Open Championship links unite to offer new ‘Hagen 54’ experience
Three of England’s great Open Championship links have joined forces to offer golfers from across the world a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Prince’s Golf Club, Royal St. George’s and Royal Cinque Ports – near neighbours along England’s beautiful Kent coast – have created the Hagen 54, a three-day golf trip like few others. The name of the event – Hagen 54 – takes its inspiration from Walter Hagen’s now-famous 1920 Open Championship practice round, which saw him play parts of each course, hopping fences as he went. Members of the clubs may recognise parallels with The Hagen Hoof, a member’s competition which…
Apes Hill a truly elevated experience in beautiful Barbados
Apes Hill Club, Barbados offers an experience that goes beyond the ordinary – there is nothing down to earth about it. Why? Well, for a start, Apes Hill Golf Club sits some 1,000ft above sea level, by a distance the most elevated golf course on Barbados. It’s not hyperbole to say it’s one of the most incredible high points in the Caribbean. Set in 475 acres of natural wonder, Apes Hill is in the Scotland District of the island, the only place in the region where an underwater mountain range lies above the water. Mount Hillaby in the parish of…
Bethpage Black: one of the world’s hardest golf courses
From the moment you step onto the 1st tee of the Bethpage Black Course, you’re left in no doubt as to what awaits. The sign behind the tee has become the stuff of golf folklore, synonymous with what is one of the hardest golf courses in the world. It simply reads, “WARNING – The Black Course Is An Extremely Difficult Course Which We Recommend Only For Highly Skilled Golfers”. It isn’t there for show, or to spook you, it’s there because Bethpage Black Course is, quite frankly, a brutal test of golf. With fairways which average just 26 yards in…
Aroeira combines alluring golf with the magic of Lisbon’s city lights
Plans: everyone I speak to at Aroeira Golf has a plan. Plans to tinker with the two tree-lined 18 hole courses; plans to tinker with the attached hotel; plans to attract more women golfers and plans to take advantage of being just 30 minutes from the centre of Lisbon. Those final three plans are inextricably linked in the eyes of Margarida Vasconcelos, general manager of the Aroeira Lisbon Hotel – my base for the night on a fleeting visit to the Setubal Peninsula, just south of the Portuguese capital. “I want more groups of women to come here,” she tells…