The recently announced Top 100 European Courses from Golf World saw four European Golf Design courses featured, with two making the Top 10.
A new entry to the list, at No 96, is Linna Golf, Finland. The course opened in October 2005 and held a Challenge Tour Event in August of this year. The 15th hole was designed by the winner of a Design a Hole Competition held by Golf World, Dave Sampson, who has since joined European Golf Design as a Designer.
The PGA Sultan Course at Antalya Golf Club in Turkey, another new entry, features at No 60. Opened in 2002, The Sultan is the second of three European Golf Design courses in the Belek region of Turkey, the other two being the Sultan’s sister course at Antalya Golf Club, The Pasha Course, and the recently opened Montgomerie Course at Papillon Golf Club.
The first of the two courses in the Top 10 is The Faldo Course at Sporting Club Berlin was designed in association with Sir Nick Faldo which is at No 10. Opened in 1996, the course hosted the German Open in 1998 and 1999. Golf World named it Best New Course in Continental Europe in November 1997.
The highest placed European Golf Design course comes in at No 7, PGA Golf de Catalunya. Designed in association with Angel Gallardo and Neil Coles the course was voted Best New Course in Continental Europe in 1999 and has hosted the Sarazen World Open in 1999 and the Spanish Open in 2000 & 2009.
Managing Director, Jeremy Slessor, commented: “It’s reassuring to know that such a widely respected panel of experts should hold so many of our courses in such high esteem. With some of the projects we’re working on at the moment, we’re really looking forward to making an even bigger impact on the Top 100 list when it next comes out in two years time.”
European Golf Design is the joint venture design company of the European Tour and IMG. Formed in 1992 European Golf Design has designed courses within Europe, the Caribbean, the Middle East and Africa. As well as the four Top 100 courses listed above, the company is responsible for The Twenty Ten Course at Celtic Manor, the host course for next year’s Ryder Cup, as well as projects currently under design and construction in Croatia, Denmark, Greece, Holland, Portugal, and South Africa.
European Golf Design www.egd.com