European legend Sergio García has revealed that he “can’t wait” to take on the challenge of playing The Torre Course for himself after his first major golf course design project…
European legend Sergio García has revealed that he “can’t wait” to take on the challenge of playing The Torre Course for himself after his first major golf course design project was officially inaugurated to widespread acclaim at Terras da Comporta at the start of this month.
Portuguese Golf Federation president Pedro Nunes Pedro joined a group of 88 VIPs, players and media for the opportunity to play the much-anticipated layout, the second 18-hole championship course to open at Terras da Comporta following the launch of The Dunas Course two years ago.
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García was unable to attend the event in person but spoke to guests by video link after golf and was thrilled at the feedback he and Vanguard Properties, the owners of Terras da Comporta, received from players immediately after playing the course.
“The quality of land made it so much fun for us to be able to make our mark there,” said the Ryder Cup legend and 2017 Masters champion. “I can’t wait to come back now it’s in play to put my hands on it, to feel it, and to see how it plays.”
Created over an area of natural sandy terrain one hour south of Lisbon, the par-72 layout is Garcia’s first golf-course design project where he has been given overall responsibility.
Measuring, 6,575 metres from the back tees, The Torre Course – the first course that the Spaniard has worked on in Portugal – features a combination of risk-and-reward holes, tight fairways and small greens, with Garcia taking inspiration from his favourite course in the world, Valderrama.
García said: “I want to have my own personality when it comes to designing a golf course and impose my own print on the land.
The details
“I have ideas what I want to put into play, and you can see a lot of them here at Torre. Small greens, a short par-three which adds so much personality to a course and little dogleg par fours.
“It’s very much a target golf course. We tried to make it challenging yet, at the same time, somewhere that pulls you back and want to play it more and see if you can play it differently.
“You don’t want it to be so difficult that you say ‘Yes, it was a good challenge, but I don’t really want to play it again’. It needs to be enjoyable as well and sometimes it’s hard to get that balance. I think we have achieved that here.
“Every hole has its beauty; from the views from the ninth tee downhill to the lone tree in the centre and the sweeping bunkering, to 12 and 13 which are a great-looking holes with expansive views.”
Alexandre Berda, chairman of Vanguard Properties, said “The official opening of the Torre Golf Course marks a historic milestone for Terras da Comporta. This opening is not just the celebration of a golf course, but the embodiment of a vision: to create projects that endure and that place Portugal and Comporta as a world-class destination… in golf and beyond, and I would like to extend my sincere thanks to everyone who made this possible.”
The official inauguration of The Torre Course formed the first half of a memorable weekend at Terras da Comporta which concluded with a glittering golf event to mark the second anniversary of The Dunas Course.