Quinta do Lago (Laranjal)

The Laranjal course is the new kid on the block at Quinta do Lago and the reputation of their third course already is growing. The course is routed through orange groves – which is where the name Laranjal was derived – opening for play in February 2009 and designed by Portuguese architect Jorge Santana da Silva.

Peter nominated Laranjal as a gem in November 2009… “I went with a group of lads with quite a wide spread of handicaps and everyone enjoyed Laranjal to the full. Course design 7.5/10, service 8/10, maintenance 9/10, value 7/10… You could play a course which would challenge you more like Monte Rei but the Laranjal was very good.”

Unusually, this new Quina do Lago layout is configured with five par fives, eight par fours and five par threes. The extra three-shot and one-shot holes provide a subtle change in balance to the many 4-4-10 configurations that are so prevalent across the world. We like Jorge Santana da Silva’s style and hope more architects consider his different approach.