What country has more days of sunshine than Spain, but fewer golf courses than your average-sized modern American city?
If you answered "Greece", you're well on your way to understanding why the land that hosted the 2004 Summer Olympic Games is looking forward to hosting tens of thousands of golf tourists in coming years.
But first, there's the little matter of the courses.
At present, Greece has a handful of courses with plans for another dozen underway. With only about 2,000 Greeks regularly playing golf and PGA members numbering less than two dozen, these courses are designed to cater to the foreign golf travelers, estimated at about 20,000 a year with hopes of quickly doubling that number. And as a member of the European Union, Greece is expecting an influx of retirees relocating from colder northern countries to sunny Greece – and bringing their golf clubs with them. One course that is a sign of things to come opened in 2003 on Crete, Greece’s largest island. Located just outside the island’s capital of Heraklion at Chersonissos on the northern coast, the Crete Golf Club is Crete's first 18-hole golf course. It offers a "desert" style course, somewhat ironic on an island that enjoys one of the best water supplies in the Aegean. The design takes full advantage of the naturally rough Cretan landscape. “It is a challenging golf course,†course operator Harry Zervos advises. “The golfer has to think rather than just hit the ball.†Across the island, the Crete Golf Club may soon have some welcome competition. A development at Cavo Sidero hopes to produce two 18-hole golf courses in the next few years. Harry Zervos, owner of the Crete Golf Club, is pleased. “Crete needs at least three golf courses to be established as a major golfing destination,†he notes. The courses, under development by UK-based Loyalwood near the ancient town of Palaiokastro, are being developed along environmentally-sensitive lines. They’ve already planted 100,000 trees, a good step in restoring the long-lost forests that once covered Crete.
At Porto Elounda there is a 9-hole course surrounded by resort buildings. For many years it was the only golf course on Crete, and it now has a reciprocal agreement with the Crete Golf Club allowing hotel guests to play at either course.
Want to rub shoulders with the locals? The typical Greek golfer is most likely to be found at Glyfada, where what for many years was Greece's only golf course has gathered a sprinkling of PGA players who make their headquarters at the course.
Located adjacent to Athens in a well-to-do suburb near the coast, the Glyfada Golf Club hosts several international events each year, including the annual International Amateur Golf Tournament. It’s also home to the Hellenic Golfing Federation, an active group promoting golfing in Greece.
For golfers going farther afield in Greece, the Ionian island of Corfu offers a well-maintained course located on the west coast of the island. Prior to the opening of the Crete Golf Club, the Corfu course was the undisputed hero of Greek golfing, offering a solid park-like atmosphere for the British golfers who descend on the island each summer. Which course is now on top is a matter for lively debate.
In the far north near Greece’s “second capital†of Thessaloniki, the Porto Carras Golf Course has recently reopened after extensive renovations including reseeding and the installation of a new irrigation system. Located in the Porto Carras resort, it offers year-round golfing due to a benevolent microclimate that keeps winter temperatures warm.
On another sunny Greek island, Rhodes, once sacred to the sun god Helios, the Afandou Golf Club course has been serving golfers since 1974. Well-supported with hotels and other tourist amenities, this is one of the most played courses in Greece though a tricky water supply has sometimes left the greens less than perfect.
