassan II tournament. Between Rabat and El Jadida, there’s plenty of choice for golfers along this stretch of the Atlantic coastline with Robert von Hagge courses at Bouznika and Benslimane, a charming old 1920s layout at Royal Mohammedia and a couple of fantastic tracks at El Jadida: Cabell Robinson’s El Jadidia Royal and the new Gary Player-designed Mazagan. A little further south, the Black Knight also put his architectural stamp on the Mogador course at Essaouira in 2010. And as part of the Blue Plan to “dress the coastline in green for 2015” golf facilities in Casablanca will be augmented by the Casa Green project, where a new 18-hole course will triple the number of holes currently available in that city. The coastal resort town of Agadir is one of the most popular golf destinations in Morocco and that’s hardly surprising when you consider it basks in sunny skies for 300 days every year and boasts no fewer than ninety nine golf holes, many of them perfumed by eucalyptus and mimosa. You’ll find these fairways split between Agadir Royal (9 holes), the Dunes Golf Club (27 holes), Soleil Golf Club (36 holes) and the Ocean Golf Club (27 holes) – with more new courses scheduled for Taghazout, to the north of Agadir, and Oued Chbika to the south. The media spotlight also falls one week in every year on the private Golf Du Palais d’Agadir course when it hosts the annual Trophée Hassan II tournament on the men’s European Tour, this event having switched from Rabat in 2011. Last but certainly not least, the ochre-tinted city of Marrakech has been offering golf as a recreational activity since the mid 1920s when the Royal Marrakech course was formed and great world leaders such as Churchill and Eisenhower have walked the fairways of this fine old golfing establishment. This facility was joined in the 1990s by Robert Trent Jones Snr’s Palmeraie layout and Cabell Robinson’s Amelkis course, both of which have been recently extended to 27 holes. New millennium additions to the Marrakech golf scene include the 9-hole Atlas Golf Club, the 18-hole Kyle Phillips course at Al Maaden plus a couple of new layouts that lie a little further away from the city at Assoufid (a Niall Cameron creation) and Samanah (a Nicklaus Design course). To the south east of Marrakech, the ski resort of Oukaimeden in the Atlas mountains is set to open the highest 18-hole course in North Africa whilst further on, the charming little 9-hole Ouarzazate layout is scheduled to double in size. If you tie in a golf trip to Morocco with cultural visits to some of the country’s many UNESCO world heritage sites like Volubilis near Meknes, the Fez Medina or Marrakech’s market square then you will have a stay in a magical North African land that will live long in the memory. Golfers who have played in the Canary Islands, the Iberian peninsula or the north east coast of the Mediterranean and feel they might not be getting value for money need look no further than Morocco for high class, affordable golf with very reasonable green (and caddy) fees. The Top 100 team haven’t played all the existing courses in Morocco, so if you think there’s one that we should feature, even as a GEM, then please let us know by nominating a course. Jim McCann Editor www.top100golfcourses.com

Seach for “Morocco” on this website and you’ll be presented with a whole series of articles, dating back to April 2012 when we published Morocco, the Kingdom of Golf, is waiting to welcome you… Since then, we’ve made several excursions to different regions around the country, exploring the various golf facilities that operate close to all the major cities, from Saïdia on the Mediterranean Sea in the northeast to Agadir on the Atlantic Ocean in the southwest. Links to these trip reports are listed at the bottom of this article for further reading. Marrakech boasts a dozen courses around the perimeter of the Red City, and we’ve also visited most of the coastal layouts between Essaouira and Rabat then beyond to Tangier – in fact, there’s less than a handful golf locations that we’ve yet to see around the nation. We created a Top 10 chart for Morocco back in 2012 which was doubled in size three years later. These rankings were updated in 2020 then further extended to a Top 25 last year so, all things considered, we think we’ve a reasonable grasp of all things golf-related within the country. Last month, we were invited to attend what was marketed as the “Return of the Champions” – comprising the 48th edition of the Hassan II Golf Trophy and 27th edition of the Lalla Meryem Cup at Royal Golf Dar Es Salam in Rabat. This golfing extravaganza featured 66 players from the PGA Tour Champions circuit on the Red course and 108 professionals from the Ladies European Tour on the Blue course (the 18th hole on this layout is pictured at the top of the article). What appears next is a blog-style account of how the week unfolded… MONDAY After a late breakfast at the Sofitel hotel in Rabat on the Monday morning, we took the shuttle bus for the 20-minute journey to the Media Centre for accreditation then a wander around the golf club campus to familiarize with the location of the Players’ Lounge, Caddy Area, Exhibitor Units – and the all-important Food Court for lunch! As most of the press people had still to arrive, it give us a chance to sit down with a couple of folk who would keep us right during the week, namely Michel Besanceney (General Co-ordinator of both competitions) and Mounia El Khettar (Communication Director from the Royal Moroccan Golf Federation). Another person who rarely gets in the spotlight at big events is the head greenkeeper so we made a point of talking to Australian Simon