Alferini Golf Course

Although only 300-metres long the opening hole provides an immediate picture of the dangers in store; an ever-present ravine, fairway bunkers and narrow landing areas; accuracy is the only key and will remain so for the entire round. The fourth is a par-5 where the drive is required to carry a wide chasm before it reaches the safety of a fairway. It then swings around to the right and travels upwards to an elevated green which has a bunker built into its face. The final hole on the outward journey is a par-4 and what a panorama unfolds as the gaze centres on a mountain towering overhead. with a single white house standing forlornly in its midst. The fairway is bordered on one side by sand, and the other with palms, and as it approaches the green a lake on the right narrows the landing area considerably.

The par-5 16th is a real frightener and one which will leave many players standing with mouths agape at its severity. From the yellow tees, the carry across a ravine must be fully 200-metres and will surely be beyond the capabilities of many. As the eye takes in the golfing horrors which lie in wait, the strip of landing area appears to grow smaller. The ravine, which yawns out in front, then continues up the left-hand side, making it a totally no-go area, while the opposite side is no great bargain either. Standing on the tee of the par-3 16th the only thing to focus on is the green which lies 175-metres in the distance. The solitary part of the target not surrounded by the ravine is the right - and that is sheer rock-face. The course comes to a conclusion with yet another stunner where, from the tee, the views out over Gibraltar are quite dramatic while four paces in front of the tee marker there is a drop down into a rocky canyon. This time the carry is a mere 140-metres! The landing area is flat and, at the half-way mark, it starts a downwards journey in a series of humps and hollows before dropping sharply down into a hollow before a green adorned with a necklace of bunkers.

The Alferinin Golf Course can be added when staying at the below selection of hotels.