Situated in Portimão, Algarve, the Penina Championship Golf Course is considered as one of the most brilliant projects of Sir Henry Cotton, triple champion of the British Open.
Back in 1966, Cotton was one of the first to recognise the Algarve’s huge potential as a golfing destination. Following his instincts, Sir Henry designed Penina with the vision to create a natural, year-round golf course, taking into account the mild climate and beauty of the region.
Today, the Algarve is one of Portugal's top locations for golf and is now home to over 40 golf courses.
The Penina Golf Course is a fairly flat parkland type course flanked by streams, water hazards and precarious ditches. Penina boasts an array of subtle slopes with wide and raised greens that are well known for catching out even the most careful of golfers, making it a true championship golf course.
Major renovations in 2004/2005 refreshed the Penina Golf Course, taking it to the highest level of quality. The Penina Championship Course is characterised by an unusual grouping of par-5s, with four of them arranged together in pairs at the beginning and end of the back nine.
From all of Penina's holes, the most memorable is the 13th - voted one of the best 500 holes in the world! The hole presents its own particular challenge, with a lake that borders the right-hand side, coming into play off the back tees, and a sloping green that is guarded to the front and left by a pair of bunkers.
The Penina Golf Course hosted the Portugal Open 9 times, and many other prestigious golfing events have taken place here.