Quintessential Quinta
Already one of the Algarve’s most stunning venues, Roderick Easdale plays Quinta do Lago’s majestic South course after a recent upgrade to sample the changes at one of Europe’s most revered layouts
he South course at Quinta do Lago has reopened following a £7million renovation. This upgrade was only possible because golf was suspended during the pandemic. This is the most popular of Quinta do Lago’s three courses, which hosted the Portugal Masters eight times between 1976 and 2001. The first of Colin Montgomerie’s 31 European Tour wins came here, in 1989, by 11 strokes.
One of the major changes has been to soften the dogleg on the much-criticised par-4 8th. But the
most striking change is around the 16th green, which has been extended back left with the undergrowth to its rear cleared to present a dramatic view of the lake when you crest the hill on the fairway of this par 4.
The par-3 15th is played over another part of this lake. The green has also had undergrowth cleared behind it, so now a safety-first tactic is offered: if you are in doubt, it is best to ‘over club’.
Much of the work on the South was to increase its sustainability – water usage has been reduced by 10-15 per cent as a result of the changes and investment, according to the course superintendent.
The adjoining North course has some interesting green complexes set in undulating landscape. Here, the holes seem less encroached upon by housing than on the South. While you can walk the South, the North is designed for buggies as it has some long treks between holes and you also criss-cross the roads of the resort several times.
The resort’s third course, Laranjal, is on a separate site a short drive east. After a pretty opener, you come to the 2nd hole with its water – which is not really in play – and lots of bunkering. Both of these are to be recurring features of the round.
The two nines on Laranjal have been reversed from when the course first opened for play in 2009. This means the most distinctive hole is now the 18th – an ‘S-shaped’ par 5 with water in both crooks of the ‘S’.
There is a lot of water on the site, but rarely should it impinge on your strategy for playing the hole. An exception, other than 18, is the stroke-index-one 7th, where a lake flanks the right of the drive and then has to be crossed en route to the green. A frogman was going in to retrieve balls as we played.
There is another golf layout at Quinta do Lago, and it is fabulous. It is a mini golf course with nine holes imaginatively modelled on some of the game’s most famous holes.
You start with Quinta’s take on the famous drivable par-4 10th at the Belfry, with the ‘water’ a blue-painted ditch. Augusta’s par-3 12th and par-5 13th feature later on, as does the short par-3 7th at Pebble Beach. The final hole is based on TPC Sawgrass’ 17th with its island green.
The whole design is beautifully landscaped, with the idea to make it something that would appeal to more than just children.
Other sporting facilities at the resort include the Campus, a sports centre offering health, fitness and wellness activities as well as tennis and padel courts. The resort also hosts the Paul Mcginley Academy, which includes a Taylormade custom-fitting centre for those looking to invest in some new kit.
Quinta do Lago has a baker’s dozen of restaurants. We ate at the muchlauded Umami, an Asian restaurant which opened last May, and at the equally good Bovino Steakhouse. However, the resort had lacked any hotels of its own (although there are many private hotels dotted about). So they have bought one of these, the four-star Magnolia Hotel. As this is modelled on an American motel, it has a different ambience to the rest of the resort. The hotel offers a range of stay-and-play packages.