Murcia offers sunshine, warmth and genuinely excellent golf courses – each with its own character and charm. For many of our guests, it's their first time here, and the question often comes up: Which course is best? The answer, of course, depends on who you ask – and perhaps on the day's form. We who write this, Susanne and Kenny, are your golf hosts on the ground. We have played all the courses many times and share here our completely personal impressions and little tips.
Murcia offers sunshine, warmth and genuinely excellent golf courses – each with its own character and charm. For many of our guests, it's their first time here, and the question often comes up: Which course is best? The answer, of course, depends on who you ask – and perhaps on the day's form. We who write this, Susanne and Kenny, are your golf hosts on the ground. We have played all the courses many times and share here our completely personal impressions and little tips. This is no official ranking, just our own experiences – rather like debating whether red wine is nicer than white. So, here comes our guide to Murcia's courses – straight from us to you!
Mar Menor – the home course for many of our guests
A pleasant course in excellent condition. The front nine is somewhat tougher and longer, but then it changes character with a few shorter par 4s before you reach the course's highlight: holes 13–15, which wind around a large lake. If you get through these holes without dropping a shot, you should be pleased with yourself. The course is completely flat and easy to walk. A lovely, well-maintained course that most people enjoy – and the course we ourselves play most frequently during the season. Afterwards, you might fancy something nice to drink at the golf restaurant before strolling home to your apartment, if you're among the fortunate ones staying on the resort. After perhaps an hour by one of the resort's 13 pools, you can take a 10–15 minute walk to the restaurant quarter with its impressive 15 different restaurants. If you fancy a wider choice, it's a 10-minute drive to Los Alcázares, which also boasts a 7 km sandy beach. You can surely see why we're happy to return to Mar Menor.
La Torre – the course with six par 3s
You might think that makes it easy, but don't be fooled – the course is a challenge for most players. There's quite a bit of water, but also broad fairways, so if you have reasonable control over your shots, you should be able to get round without dropping a stroke. La Torre has a charming "village square" with 7–8 restaurants. Our favourite is the Italian one, Acacia. We've enjoyed many fine pasta dishes here when we've arranged a slightly later tee time – perfect for finishing the 18th as the sun sets around half past six, then enjoying good food and a glass of fine Italian wine. It works perfectly well to eat in golf clothes, even though many dress a bit more smartly.
El Valle – our most beautiful course, surrounded by fine mountains
This is the time to get the camera out and show off a bit on Instagram with some lovely pictures. The course has hosted qualifying tournaments for the European Tour, so the quality of the holes is high, but if you simply choose the right tee (there are four to choose from), it's enjoyable for all standards of player. Elevated greens mean that sometimes it's better to putt than to chip when you're near the green. El Valle has "only" the golf restaurant to choose from after your round, but it has a large terrace overlooking the final holes – and really, there's nothing quite like sitting with a cold beer watching players hit their approach shots short and end up in the deep bunker just before the green.
Hacienda del Riquelme – a course in truly excellent condition
It's somewhat undulating and many of the greens are contoured, which means three-putts are not uncommon. What most people remember after their round, however, are the many challenging bunkers. After a couple of rounds here, your bunker technique will be considerably improved – and you'll be able to impress your friends on your home course. After your round, we often visit the restaurant El Cason, which sits between the 18th hole and the golf shop. It's housed in an old colonial-style hacienda from the late 19th century, and here the food and drink taste all the better for it.
Saurines – a spectacular desert-style course
You could almost believe you're in Arizona. On many of our other courses you battle bunkers, but here they almost seem not to exist. Fairways are broad and level – it feels like walking on really dense fitted carpet. Alongside the fairways are large waste areas, which means you always find your ball and are often surprised at how well you can strike from this surface. Saurines has by far the best selection of clothing in its golf shop – you'll always find something new.
La Serena – flatter than a pancake
La Serena sits between Mar Menor and Los Alcázares and is known for having water hazards on 16 of the holes. But don't be fooled – it's usually the bunkers that spoil a good score. The course is flatter than a pancake and very easy to walk. There's also a good range and practice areas here, so you can come on days when you don't have a tee time but still fancy holding a golf club.
We look forward to meeting you – and hopefully playing a few rounds of golf on our fine courses.
Susanne & Kenny
Originally published by PT Golf Sweden.