Sotogrande: The ultimate Spanish golf destination

Golf’s extraordinary global sprawl creates new holiday destinations
seemingly every year, with exciting, exotic and sometimes surprising new
places to visit.

Whilst that’s unquestionably great news for the sport as a whole,
it’s sometimes worth reminding ourselves of the fantastic things to be
had from the places that paved the way.

The south of Spain is a particularly good example. An estimated 2.6
million golfers visit the country every single year, giving it a
remarkable 35% market share.

A large proportion of those trips are concentrated on the Costa del
Sol. Comprising the coastal towns and communities along the coast of
Málaga and the eastern part of Campo de Gibraltar in Cádiz, the region
is home to more than 70 golf courses. That, combined with an estimated
325 days of sunshine per year, phenomenal food, exceptional value and
short, direct flights from most major UK airports, makes it’s easy to
see why it remains a popular escape amongst British golfers.

The understated community of Sotogrande is arguably the ‘golf capital’ of the region and, by extension, Spain itself.

Situated just a short drive west of Marbella, close to Gibraltar
Airport, it is a quieter, more sophisticated destination than its
near-neighbour and perfect for a short golf break, as I found out
recently…

// Day 1 

After flying into Malaga from Edinburgh courtesy of Ryanair, it was roughly an hour by car to my hotel, the elegant  

SO/ Sotogrande. A five-star cortijo
hotel, located high in the hills above Sotogrande itself, you may have
known it under its previous guise of Almenara. Owned by Sotogrande SA,
it is operated by Accor Hotels under its luxury SO/ brand and reopened
in 2021 after undergoing a massive transformation.  

It comprises 151 stylish rooms, including 24 beautiful suites, each of which is tastefully decorated using styles, fabrics and colours
chosen specifically for the resort by the acclaimed Spanish swimwear
designer Dolores Cortes. This contemporary look is consistent
throughout.  

• Dubai: Where golf meets magnificence

With
extensive landscaped gardens, stunning views across the Med and a
superb choice of restaurants – from bar snacks to something much more fancy
– the resort ticks every box for a relaxing getaway. After a few hours
adjusting to our surroundings, we ate in the Cortijo restaurant on the
first night and sampled a wide range of mouth-watering tapas. Iberian
pork, fresh shellfish, even octopus – there were some true delights on
the menu.

// Day 2

There was an early start in time for a short transfer to nearby Sotogrande’s newest golf course, La Reserva.

Designed by the prolific American golf course architect Cabell B.
Robinson, it opened in 2003 to great acclaim. In 2014, it staged its
first European Tour event and, more recently, has been used as a host
for the Aramco Team Series on the LET. It’s not hard to see why
tournament promoters are so keen on it. In addition to having all of the
necessary infrastructure, it can stretch to over 7,300 yards.

Of course, the holidaymaking amateur has no need for such length, so
it’s just as well there are plenty of different teeing areas to make it
as long or as short as you like.

Defining features of the course include generous fairways, doglegs
and plenty of elevated tees. I’d highly recommend taking a buggy. It’s a
pretty intensive walk otherwise.

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Water comes into play on half a dozen holes and there are plenty of
bright white bunkers to negotiate. The greens are amongst the finest
I’ve ever putted on. Receptive but very, very fast.

The 17th is particularly epic, requiring a drive to a fairway that
runs diagonally to you as you stand on the tee. Don’t try and cut off
too much of it, though, as the right-hand side is protected by a lake
that runs all the way up to a green surrounded by four bunkers. You’ll
do well not to drop a shot here.

After our round, we wandered across the road to use the facilities at
the La Reserva Beach Club, a one-of-a-kind, purpose-built experience
that brings all the fun of the seaside into the hills.

The result is the first and only private beach in Spain, a man-made
lagoon with a sandy basin that is surrounded by elegant loungers and
Chambaos with a full waiter service. With separate areas for families,
adults and watersports fanatics, the beach satisfies visitors of all
persuasions.

I decided to seize the opportunity to try my hand at paddle-boarding.
It’s a lot harder than it looks – who would have thought standing
upright would be so difficult? – but it’s immense fun.

An afternoon lounging by the pool was followed by dinner at CANCHA
II. A traditional Argentinean ‘asado’ restaurant overlooking one of
Sotogrande’s renowned polo fields, it serves spectacular food in a
classy, understated setting. Highly recommended.

// Day 3

A midday tee time provided an opportunity to spend some time in the
hotel spa. Take your pick from an indoor swimming pool, jacuzzi, hot and
cold plunge pools, Turkish baths, sauna and so much more. There’s even a
cryotherapy chamber and the option of sunrise yoga on the lawn should
such things take your fancy.

A ten-minute taxi ride took us to the second course on our itinerary: the world-renowned Valderrama.
The Real Club de Valderrama, to give it its full title, shot to
prominence in 1997 when it staged the Ryder Cup – the first course on
mainland Europe to do so.

Established in 1974, it is a private members’ club but visitors are
welcome. As part of the deal, you will be required to take a forecaddie –
and, by the time you walk to the second tee, you’ll understand why.
Valderrama is an exceptionally difficult course with a slope rating of
147. For context, slope ratings are measured between 55 and 155 and the
higher the number, the tougher the course. The average course has a
rating of 113. So yeah, this is no cakewalk.

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Lightning-quick greens and thick, gnarly rough are only two of the
obstacles to contend with. You also need to be capable of hitting shots
into precise locations. Simply “finding the fairway” won’t do. You need
to hit specific spots or face being blocked out by centuries-old cork
trees.

Rightly or wrongly, Valderrama divides opinion. The first time I
played it – over a decade ago – I found it too tough. The second time
around, however, I enjoyed it far more. I now understand, and accept,
that there are some places you just cannot afford to go. Straight down
the middle on the second, for instance, is a bad miss. The more you get
to know the course, the more you appreciate it; and the more you
appreciate it, the more you love it. It is also kept in utterly
spectacular condition. Every part of it – the tees, fairways, greens,
bunkers, even the rough – is manicured to perfection. I can’t recall
ever playing a better conditioned course. It’s simply majestic. My
advice, for what it’s worth, is to just forget about keeping score and,
instead, concentrate on enjoying the experience.

For dinner that evening, we went to the Trocadero beach club, which
has – as the name implies – a spectacular seaside setting. If there’s
anywhere in the region that does better paella, I’ve yet to try it.

// Day 4

An early alarm call to fit in one more round before travelling home
and, this time, we were off to San Roque to play its renowned Old
Course.

A former host of the European Tour’s Q-School, the Old is a Dave
Thomas design that dates back to 1990. Its generous fairways are
bordered by tree bark and mulch, which is so difficult to control shots
from, so there is a real premium on driving it well.

The greens, meantime, have recently been redone, so you can look
forward to testing your mettle on some true and pure surfaces. If I was
to nit-pick, I would say that the front nine is more memorable than the
back but that’s a matter of personal preference.

There’s another course at San Roque – the New – that we didn’t have
time to play on this occasion but I would certainly be interested in
checking out next time. Likewise, Almenara (which is attached to the
hotel), La Cañada and Real Club de Sotogrande come highly recommended,
too.

Great golf, hospitality, food and more – what more could any discerning golf holidaymaker want?

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Find out more

Plan your break now at so-sotogrande.com