Located in an exceptional setting in Almería province, the sunniest part of Europe (with 3,000 hours of sun a year and average temperatures that never fall below 20 degrees), Almerimar is one of Andalucía’s premier tourist resorts. A true oasis, close to El Ejido, it includes a 27-hole golf course, a four-star hotel near the sea (AR Almerimar), another five-star establishment adjacent to the golf course (AR Golf Almerimar) and one of the Mediterranean area’s most important marinas.

The Almerimar urbanisation was developed in the late 1960s with the idea of creating a major tourist focal point in this coastal area that could compete against Puerto Banús, Sotogrande and other similar high-end resorts. One key advantage for achieving this objective was that the land earmarked for the future urbanisation was owned by the same proprietor, Agustín González Mozo, which facilitated the development of a uniform project with a single and pre-planned objective.

To that end, they commissioned a renowned architect, Julián Laguna, to oversee the resort’s development. Laguna was responsible for the original design of the complex, which has essentially remained the same since then.

“Within the complex,” says golf club manager Juan Francisco Escobosa Medina, “in order to position it at least at the same level as similar resorts in Spain and other Mediterranean areas, a marina with 1,100 berths was developed, the highest number in Europe for many years, as well as an 18-hole golf course.

“The resort was initially called Marismas del Sur and the golf course El Oasis, and everything was located on Almería’s Costa del Sol. I would, in fact, reclaim that name because this is where it actually originated, even if fortunes were made on the back of it elsewhere.

“The small hotel built at the time only had 38 rooms and 17 apartments. That establishment and the three famous unfinished towers that were demolished later were basically Almerimar.”

- In what year was the course built?

- The project dates to 1973 but it was inaugurated in 1976. It was designed by two legendary figures in the world of golf: Ron Kirby and Gary Player.

“Like nearly all golf courses that are slightly on the margins of the main golfing centres in Spain, we had limited accommodation, which prevented us from maintaining high occupation levels… until 1989 and 1990, when the hotel was renovated and we then had 148 rooms. From that moment, and especially from 1995, we started to take off at an unstoppable pace.

“Since then the course has become well established, not relying on any real estate development. At the same time, the resort has continued to grow: with the opening of the beach hotel and the development of the urbanisation.

“In 2003, it was decided to expand the golf course by nine holes, to the current total of 27, and two years later, in 2005, a complete renovation of the first 18 holes was undertaken. This was the same year we closed the hotel to carry out a major revamp. It reopened in 2012 as a five-star hotel with 114 rooms.

- How would you describe the course?

- I would say that it is essentially a flat course, with wide fairways, no blind shots and generously sized greens. In short, a relatively gentle course with a certain degree of difficulty and a spectacular design by two renowned global golfing figures.

Water enters into play on seven of the holes, which provides an additional challenge. The 8th and the 12th are possibly the most distinctive holes on the course, with their island greens. The nine holes that were built more recently are slightly easier, due to the size and shape of the plot. Having said that, however, the aim was to follow the same criteria as for the initial design to ensure the fairways weren’t too narrow, etc. The main difference with the first 18 holes is the vegetation, because one is 30 years old and the other 10.

- So you would consider it one of Andalucía’s top-level courses?

- As I noted before, the design is excellent. There is no other one like this in Almería province. And that’s not just a personal opinion: it’s a general view shared by all the players who visit us. It’s not a boring course – that is, heading out and back, with 10 holes there and eight holes here, almost identical. It’s not like that. It’s enjoyable and challenging.

“One aspect that makes us especially proud,” adds Juan Francisco Escobosa, “is our golf academy and practice area. They are particularly well equipped and designed so that dozens of players can practise different shots without disturbing each other. We have a great putting green, an approach area and more than 30 driving tees.

- Your latest remodelling project, at least for the time being, involved transforming the club’s shop into a much more spacious and attractive area…

- Yes, we’ve changed it radically as part of an agreement with Holiday Golf, who made it all possible. They’ve helped us in all aspects, from the enlargement to the décor, product display and sales techniques. 

Previously, the whole surface area of the shop was 70 to 80 square metres, and now it’s over 120. We’ve added new brands and considerably improved our results.