We left the chaos in the United States for the calm and peaceful shores of Portugal and the first course we played was Dunas Golf Course near Lisbon.  Relief from US chaos was short-lived as the Lisbon airport is the worst airport I have ever flown into.  It took over 2 hours from disembarking the plane to get through Passport Control and baggage claim covering a distance of at least three miles.  Lisbon Airport is horribly mismanaged as they have unleashed a new entry system that was not ready for prime time.

The first venue is Dunas Golf Course, a relatively new course located in a estuary nature reserve near the Atlantic coastline. The terrain and the area present the feeling of the Jersey shore and whiffs of Pine Valley.  Comparisons to Pine Valley are not appropriate but the thought jumped in my mind that this course could be the “easy” Pine Valley.  Since Pine Valley might be the most difficult course on the planet, Dunas is no pushover.  The course is an excellent design of accommodating the terrain with myriads of bunkers some of which stretch the length of the fairways mostly as waste bunkers.  Designer David McKay has created a painting of brown and green throughout making the course a scenic but challenging delight.  The course sports six sets of tee boxes, enabling the most challenge for the good player while the course offers the high handicapper the chance to enjoy the venue through the generous fairways.  While the fairways are generous, each hole is well guarded by fairway bunkers well placed and the edges of the fairways are often marked by waste bunkers or the sand and fescue of the coastal terrain replete with pine trees.  The other major factors are the omnipresent winds that effect club selection and virtually every green is elevated.  Some holes on the inward nine sported a two club wind to deal with.  The player has to hit the ball high to carry the greenside bunkers that guard virtually every green complex.  The greens reminded me a bit of Bandon Dunes and Old McDonald for their size and undulation.

Swale on No. 11

Personally, I like to play a course for the first time conservatively and stay away from all the trouble.  From the tee boxes, I selected–5746 yards, the course was all you could eat given that many of the holes simply move up hill.  I’ll admit to moving up to a closer set of tee boxes for a few holes on the back nine as the line of sight for the driver was pretty narrow to my eye and I was not interested in encountering a sea of fescue and big numbers.  I also spent the entire day playing away from the greenside bunkers, which definitely had the look and feel of some of the caverns at Pine Valley.

17th hole

The par 3, 17th hole of 155 yards was a great example.  The hole is shaped by a gigantic bunker that looks like a foxhole in World War II or more closer in golf parlance to the “devil’s asshole” at Pine Valley’s 10th hole. I wanted zero probability of landing in that bunker with a 6 iron so I deliberately placed the ball on the left side of the green-and two putted from 60 feet.  The good player with great ball flight and spin could attack this pin and execute successfully, but I was having a good time and wanted no opportunity to spoil my round.

I’m not sure this would make a good professional venue, as those guys have the skill to negotiate the terrain, the wind and the bunkers to go very low.  Length is no issue for the professionals so this venue would be an easy track for them without much rough to deal with.  Sand is not going to punish the professional generally.  All of that said, it is not an easy course and a great test for the low handicapper and it is very playable for players of all skill levels  due to the number of tee boxes.  It’s a course that you would never tire of and the scenery and playability are a testamonial to McKay’s excellent design.