GOLF WITH A CAPITAL ‘M’
Madrid could well become the Spanish capital of Golf
Bustling, Vibrant, Colourful
MADRID
• 18 golf courses
• 30 min from city centre
• plenty of hotel rooms
• major course architects
• home of Spanish Golf
• the Spanish Open
Madrid is a lot of things … it’s vibrant, it’s colourful, it’s busy, it’s bustling … it has great food, plenty of bars, many restaurants, entertainment and shopping. It’s both the commercial as political capital of Spain. It’s of course known for football with Real and Atletico and has one of Europe’s most successful basketball teams.
What it is not known for … yet … is golf. Yes, they have had the Spanish Open a number of years but does that really relate to the golfer abroad who’s first point of call remains the Costa Del Sol?
This is about to change as the Madrid Golf Association together with the Madrid Tourism Authorities see merit in diverting some of that golf tourism money to the capital itself.
Let’s face it, golf tourist bring their hard earned cash with them and when on site, they spend and that’s where the interest lies.
It is also a fact that Madrid has plenty of golf to choose from. With close to 20 golf courses all within 30 min from the city centre, from the ultra exclusive Golf Santander and La Moraleja to the home of Spanish Golf, the Centro Nacional, golf tourists are spoiled for choice.
Madrid really comes to life at night with plenty of bars and restaurants to choose from.
We started our journey at Real Club de Golf La Herreria, a traditional tree lined layout dating back from 1966 and overlooked by the impressive El Escorial monastery. Give or take an hour north west of Madrid, this is an undulating course where precision is the main requirement. Pay attention as you will see deer crossing the fairways and with many raised greens, it offers a delightful round of golf on a course that has matured over more than 50 years.
The 4* Hotel Exe Victoria Palace in the nearby town of El Escorial provides honest accommodation all within walking distance of several lively bars and restaurants.
The next day, we moved closer towards Madrid and played the La Dehesa Club. A family operation with country club aspirations where families have a choice of activities with golf being the main attraction. The front 9 is the more open while the back 9 is laid out inside a nature reserve next to the local river. Famous Spanish professional Manuel Pinero was in charge of creating a competitive layout with tight fairways and big greens. There are some very challenging holes on this course where nothing but perfect shots will give you the desired stableford points.
The capital of Spain is an amazingly vibrant and captivating city with a extensive array of bars and restaurants.
Madrid is an unbelievably vibrant city. Venture out on any night and the streets are full of people, families with kids, groups of girls and boys, older people enjoying the tapas. The whole atmosphere draws you in its slipstream and you suddenly feel good about things. We headed to the ‘Mercado de San Miguel’ for some food and drink and it
didn’t disappoint. One can eat and drink almost anything you wish for and the place is loud and … well, Spanish. It’s next to the ‘Plaza Major’, the main square for some sightseeing and where you can find small bars within the confines of the walkways.
Banco (golf) Santander
I’ve never played golf inside a commercial headquarters before. The bank was founded in 1857 and really thrived under the leadership of Emilio Botin. The bank moved to their new head quarters just outside of Madrid back in 2004. A keen golfer, Mr. Botin. decided to engage Rees Jones to design a US Style golf course just outside his office. This became somewhat of a white elephant after the death of Mr. Botin and the bank has now opened it for green fee play to offset some of the expense.
One has to present ID before entering the premises but once there, the course is truly magnifi in’ layout with several lakes and can be stretched to just over 7,500 yards. Choose the more playable tees and you’re in for a treat.
The course is always in impeccable condition and has entered my top 10 I’ve played. I would go back in a heartbeat.
Madrid was never a destination one associates with golf. Spain has plenty of those but from what I’ve seen, the combination of the city and the variety of courses dotted around the outskirts makes this a compelling alternative.
We went to Europe’s biggest member club, Real Club La Moraleja, that offers its 6,000 members four Jack Nicklaus designed courses which is a serious pedigree. We played Campo 4 and together with Campo 3 (A Nicklaus Signature), a 36 hole complex that soon will be completed with a massive clubhouse overlooking the 4 holes that finish every 9 hole loop. It’s not easy to get a tee time at La Moraleja but try and you get rewarded with some of the finest golf in Europe. Campo 1 was the first Nicklaus
The afternoon round was on the JM Olazabal designed Retamares Golf. Host to a number of professional tournaments (LET and Challenge), the course is laid out next to the Sierra de Madrid, the higher plains outside the city. It’s tricky in places and there is a certain benefit to having played it before. The front 9 plays around a hill and offers fabulous views of the surrounding countryside. The final stretch is extremely challenging in order to keep a score going.
There are more than enough hotels in Madrid but not many are better than the Hotel & Spa Urso Madrid. A proper modern 5* built inside the renowned ‘Papelera Española’ which showcases the royal character of the bourgeois architecture of Madrid. When you walk outside the hotel, you immediately get sucked into the Madrid nightlife.
The final course of the week was the ‘Centro Nacional’. The course owned and managed by the Spanish Golf Federation was designed by Dave Thomas and formed part of a urbanisation project on the outskirts of Madrid.
Built on, what previously was a garbage dump, the design is very links like. It embodies the whole ethos of making golf an accessible sport with a massive driving range packed with technology and with people of all ages, gender and ability playing or learning golf. It does highlight why Spain consistently produces major winning golfers.
Jon Rahm grew up playing the course and was victorious when the Spanish Open was held here back in 2018. You can spray it a bit and in places, which can be dangerous for other people on the course. Fabulous greens and the views of the Madrid high rise, makes this a great course.
The Teatro Eslava offers a fabulous Dinner & Flamenco evening and turns into the Zebra Club afterwards