9 nights with breakfast at Hotel Esplanade Tergesteo and five green fees per person (Montecchia Golf Club, Ca Amata, Ca della Nave, Padova and Frassanelle)

The 27 holes of the Montecchia Golf Club wind beneath the 16th century castle belonging to Counts Emo Capodilista, in a course which is peppered with water hazards and which will not allow for distractions. The project bears the signature of English architect Tom Macauley in total compliance with the Anglo-Saxon school, giving proper importance to issues regarding the environment and the landscape. The gentle undulations of the holes fit in perfectly with the context of the typical lowlands interrupted by the ridges of the nearby Euganean Hills. The three courses, White, Red, and Yellow, feature many bodies of water and several tracts of uncultivated land with the aim of preserving nature. Hole 6 on the White course, a par 4 of 392 meters, offers the greatest difficulties due to the presence of a lake whose shoreline skirts the fairway along its left side, narrowing to where a bunker on the right and, worse yet, the out-of-bounds loom. Water accompanies the player on many other holes, at times timidly, at others more intrusively as with Hole 2 on the Red course, a par 3 of 172 meters where you must fly over the lake to reach the split-level green. Stopping by the clubhouse is an unavoidable pleasure. Created from the old rooms used for drying tobacco and the granary, it houses two excellent restaurants – ABC on the ground floor, the more informal of the two, and the Montecchia on the first floor, run by Erminio Alajmo, who boasts a Michelin star, and which are valid reasons enough to visit the club. Technical details Course: 18+9 holes, Par 72/36, 6078/3011 meters Architect: Tom Macauley Topography: flat and open, quite recent vegetation. Distinctive features: The course has not come to maturity yet, and the young trees reveal it. The difficulties of the course can be overpassed by those who control very well the drives. Pro’s comments A level course with large and welcoming greens that are always maintained excellently. Both professionals (stops on the European Challenge Tour have been played here several times) and players with high handicaps will be greatly satisfied with the Golf Club della Montecchia. All players regardless must pay great attention to Holes 11 and 17 on the championship course: two Par 3s with frontal water and well defended greens. Play them cautiously; a tiny error will cost you dearly.

We are around twenty kilometers from the Venetian Lagoon, a World Heritage site: either before or after an obligatory tour of the Serenissima, or better Venice, golf lovers simply cannot miss playing a match at the Golf Club Ca’ della Nave in Martellago, a gem designed by Arnold Palmer on terrain dominated by the aristocratic majesty of the 16th century Villa Grimani Morosini. The great American champion who designed the course in the mid-1980s perhaps drew inspiration from Venice when he decided to insert artificial lakes and water hazards onto no less than 12 of the 18 championship holes – but not even the 9 executive holes are exempt from red stakes! The most difficult is Hole 2, a par 4 of 370 meters, picturesque and rolling with the lake flanking it on the right for the length of the fairway. Two bunkers there awaiting the landing of your first shot and another to defend the entrance to the green complicate things considerably. Hole 14 is also spectacular, a par 4 of 278 meters, where the fairway is an islet in the middle of a large lake: from the tee, you have to cross a small bridge to reach the ball, and the same must be done to reach the green which, in addition to the water in the front, is also defended by three bunkers. Technical Details Course: 18 holes, Par 72, 6366 meters Architect: Arnold Palmer Topography: flat with artificial hills and undulated fairways. Distinctive features: you can recognize everywhere the American style. The play is amusing thanks to artificial slopes and well-placed water hazards. Pro’s comments Arnold Palmer’s hand is clearly seen in the design of this splendid course; lots of water, bunkers on the dogleg bends and in defense of the greens which are wide and welcoming. Much about this course is already revealed by Hole 2, a handicap 1; almost 400 meters from the furthest tee, water on the right and a green defended by a bunker on the left; you will find water another 11 times by the time you have completed the round but don’t be discouraged; the course is not that difficult and everyone will have a ball. Bravo Arnie!!!

