From the first strike, you’ll be taken by the passion of golf
You’re warned, yet you’ll want to experience it. And then after that, you won’t be able to stop playing. This is what you will also feel in Catalonia: you will want to
always come back to it. You will never get tired of it, because there will always be something new to surprise you.
The golf offer in Catalonia is very vast and varied: from the most competitive courses where the level of requirement is high, to flatter and softer courses, adapted to players of all levels.
The sporting tradition in Catalonia is very old. That is why it is not surprising that one of the first golf courses in Spain opened in Catalonia in 1914, in Sant Cugat del Vallès. This route was born from the initiative of a group of Britons who were working on the construction of the tracks of the current railways of the Regional Government of Catalonia, an infrastructure that three years later would unite this locality with Barcelona. The golf course of Sant Cugat, which its members keep today as a garden, is still very active.
Before the 1980s, half a dozen courses were opened, bringing together fans of a sport that, at that time, was considered elitist.
It was with the arrival of Severiano Ballesteros and his international victories that the passion for golf began to emerge. New players, new leagues and new courses gradually appeared throughout Catalonia.
In a few years, golf has become a very attractive sport, both for locals and foreigners who come to practice their favorite sport.
The taste for this sport in Catalonia knew moments of glory with notably the Olympic Games of Barcelona in 1992. It is currently experiencing a new lease of life thanks to the many world-class golf events taking place there. The Catalan golf courses have hosted several editions of the Spanish Open – one of the oldest in Europe – as well as the Open Catalonia, the Open Sanyo, the Sarazen Open or the Johnnie Walker Trophy. Catalonia will also host the European Touring School tournament. All these events moved world figures such as Lee Treviño, Gary Player, Greg Norman, Nick Faldo, Tom Watson, Raymond Floyd and Bernhard Langer to Catalonia. Catalonia also hosted the Catalonia Ladies Masters, part of the European Women’s Professional Circuit, a tournament that saw the light of day in 2003, with the participation of the charismatic English Laura Davies, the Swedish Sophie Gustafson and the Mexican Lorena Ochoa – currently number 4 in the world – as well as the Catalan Paula Martí.
Catalonia currently has 37 large golf courses, 45 Pitch & Putt and Par 3 facilities; the latter are initiation areas or additions to the long courses when the necessary time runs out.Among the large courses, 22 are open to tourism and the others are private clubs.
The golf offer in Catalonia is very vast and varied: from very competitive courses, with a high standard of skill, where the most skilled try to match the gestures of their idols, to flatter and softer courses, suitable for players of all levels who wish to enjoy a day of relaxation with friends or family. The geographical diversity of Catalonia has allowed the creators of golf courses to have the most suitable spaces for the installation of these sports facilities. Renowned golf course architects such as Javier Arana and Ramón Espinosa, assisted by pioneering golfers such as Severiano Ballesteros, José María Olazábal, Manuel Piñero and Ángel Gallardo, have each brought a special character to their designs. Other courses have been designed by international experts such as Robert Von Hagge, Robert Trent Jones Jr, F.W. Hawtree, Dave Thomas and Greg Norman.
All this explains the complete offer of Catalan golf courses and the high level of quality. These routes combine a degree of difficulty appropriate to each situation with the beauty of the landscape and respect for the environment.
This diversity of Catalan geography makes golf courses even more attractive. Our region is small but very rich in landscapes, because in less than an hour it is possible to pass from a golden cove to a snow-covered mountain in the Pyrenees, passing through dense forests or open plains. Thus, golfers who come to our courses will be able to practice their favourite sport surrounded by magnificent landscapes and be interested in history, art, gastronomy, entertainment, modernism, etc.. Indeed, Catalonia is culturally very rich: Romanesque churches and medieval castles, green or snow-covered natural parks, small hidden coves, over 300 museums of all kinds – including those presenting the works of Dalí, Miró, Picasso or Gaudí -, thousands of restaurants where you can enjoy a varied gastronomy, the main representatives of which are Ferran Adrià, Carme Ruscalleda and Santi Santamaría-, the universal and cosmopolitan character of the city of Barcelona, etc. What more could you ask for?
Golf courses in Catalonia
Aravell Golf
Club de Golf de Barcelona
Club de Golf Bonmont
Club de Golf Costa Brava
Club de Golf d’Aro Mas Nou
Club de Golf Terramar
Empordà Golf Hotel & Spa
Fontanals Golf
Golf Girona
Golf Montanyà
Golf Peralada
Golf Platja de Pals
Golf Serres de Pals
Lumine Golf Club
RC Golf Cerdanya
Real Club de Golf El Prat
Torremirona Golf & Spa Resort
Useful addresses:
Catalan Golf Federation
Tuset 32, 8a planta
08006 Barcelona
Tel.: + 34 934 145 262
catgolf@catgolf.com
www.catgolf.com
Catalan Pitch & Putt Association
Roger de Llúria, 27 – pral.
08009 – Barcelona
Tel.: + 34 933 424 249
secretaria@pitchandputtcat.com
www.pitchandputt.cat
P.G.A. European Tour
Tel.: + 34 972 472 410
pgaeuropean@terra.es
www.europeantour.com