Vacations travel

Before telling you about my particular day out at Teguise Golf
the more avid golfers amongst you will probably want to know what views they can expect to see and the technical stuff that goes with playing golf. For me it was simply a great opportunity to spend a morning with a former work colleague (Colin) and his son (David) as they were staying in a neighbouring villa on La Goleta
part of the wider Faro Park Development.

The course runs along the side of an old volcano (no surprise there given Lanzarote’s landscape) and has inspirational views of volcanic lava
cacti and over includes over 3
0
palm trees and has superb views of the Atlantic Ocean throughout. A Golf course such as this one
is quite simply
in my opinion
nature at its best. C้sar Manrique
the man who taught the people of Lanzarote to care for their natural habitat has clearly left his influence everywhere. If you are a Golf ‘anorak’
you might also want to read the next paragraph of technical data ? If you’re not
simply skip over it.

The course measures 6041m (White) ; 5582m (Yellow) ; 5289m (Blue) ; and 4938m (Red). Generally
visitors play off the blue tees. The Slope Rating of the course is 127 (White) ; 127 (Yellow) ; 130 (Blue) ; and 124 (Red)
We played off Blue Tees. The course measures 5289 Metres (5791 Yards for the non converts) and is a Par 72 course.

I’ve since found out that the course was designed by British landscape architect John Harris and built in 1978. It is a truly a fantastic course
not only because of its design but also thanks to the excellent condition in which it is kept all year round and at Easter (April 2006)
it was in superb condition. Given its location
it benefits from a warm and pleasant climate all year round
tempered only by sea breezes from the island’s almost constant trade winds. The course is designed to be smooth yet varied. It has more than your average number of doglegs
designed to test your ability (or lack of it) and allows you to bring all your clubs into play. It will test everyone from scratch players to those of us with more modest ability.

Address : Avenida del Golf
s/n. 35509 Costa Teguise (Lanzarote).
Telephone : (00 34) 928 59 05 12
Fax : (00 34) 928 59 23 37
Email info@lanzarote-golf.com
Webiste :www.lanzarote-golf.com

The Following services can be found at the Club - Club hire
trolleys
buggies
driving range
pro-shop and club storage. There are separate male and female changing rooms and you can hire lockers. There is a Bar and Restaurant. The restaurant offers a varied menu
based on Mediterranean cuisine.

The prices vary according to season. In the “Summer” months (1st June to 30th September) it costs 53 Euros (for 18 Holes) and 36 Euros (for 9 Holes after 4pm). In the “Winter” (we played in Winter and it was scorching !)
it costs 65 Euros (18 Holes) and 52 Euros (9 Holes after 3pm). The Course has discount agreements with most of the hotels on the island
so check at your hotel
or check out a nearby hotel if you’re in private accommodation as you can often get a better deal than this by doing so.

And so
to our day out. We planned to set off at 7am from our ‘home’ in Playa Blanca (the idea being not to spoil the day for others and ‘Brownie Points’ for everyone !.

There was to be four of playing
but that quickly became three when Gary (“The Rainman”) decided he was on holiday and was not coming to Golf at 7am (given that he left the British Open on Faro Park at midnight the night before (to prepare for golf)
I was very surprised to get the “Dear John “ text first thing in the morning. Gary’s nickname is a long story
but basically when its cold he wants it hot and when it’s hot he prays for rain (and usually gets it
so I’m not that keen on going on holiday with him !)

The three of us (Colin
a work colleague
his son David and yours truly) set off around 7:30am and we drove along the LZ-2 and then headed towards San Bartholme and then into Costa Teguise (avoiding Arrecife !)
When we arrived we were told it was members day (Saturday !) and that they had no tee times for 3 hours. A quick bit of lateral thinking later
we asked if we could play 10-18 and then get a Tee time for 1-9 which they agreed to (something you’d almost expect them to suggest in the UK
so ask if you need to)

We decided we’d have a ‘friendly’ game of singles (if there is such a thing) - Loser buys the beers at the 19th hole.

We played stableford
off full handicaps (you’ll need them). To cut along story short (ish)
Colin was ‘flying’
I was struggling to even stay in touch and David
well David was having a bad day (it’s just as well he hired his clubs !). Colin was five points in front with five to play before he decided to show us his impression of “Devon Loch” (he’s the horse that collapsed of exhaustion 50 yards from the finishing line in the 1956 Grand National when leading by 20 lengths !)

Going up the 18th Colin was one behind (but I did not rub it in
honest) !

Colin tells me his wife Jackie really enjoyed her first trip to the island and that they may return. I’m sure if we ever go ‘into combat’ again
David will have been the range beforehand to shake off the cobwebs and Colin will make sure that he does not sprint when it’s a marathon.

Me
well I had my day !