Rees, previously at Abu Dhabi Golf Club, who told us when we were here in May last year of his plans to convert the fairways to a type of grass that’s more suited to the Rabat climate. He has experience of setting up for big international events before so he appeared very relaxed about the following few days. A walk round a few holes close to the clubhouse confirmed everything was in position for the week ahead. Both Robert Trent Jones Sr-designed courses have been upgraded in recent years, with James Duncan working on the Red and Cabell Robinson on the Blue, and the results of these big budget improvements are very impressive. TUESDAY The main focus on Day 2 was the Press Conference for both tournaments, attended by the Stephen Ames (winner of last year’s men’s event), Miller Brady (President of the PGA Tour Champions), Alexandra Armas (CEO of the Ladies European Tour), local player Ines Laklalech (who won the Lacost Ladies Open de France in 2022) and a couple of officials from the Royal Moroccan Golf Federation. Miller Brady mentioned that this was the third of twenty-eight events to be played in 2024 across 19 states in the US and three other countries (Morocco, Scotland and Canada), with the first two competitions already staged in Hawaii and Florida. He felt sure the Hassan II Golf Trophy Tournament would be a resounding success, despite a weather forecast of rain along the way. Alexandra Armas reminded everyone the Lalla Meryem Cup was being played for the 12th time as part of the LET schedule and that last year’s winner Maja Stark from Sweden had gone on to represent Europe in the Solheim Cup, winning 2.5 points from the four matches she played in. She looked forward to an abundance of young players teeing it up with the aim of following in Maja’s footsteps. A second press conference was then convened by the LET to announce hosting details for the Lalla Aïcha Qualifying School in December, which will be staged for the next three years in Marrakech. Pre-qualification will take place over three rounds on four courses at Palm Golf Ourika, Palmeraie Rotana, Noria and Samanah before final qualification over five rounds at Royal Marrakech and Al Maaden. In the evening, a group of journalists headed out of the hotel by taxi to the Rabat medina in search of the Dar Zaki restaurant. It took a little time to locate it among the narrow alleyways but, what a find – no wonder it’s rated #1 out of 356 in Rabat by tripadvisor.com! The food was simple but wonderful, with a selection of sharing starters and mains the way to go. And with a bill of less than eighty euros for five people it was an absolute bargain for a meal to remember. WEDNESDAY We were invited to participate in the Friendship Cup pro-am with players from the PGA Tour Champions the day before the serious business got under way. Team Stableford totals consisted of both the professional’s score and the 4-person amateur team score (playing in a scramble format). Royal Golf Dar Es Salam has just completed a new practice facility (with soon to open library, museum and offices) where professionals and pro-am participants were able to warm up prior to teeing it up on the 1st hole. At the last minute, one of our European Golf and Travel Media Association members had to drop out through injury but Omar Lamrini from the golf club stepped in to make up the numbers. Professional Mario Tiziani from Michigan, the brother-in-law of Steve Stricker, led the line and he played a very solid round, contributing to a total score of 77 points which saw the team finish 15th out of 30, so no disgrace there. The slow pace of play did however give us a chance on several tees to chat to John Daly, the professional in the group behind us who, with his country music blaring away on his cart, has to be one of the most laid-back golfers you’ll ever come across – all that was missing was a case of beers in the back of the buggy! Unfortunately, our very slow round of six and a half hours gave us no opportunity to look in on the Pro-Am Hassan II Kids Cup by First Tee on the 9-hole Green course, where nine teams of three (two children and one pro) participated in a fun competition. The Royal Moroccan Golf Federation signed a partnership with First Tee USA in 2019 to transmit skills and life values to young people through golf and so far more than two hundred youngsters have benefitted from this program across five Moroccan cities. Later in the evening at the invitation-only Cocktail Party in the Fairmont La Marina Rabat Salé Hotel a couple of EGTMA members from Ireland, Ann Mooney and Geraldine Bradley, were spied in the company of Colin Montgomerie and his wife Sarah. When asked if they were now frequenting Elland Road more often during the current football season, Monty confessed he’d actually been to Anfield quite a bit (as Sarah is a Liverpool fan) but they’ll hopefully see a lot more of Leeds United later in the year – assuming they get promoted to the Premier League in May! We also got the chance to have a quick chat with architect James Duncan about the course improvements made to the Red course at Dar Es Salam, the upgrade of the El Jadida course and his latest project at Brambles in California. He also has an interest in the Coul Links development in Scotland so perhaps he’ll be back in Caledonia before too long? THURSDAY The first two days of competition at RGDES were earmarked for a couple of side trips, away from Rabat, so the Thursday was spent in Bouskoura on the southern outskirts of Casablanca, where three golf courses are all situated close to one another within large residential developments. Casa Green (pictured above) was first up in the morning and