Course name: Praia d'el Rey
Location: Peniche, Obidos, Portugal
Four Word Course Review: Top-notch resort golf
Praia d'el Rey is a beachside course - with some claim to being a links of sorts - within a residential development about an hour north of Lisbon, the Portuguese capital - and very close to the magical medievel walled town of Obidos.
It has some weaknesses, and many people will immediately point to the housing, but I think its positives far outweight the negatives, and of the housing, I'd say it only becomes overbearing on a few holes (2, 10, 12 - which incidentally are all very strong holes, which helps to overcome the jarring of all that concrete).
The greens are a fantastic set, heaps of internal movement and some great sites, with a few strong constant slopes to add variety.
I really liked the fact the man-made movement didn't fight with the natural slope and shape of the land. The shapes might not have been 100% natural, but they fit the land really well. I also noticed that quite a few are also extremely narrow, generally on the shorter holes.
From the tee, almost all of the two- and three-shotters made you think about lateral placement (with a few "go for it over a major landform" moments), but the impediment to a poorly-placed shot changes: a longer approach, an awkward angle across severe green slopes, a pine tree that forces you to hit a cut from a hook lie, blindness - you don't find yourself thinking "I've hit this shot already".
If there was a point of sameness it would be that eight of the greens are raised above the approach area, but there is enough variety in the other features to overcome that.
Some of the geometric bunkering seemed at odds with the natural, rolling, wild site. I allowed myself to fantasise and "see" some wild Doak-style traps on a few holes and I believe it would be preferable to so many perfect circles of sand.
The routing was another high-point, in my opinion, two side-by-side clockwise laps that expose to to the wind from every angle, albeit with a couple of stretches where your bearing doesn't change (4-7 and 13-15). It also took you in and out of the pine forest and the open dunes several times, also giving you that glimpse of the ocean you came to see on both nines.
But in doing that, and in taking advantage of that stretch along the beach in the middle of the back nine, designer Cabell Robinson ended up with the 15th green a very long way from the house - and the result is three stern holes to finish: My last three approaches were 5i, 4i and 4i and all followed well-struck drives.
It also seemed to me that as you moved inland, the architectural merit also peaked, as if to overcome the lack of thrill as you left the seaside.
The par threes and fives tended to be good to very good, but lacked that X factor that the greats have, while the par fours offered as much variety as you could hope for.
Of the holes you'll remember most fondly, it may be the two short par fours that burn brightest.
The 4th may be the best hole on the course. Driveable at 304m from the tips and 274m/286m from the more mortal men's tees, it's dominated by the massive natural blow-out bunker that flanks the left. The further you hit your drive, the more you need to hug it to get the plum angle in to the green, which is both steeply angled and narrow, with a few really ugly spots if you miss by as little as a few metres. In concert with the modest length, that's probably fair.
The flat, beachside 13th is 300m from the tips, but 285m/256m from the tees most golfers will play. It has a wicked, narrow, front-to-back sloping green that sees to it that driving the green is no guarantee of a birdie. Every golfer loves an eagle/birdie chance, and I think it was clever of Robinson to put this hole on perhaps the most memorable patch of dirt on the property. Into the wind, you'll have to consider if you can carry the RHS fairway traps, but otherwise this is your chance to create a story to tell your mates after the round.
Pria d'el Rey has some flaws, for sure, but I defy any golfer to walk away without having thoroughly enjoyed the four hours. It's well worth the trip, and with advance bookings with green fee websites getting you a start in summer for 65-70 euros (rack rate is about 120 in summer), the value is unusually good for European resort golf, especially resort golf worth playing.
On top of that, nearby Obidos and Sintra are two of the most enjoyable places I have visited in the world, and Lisbon is a fun city worthy of two or three days of your time as well.
Oitavos Dunes (which I was prevented from playing by a hurricane that arrived from Madeira!), Troia, Penha Longa and Golden Eagle are the other top established courses in the region and Bom Sucesso, which has recently opened, and Royal Obidos next door to it (under construction) will add even more to the region's credentials as a destination where golf, culture and weather unite - and at a lower price than other Euro destinations.
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