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There are dozens of top notch golf course in and around Lisbon. Right in Lisbon, close to the airport, you’ll find the nine hole Belavista (Av. Avelino Teixeira da Mota, Lisboa, Tel 218 310 860 or 218 462 267), a rarity in Portugal in being in an urban area.
All the other golf courses are a little further away, but all are easily accessible. Also very close to Lisbon, the Lisbon Sports Club’s (Casal da Carregueira, Belas, Tel. 21 431 00 77) 18 hole course enjoys a beautiful setting in a romantic landscape. Especially the demands placed by the water features on most of the holes set this course apart. One of the most recent courses, the nearby Belas Sports Club near Queluz (Casal de Carregueira, Belas, Queluz, Tel: 21 432 1474) has a lovely mountain setting and was designed by the renowned American architect Rocky Roquemore. The second hole, a par 5 named “Augusta” to pay homage to the famed 13 hole at that course, is especially demanding, but can also be especially rewarding.
With the same architect, the Quinta de Beloura is close by, between Estoril and Sintra (Estrada de Albarraque, Tel: 21 910 6350). In a residential development, with more than 40,000 trees along its fairways and with views of the Sintra mountains, this is a beautiful course, with the lakes presenting some major challenges.
Another challenging course is the 18 hole Club de Golf do Estoril (Avenida da República, Estoril, Tel: 21 923 2461), which was partially built by Fausto de Figueiredo, founder of the Casino Estoril, and finished off by Mackenzie Ross, with some improvements added later. This is one of the oldest and best known courses in Portugal, and hosted the Portuguese Open Championship on many occasions. Not an extremely long course, it places greater demands on accuracy than on distance.
Penha Longa in Sintra is one of Portugal’s classic courses (Estrada da Lagoa Azul, Linhó, Tel: 21 924 0014). It was designed by Robert Trent Jones on the site of the first convent of the order of St Jerome, inaugurated in 1355. It has twice hosted the Portuguese Open, is always impeccably maintained and has beautiful views over the Sintra mountains. No surprise then that it has been elected as one of the best courses on the European Circuit. Penha Longa has also added a new 9 hole course, Mosteiro, by the same architect, and just as beautiful.
Quinta da Marinha’s (Cascais, Tel. 214 860 100) whole resort is spectacular, but the golf course, designed by Robert Trent Jones Senior, is considered by many golfers as its crowning glory. The course is set among beautiful trees and has some imposing scenery, especially the 13th, which slopes down to the ocean. Also in Quinta da Marinha’s 110 hectares is Oitavos Dunes (Tel. 214 860 600), the 1st course in Europe to be certified as a Gold Signature Sanctuary for its environmental awareness. This is also a seaside golf course set in an area of great natural beauty, with great views of the ocean, Cabo da Rocha and the Sintra mountains. It was elected as the best course in Portugal and among the 100 best in the world in the October 2009 edition of Golf Magazine.
And just to the south of Lisbon you can enjoy the championship Aroeira 1 and Aroeira 2 (Herdade da Aroeira, Charneca da Caparica, Tel. 212 979 110) courses and in a half an hour later you can be at the one of the most fascinating golf courses in Portugal, Troia (Carvalhal, Grândola, Tel. 265 494 112).
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