Located in Estepona, in the heart of the Costa del Sol, also known as Costa del Golf, the Valle Romano Golf layout is evidence of the talent and wisdom of one of the world’s great golf course designers, Cabell B. Robinson.
This great American golf architect was for many years the right-hand man of the legendary Robert Trent Jones senior and counts among his projects numerous prestigious courses in Spain, France, Morocco, Switzerland, Portugal, Cyprus and Italy. Opened in 2010, the splendid 18-hole Valle Romano course was built following the highest quality standards of the United States Golf Association of America, with Tifsport grass, certified by the University of Georgia, and with a very sophisticated irrigation system, with the latest technology.
Valle Romano has a proven quality that has been attested by the great professionals who have competed on its greens, for example during the second qualifying round of the European Tour in 2013 and so it will be again for those who very soon, from 17 to 20 May, will compete in the Andalucía Costa del Sol Match Play 9, a tournament of the European Challenge Tour. This is a competition with a new format where players will compete during two rounds in Stroke Play. After these first rounds, the best 64 will go on to a 9-hole Match Play elimination phase. It will be the only tournament of the year in the Challenge Tour calendar that will be played with a match-play format and the second of the events of this circuit to be played in Spain, since two weeks before the Challenge of Spain will take place.
One of the objectives of this course, a par 71 of 6,378 meters, is, of course, that all types of amateur players can enjoy it, from the lowest to the highest handicaps. To this end, it has an average of five tee platforms per hole and large greens with an average of 500 square meters, although they can even reach 1,000 square meters. The greens, with soft but very long drops and with a large number of flag positions, make each hole of the course easy or extremely difficult.
The fact that it is a course for all types of players, together with an excellent level of maintenance, good facilities, a privileged geographical location (from all the holes you can see the sea) and a high degree of commitment from all the staff involved in the project means that this course meets all the requirements for organizing any type of competition.
But Valle Romano Golf & Resort is much more than a great 18-hole course: it is a high quality residential complex to live or spend long or short seasons and enjoy around a first class golf course 365 days a year.
A distinctive feature of Valle Romano is that it takes care of every detail and pampers the golfer to the maximum. The player receives a warm welcome upon arrival, and at the end of the game the marshall team offers to clean the clubs and shoes as a courtesy of the house.
The resort, whose general manager is Ildefonso Esquivel, also has an impressive clubhouse, pro store, restaurant-cafeteria and a prestigious golf academy with bilingual teachers.
The academy offers a wide variety of programs that adapt to the needs of both amateurs and beginners by applying the best programs and teaching techniques in the world of golf.
The varied offer includes intensive one-week courses, specific putting and short game courses, VIP courses, clinics or private lessons, among others. Special attention is paid to juniors with monthly courses on Saturday mornings or intensive summer courses.
The entire practice area is illuminated, with indoor and grass stalls.
THIS IS THE ROUTE
Valle Romano is a course pampered in its design and endowed with its own personality and at the same time simple. A good example of this personality is that the 18 holes are a tribute to men and women champions who with their triumphs have written many chapters in the history of Spanish golf.
1. Hoyo Marcelino Morcillo: We start with a dog-leg left hole. The fairway drops to the left and is protected by bunkers. One stroke over the bunkers is recommended. The hole ends in a smooth fairway and a wide green to facilitate the third shot.
2. José Mari Olazábal Hole: Visually easy. It is essential not to miss on the left. Green defended by two bunkers and a slight piano.
3. Ramón Sota Hole: Demanding par 4 where the is essential. The second shot must be very accurate to facilitate the shot to the green. The green provides amplitude and without outstanding difficulty.
4. Hoyo Angel de Miguel: A recovery hole where the second shot must be precise, given that the green is almost 1,000 m². It will be a pleasure to kick with the feeling of being at sea.
5. Hole Miguel Angel Jimenez: Play your stroke so as not to hit the water. The shot to the green will give you the pleasure of flying over the beautiful lake that protects the green. Be accurate because the green is not wide.
6. Diego Borrego Hole: Hole with a slight dog-leg to the left where a good tee shot is essential. It is not a long hole, but it is defended by a small green protected by two well-positioned bunkers.
7. Angel Gallardo Hole: Par 3 that requires a perfect shot. It is recommended to lean on the left side of the green. The green gives you ample space to kick.
8. Valentín Barrios Hole: Strict par 5 with the Clubhouse in the background. It requires you to hit the ground running. Long hole, but it allows him to hit a comfortable second shot to the green that does not give him much difficulty.
9. Severiano Ballesteros Hole: Great par 3 that forces us to play to the left side of the green. Long and demanding, requiring maximum concentration.
10. Álvaro Quirós Hole: Hoyo that you will not forget for its beauty and design. Play a strong tee shot and pay attention to the second shot and the shot to the green, which is very small.
11. Hoyo Raquel Carriedo: Nice shot to the green, where it is essential not to go left. Wide green that allows him to kick with tranquility.
12. Sebastián de Miguel Hole: Panoramic exit, where it is not necessary to go hard but straight ahead. Street with a drop to the left. Unforgettable shot to the green with the beauty of a lake that penalizes the miss to the left.
13. Pepín Rivero Hole: Beautiful par 3 between trees and bunkers. Play the shot with determination and lean on the left side of the green.
14. Hole Miguel Ángel Martín: Hit firmly and enjoy this wonderful Par 4. Try to avoid the right side of the fairway and, above all, do not overshoot the green.
15. Marta Figueras-Dotti Hole: Leave with peace of mind. You have a place to stand on the right side of the fairway, even if you can’t see it from the tee. Be accurate on the shot to the green and avoid the right side.
16. Manolo Piñero Hole: Hole to immortalize its design and enjoy it. Exit by leaning to the left and be careful on your second stroke. Green in transversal flanked by bunkers in its defense.
17. José María Cañizares Hole: The stroke in the middle of the road is not perfect. It has trees that protect the hole. Hit the green comfortably and enjoy the view.
18. Hole Gonzalo Fernández-Castaño: To finish, get out whatever strength you have left, hit your drive and check out the beauty of the hole. Be picky with the second shot and try to avoid the green bunkers. Easy to kick.
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