Real Sociedad Hipica Espanola (North)

The area on the north east outskirts of Madrid is very well off when it comes to good quality golf courses like La Moraleja No.1, No.2 and Real Sociedad Hípica Española Club de Campo.

The RSHE Club de Campo can trace their roots as far back as 1901 – attaining royal status in 1908 – and it was one of the founder members of the Spanish Golf Federation in 1932.

Club members were, once upon a time, able to play polo and hockey but nowadays, they have to confine themselves to horse riding, swimming, and racquet sports (as well as golf, of course).

There are two courses on the property – North and South – both laid out by the prolific American architect Robert von Hagge – who was also responsible for another Spanish 36-hole layout at Emporda, near Girona, in 1991.

The North course was redesigned in 1997 and it now stretches to 7,162 yards from the back tees. Most fairways are gently undulating and tree lined – but not restrictively – and water comes into play at four holes (1, 2, 5 and 8) on the front nine. The are no fewer than seven left dog legged holes, the best of which is the 352-metre par four 13th where a creek runs diagonally across the fairway to a pond in front of the green.

It is laid out on a huge scale across naturally undulating and sometimes hilly ground. These elevation changes provide for an interesting and thought provoking round. Set out in two loops of nine, the North course played host to the 2007 Madrid Open (Open de Madrid Valle Romano) where Denmark’s Mads Vibe-Hastrup won, claiming his maiden European Tour title.

In May 2010, the North course at RSHE Club de Campo played host to the Madrid Masters for the first time. The event immediately followed the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth, so the Madrid Masters attracted a much stronger field than usual. The tile went to England’s Luke Donald who edged Welshman Rhys Davies by a single shot claiming his first title in four years.