Top 100 Golf Courses produced its first national Top 100 rankings for Spain in 2008 so this biennial update of the chart is the 4th edition of those Iberian listings. We’ll take a quick look now at the highlights before revealing the full Top 100 in all its golfing glory.
Two years ago, seasoned observers must have questioned the validity of positioning the PGA de Catalunya’s Stadium course at the top of our last Spanish chart, above Valderrama, as many considered Robert Trent Jones Snr’s iconic layout to be the No.1 course in Europe.
Well, the European Tour’s flagship layout in the north east of the country has managed to retain its place at the summit, one spot in front of its prestigious counterpart, though it should be noted that both magnificent courses are of such a standard that they also make it into our World Top 100 listings.
Finca Cortesin on the Costa del Sol has received plenty of favourable reviews (“do not miss,” “pure class,”) since it first opened in 2007, as has Son Gual in Majorca, which debuted the same year (“a must play,” “quite breathtaking”). Both of these wonderful courses climb five places, entering our elite Top 10 for the first time.
Other significant positive moves include the RTJ2-designed Bonmont in Catalonia, (up twelve to 29), the South course at the La Manga Resort (a rise of nineteen to 37) and the delightful Tecina course on La Gomera in the Canary Islands, where an annual event on the European Challenge Tour has been held since 2009.
On the down side, to make way for the two new Top 10 entries just mentioned, two courses on the Costa del Sol – Cabell Robinson’s layout at La Reserva (down five to 12) and Robert Trent Jones Snr’s Las Brisas (down eight to 13) – take a decidedly downward tumble.
Also plunging down our Spanish chart, the Links course at Emporda plummets all of twenty-six places to 42, the Lagos course at Mijas slumps a sizeable fifteen spots to 48 and the Asia at La Cala sinks eighteen positions to 69.
Half a dozen layouts enter our Spanish rankings for the first time, with two of them located at the same Catalunyan venue. The Hills course at Lumine jumps straight in at number 31 (joined by Lakes, its sister course, at 59) and the Top 100 team can vouch for the excellence of both tracks, having paid a visit to this exciting new 45-hole golf complex last year.
The distinctive new von Hagge, Smelek and Baril course at Anfi Tauro in Gran Canaria is the second highest debutant at 39, ten places ahead of Pepe Gancedo’s El Chaparral layout on the Costa del Sol. Completing the roster of newcomers, we have the Nicklaus-designed Alhama course in Murcia (new at 78) and Brad Benz’s redesign at Vall d’Or in Mallorca (in at 80).
Top 100 Golf Courses genuinely welcomes feedback so please let us know what we’ve got right or where we’ve gone wrong with our new Top 100 for Spain. Do we have our finger on the Spanish golfing pulse or have we missed an opportunity to feature a course that really deserves to be listed in our chart? Please let us know what your thoughts are.
We don’t aim to create “definitive” golf course listings but we do think we produce the most “informed” golf course rankings in the industry. If you’ve played any of our listed courses in Spain then please send us a course review, we’d love to hear from you.
Jim McCann
Editor
www.top100golfcourses.com
Click the link to see the latest Spanish Top 100 in detail.
For those of you wondering which courses have fallen off our last Spanish Top 100, they are: Zaudin, Villamartin, Roda, Guadalmina (Norte), Estepona and Andratx.
