Golf

Faldo Course

The best British player of the modern era has a distinct design philosophy, as he seeks to present a challenge to every player; however, he achieves this not simply through extreme length, but by demanding that the golfer exercises some strategy and thought.

The Faldo Course at the Amendoeria Resort is a pristine championship layout that deservedly won the “Best Course in Portugal” award. This is an incredible accolade considering how many top courses there are nearby.

Waste bunkers, large fairway/greenside bunkers, and water hazards all play a role in protecting this course. You will find some soft terrain changes and luscious vegetation adding interesting visual aspects to the course too. The Faldo is as much fun to behold as it is to play, it is a very visually pleasing golf course.

The 12th hole is one of the most enjoyable holes on the course. It starts strong with a raised tee-shot down over woodland toward exposed boulders in the terraced land. The short par-4 then requires a tee-shot to a raised green perched on the horizon inviting approach shots. The hole is decorated with white sand bunkers and the green is protected by a beautiful cork oak tree.

O'Connor

The undisputed highlight of the O’Connor Course is the designer’s take on Augusta National’s ‘Amen Corner’ – holes 7, 8 and 9 are skirted at various points by a great lake that snakes its way dangerously through three splendid holes.

The O'Connor course is the perfect companion to the Faldo course and sits in a wonderful fertile valley. This course is the same length as The Faldo and provides a slightly different golfing experience. The main features of the course are the various water hazards and the mature palm trees dotted around. You will have to contend with both rivers and large ponds so accuracy is key.

One of the highlights of the course are the large contoured greens, these will test you. The course starts with a nice-length par-5, always a good chance to get your round off to a good start and there is plenty of room from the tee to let you settle into your round.

The final hole on the front-9 is a cracker. A right to left dogleg awaits with water on the left giving you something to avoid from the tee. If this scares you and you bail-out to the right then three small fairway bunkers may gather up your ball and give you trouble for your second. This is a fairly long par-4 which requires solid golf from start to finish. The water hazard on the left extends the length of the hole and another one awaits approach shots that are over-hit. A testing hole where par is a good score.