it’s one of nine Madaëf Golfs facilities in Morocco, with the course designed by French-based Jeremy Pern. Following a buggy tour of the property, a lengthy chat with Director of Golf Reda Bennis was one of the more interesting hours spent during the entire week – there’s nothing like local knowledge to keep you abreast of developments. In the afternoon, there were similar visits paid to the nearby Tony Jacklin Casablanca and Palmeraie Country Club golf courses. Whether any of these three Bouskoura layouts make it into our next Moroccan listings remains to be seen but they all stand a chance. The brochure produced for The Return of the Champions devoted a page to seven courses to check out close to Rabat, namely the three that we visited at Bouskoura and four others: the 18-hole layouts at Bahia Beach [#24 in our Moroccan chart] and Royal Anfa Mohammedia [listed at #20], along with unranked 9-hole tracks at Bouznika Bay and Royal Golf Anfa. We didn’t have time to see these other four courses but they all remain in the frame for our next national chart update whenever it happens.  FRIDAY The IMG-operated facility at Michlifen is a 6-hour round trip from Rabat into the Middle Atlas mountains but we’ve been there a couple of times in the past and know it’s well worth the drive to get there and back. Jo Maes, President of EGTMA, was keen to have a look and so we set off from Rabat nice and early at 07:00. The image above shows the overcast weather on arrival but within minutes the very fine rain at altitude in the clouds was like a foggy mist, meaning you could see less than 50 metres in any direction! Playing a round of golf was out of the question, disappointingly. Head greenkeeper Alex Avila, who we’d previously met when he worked at Oued Fes Golf, showed us around the clubhouse and the academy, both of which are set up to the highest standards, before the Michlifen hotel general manager Abdelaziz Aoumeziti joined us for lunch. In the afternoon, we were given a tour of the 5-star hotel (located a 10-minute drive away in the centre of Ifrane) including the spa and enormous multi-sports hall (where Jo Maes was determined to display some of his old basketball skills). The hotel is designed and decorated like a luxury chalet where visitors come in the winter when the snow often falls (“Michlifen” means snow flake) or in summer to escape the heat in the cool mountain climate. Too bad rain stopped play for us on one of the days we were most looking forward to! SATURDAY And so, the culmination of the week-long trip brought us back to Rabat for the third and final day of play in both the men’s and ladies’ competitions. And to start the day, we wished every success on the 1st tee to one of our core team members, Panellist & Travel Consultant Javier Pintos, who was caddying for a fellow Argentinian, Ángel Cabrera, the two-time Major winner. “El Pato” as he is nicknamed, had a reasonable tournament, finishing joint 27th in a field of sixty-six. The man from Córdoba was only cleared to play again in PGA Tour-sanctioned events last December after spending some time in prison so it’ll be interesting to see how he gets on now in this comeback season. Of course, competitive golf is all about winners and it was another Argentinian, Ricardo González, who held off a strong challenge from Thomas Bjørn to finish one shot ahead of the Dane and claim the Hassan II Golf Trophy with a three-round total of ten under par. This prompted a mini-invasion of Argentinian supporters who were inside the ropes on the 18th green on the Red course when the final putt was sunk, with our man Javier right in the thick of things! The prize for winning the men’s tournament is a Moroccan dagger, known as “The Khandjar,” which the victor gets to keep. Across the road on the Blue course, Bronte Law from Stockport in England, completed her final round with a par four on the 18th to post a magnificent nine under par score of 64, edging out her nearest competitor Pauline Roussin-Bouchard by three shots as she claimed victory in the Lalla Meryem Cup. The prize for winning the ladies’ tournament is a “Minaudiere” clutch bag encrusted with precious stones which is a rather unique way to mark a special win on the LET circuit. At the press conference afterwards, Bronte gave fulsome praise to Ian Woosnam who has been helping her behind the scenes but her victory was tinged with a little regret that her parents had been unable to make the journey to Morocco to support her – maybe next year now when she returns as defending champion? If you have any comment to make on the above article then please use the “WRITE A RESPONSE” link at the bottom of this page. Jim McCann Editor Top 100 Golf Courses FURTHER READING On this website, click any of the nine links below: DECEMBER 2015 Top 20 Golf Courses of Morocco 2016 JUNE 2016 We’ve revisited Morocco to uncover further golfing delights APRIL 2017 We return to Morocco to find out what’s new in the Western Kingdom OCTOBER 2018 Moroccan golf reaches new heights in the Middle Atlas mountains at Ifrane JUNE 2020 Top 100 Golf Courses revises its North African rankings AUGUST 2022 Golf Resorts in the Red City of Marrakech JANUARY 2023 Agreeable resort golf in Agadir MAY 2023 Morocco is calling – what are you waiting for? JUNE 2023 Top 25 Golf Courses of Morocco 2023 Golf in Morocco: Land of Wonders is a big, glossy production that was published in 1996 to mark the Silver Jubilee of the Hassan II Trophy. Written by Barry Ward and Tom McArthur, with extensive photography from Brian Morgan, this book was something of a labour of love to produce for Mohamed Khnichich from Marrakesh Express Travel [ISBN 0 9529617 0 9].