The Valsanzibio club is the firstborn among Padua’s golf courses, thanks to the support of an entrepreneur, Igino Kofler, who at the end of the Fifties, with a group of friends, wanted to create a course in order to enhance the tourist quality of the well known spa district of Abano and Montegrotto. Originally it was called “Euganeo Golf Club”, but the name is not the only thing that has changed in more than 50 years of history: the present Padua Golf Club, open to the public in 1962, has been extended from the original 18 holes designed by John Harris (Yellow and Blue). In 2003, indeed, 9 additional holes were opened: the Red Course, created by the Venetian architect Marco Croze. The fairways run at the foot of the Euganeas Hills in an outstandingly beautiful setting, a real botanical garden. In the Seventies, the club president was a nurseryman, Benedetto Sgaravatti, who embellished the naturalistic heritage of a rather barren ground with not less than eight thousands trees and shrubs, carefully chosen according to technical landscape criteria. The best background? That of the green of the 2nd hole in the Yellow Course, where you can admire the Diana’s Gate of the eighteenth century Villa Barbarigo: the garden, after your game, is definitely worth a visit. Technical Details Courses: 18 + 9 holes, Par 72/36, 5767/2824 meters Architect: John Harris, Marco Croze Topography: light hilly, many bunkers Distinctive features: in the middle of a valley at the foot of the Euganean Hills. It is mostly a parkland flat course with many water hazards. Thick vegetation at the sides of the fairways.

Choosing Ca’ Amata means treating yourself with a golf day in a romantic eighteenth-century atmosphere, in the heart of an area – the province of Treviso – which offers a vast amount of interesting sightseeing opportunities. The course, created in 1991, has been cut out from the park of the Villa of the same name, one of the most prestigious examples of the eighteenth-century Venetian architecture. There are also guided tours (booking required). The environment is beautiful and well maintained, framed by trees, bushes and flowers, adding elegance along the fairways. Eleven of the 18 holes include lakes and streams, to catch inaccurate shots; and lovers of beauty will notice that even the water hazards adhere to strict aesthetic rules, with architectural elements belonging to the most beautiful romantic parks: ledges, small bridges, little waterfalls characterize the whole course. The track, entirely flat, covers a vast area, 75 hectares, starting a course which allows the golfer spectacularly long shots. The large fairways forgive imprecise shots, but the greens – sometimes very big, others smaller and technically challenging with many slopes – are less forgiving. Very long Par 4s alternate with shorter holes, making the course a real challenge, even for the more expert players. The climate here is mild: you can happily play almost all year long. Technical Details Course: 18 holes, Par 72, 5686 meters Architect: Marco Croze Topography: flat, numerous water hazards Distinctive features: strategic game is essential; it’s bound to test your nerves with water coming into play on many holes.

Amidst 200 hectares of woodlands in the estate of the noble Papafava Antonini dei Carraresi family at the foot of the Euganean Hills, this 18-hole course was created in 1990 and is a succession of emotions due to the spectacular flora and fauna found there. When blooming in spring, the course explodes with colors and fragrances, whereas in autumn, the magic foliage – going from brown to yellow and red in contrast with the green lawns – makes players feel as though they have been projected into a living painting. Designer Marco Croze was able to create a demanding layout, finding the right balance between environmental beauty and technical demands: wide open spaces, woods and numerous bodies of water scattered along the course refine and beautify the panorama, making the game more demanding. Hole 15, known as La Regina, or the Queen, is an unforgettable par 3 of 150 meters which crosses a large lake and reaches the green enclosed in a majestic cathedral of trees. Hole 3 is also very beautiful, a par 4 left dogleg with a water hazard ready to penalize those seeking to cut the curve, and the out of bounds on the right side of the fairway. The clubhouse was created from a rustic building from the 1600s, elegantly restored and furnished with an Anglo-Saxon golfing flair. The privileged position close to the spa area of Abano and Montegrotto allows the natural wonders of the area and the beauty of art cities such as Padua, Venice and Vicenza to be explored within the range of a few kilometers. Technical Details Course: 18 holes, Par 72, 5906 meters Architects: Pete Dye and Marco Croze Topography: many water hazards Distinctive features: traditional course with old trees and wide fairways. Pro’s comments A very spectacular course created in a 19th century park. Several of the “soft” holes such as Hole 1, contrast with the “infinite” ones, as with Hole 18. Hole 15 is a masterpiece, a spectacular par 3, with an island green located at the end of a lake in the middle of a wood; you feel as though you are playing in an enchanted world: amazing.