The Algarve’s premier golf brand, Dom Pedro Golf, offers some of the very best golf facilities in Europe, headlined by host of the Portugal Masters, the Dom Pedro Victoria Course.

Designed by the great Arnold Palmer, the Victoria Course presents a par-72 challenge, spanning 7,316 yards. With its distinctive character, golfers will be tested across the much-loved layout, needing accurate drives and pragmatic course management to avoid the extensive water hazards which guard many of the closing holes. The Dom Pedro Victoria course is joined by what has long been recognised as Europe’s most complete golf offering, all within a 3km radius: The Old Course Golf Club, Pinhal Golf Course, Laguna Golf Course and Millennium Golf Course. These exceptional courses can be found a stone’s throw away from the Dom Pedro group’s array of hotels, which in turn offer a seamless and professional experience for guests expecting world class golf and accommodation all in one.

Text Supplied by the Golf Resort

The Vilamoura Golf Resort is an incredibly popular getaway on Portugal's Algarve Coast, the resort/residential development with five distinctive and contrasting golf courses that each average between 45,000 and 65,000 rounds per year. Strangely, and sadly, none of the golf here reaches world-class heights, the Palmer signature course is the most eye-catching but is fairly typical of many resort courses around the world.

Opening in 2004 the Victoria Course was created by an associate in the Arnold Palmer design company, and is noted for its huge sculpted fairways, massive sand hazards and obligatory ponds and waterfalls. A number of holes are demanding, but the likes of 7, 14 and 18 use the water in an anti-strategic manner - the 14th has a split fairway with a safer left side option that is barely safer because of an unnecessary central bunker. The 18th is one of a strong closing holes around water seen countless times on resort courses, except this time with a rock wall eating into the left side of the green and making the approach much harder for those who have driven their ball near the hazard.

As with the golf elsewhere on the Algarve, the Victoria Course isn't a poor layout but golfers will need to be in serious holiday mode in order to get any great enjoyment out of playing here.

From our Planet Golf review