Course

Tonys Comment

Score Card

Gallery

Directions

Founded 1966 Architect Sir Henry Cotton Holes 18 Length White 6273 Yrds Length Yellow 5827 Yrds Length Red 5411 Yrds Par 73 Golf Director Leonel Rio Greenkeeper Luís Domingos Golf Pro Robin Liddle José Lourenço José Marcelino Address Apartado 146 Penina 8500 Portimão Telephone 282 420 200 Fax 282 420 300

Course Description
The Championship course is the late Sir Henry Cottons masterpiece and the course by which he wished to be remembered. He was the first to foresee the high potential for golf in the Algarve. Penina was the first course to be built in the Algarve and it was inaugurated by the President of the Republic in 1966.

The opening of Penina triggered the regions golf boom. Sir Henry, who passed away in 1987 at the age of 80, was buried at his request at the nearby village of Mexilhoeira Grande.

There are many interesting stories about the years he spent in residence at Penina. Perhaps the best known concerns the donkey called 'Pacifico' which he trained as a caddie to carry two golf bags around the course. Unlike the vast majority of Algarve courses, Penina is a flat, parkland type course, having been built on former rice paddies and scrubland. Most of the drainage ditches in the paddies were retained and partially modified into tricky water hazards, but the dramatic change of terrain was helped by the planting of 250,000 trees which now line most of the fairways.

A few refinements have been made to Cottons original championship layout and the course has benefited considerably from the improved drainage installed. Subtle landscaping features have also been introduced to enhance the visual aspect of the course, and some of the water hazards have been extended.

In front of the hotel, a new nine hole course called Resort course (ex - Monchique) was created later on, to satisfy the needs of more and more clients and to allow for maintenance on the main course. A small layout with very short holes for beginners, the Academia course (ex - Quinta), was also built, among the fairways of the Championship course. The extensive driving-range is very well managed and there is also a huge putting-green with an area of about 1000 square metres, making Penina a superior quality practice centre.

The par of the Penina course is 73 (35+38) with the second nine both beginning and finishing with two consecutive par 5's, which is not usual. The first hole, a 41 l -metre par 4, almost long enough to be a conventional 5, is rather difficult and has a green which is more than 35 metres long, requiring careful choice of the approach iron to be played. To close the first nine there is another hole over 400 metres long with a dogleg to the left and also a long double tiered green, well defended by three bunkers. The l3th hole, a 208-metre par 3 lies alongside a lake, with a bunker defending the right of the green, and is one of Penina's challenging holes.
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Tony's Comment
Henry Cotton’s favourite course – this says it all. If you’ve never played it try to make the effort or you will regret it. It was after all the pioneer course of the flourishing golf industry in the Algarve.
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Gallery

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Directions
Follow EN 125 to Sagres, 5 Km west of Portimão on the EN.125 road. The Course is 4 Km after the turn to Portimão and less than 1 Km after the turn-off to Alvor.
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