El Gouna Golf Club

THE JEWEL OF THE RED SEA Egypt’s liveliest and most complete resort destination on the Red Sea invites professionals and novices alike to an opportunity to learn and play the world’s fastest growing sport in a breathtaking setting with year-round sunshine and a cool ocean breeze.

THE TOWN Located 22 kms from Hurghada International Airport, just a short flight from Europe’s capital cities, El Gouna is a completely integrated seaside city with all the necessary services and sunshine guaranteed every day of the year. With restaurants offering an unlimited variety of international cuisine, the world-famous Dine Around Program allows guests to sample all the types of food in a unique and exciting way.

El Gouna is home to a football club, various health centres, the renown Angsana spas, full-service beaches, and deserted islands. The picturesque Abu Tig Marina offers the resorts most exclusive dining and shopping outlets. The resort’s unique shuttle bus and taxi boat transportation system ensures that all activities and sporting options easily accessible. With private villa rentals and fourteen hotels ranging from intimate inns to luxurious five-stars hotels, El Gouna has something for travelers of all tastes.

THE COURSE The 18-hole course is lain out along an impressive mountain backdrop and is surrounded by turquoise lagoons. Golfers can warm up in the unique Aqua Driving Range and enjoy water views every step of the way throughout the length of the course. Friendly and professional staff at the El Gouna Golf Club attends to the golfer’s every need, from equipment rental to instruction courses. To play the course a minimum handicap of -45 is required and has to be proved. Tee-times have to be reserved in advance.

The course itself offers a large array of challenges and excitement for golfers of all abilities. With three different tees for men and ladies on every hole, carefully placed bunkers, lagoons and desert rough, the course challenges individual players making for an exciting and unique golfing experience.

TECHNICAL DETAILS USPGA standard golf course with official course rating (CR/Slope) and length of 6,902 yards (Par 72). Tees, fairways and greens utilize saltwater and heat resistant Paspalum grass to guarantee high quality. Lessons for beginner and advanced golfers with PGA Pros; German and English language instruction available.

THE GAME Out on the greens golfers will find that the course challenges not only their physical strength, but their ingenuity in avoiding pitfalls and navigating the course’s varied wind currents.

The par five 4th hole, for example, heads straight into the prevailing wind and requires at least two well-placed wood strokes to close in on the green.

While the 9th hole is a relatively easy drive for beginners, it presents a serious challenge for those hitting off the championship tees. After surviving the first drive, players are faced with a second shot into the narrowest part of the fairway. Confident long drivers will attempt to carry the sand trap that guards the front of the green, but even the best may fall short. The green itself is a large target, but once there players often have to make long putts. Only a careful read of the terrain will save players from the dreaded three-putt.

The longest par four is the 14th hole, where nearly 440 yards separate the championship tee from the flag. To have a reasonable shot to the green, the golfer must be courageous enough to carry a bunker on the left side of the fairway that ends 250 yards from the tee. Fortunately, prevailing winds can provide the extra push needed to carry this hazard. Once that’s accomplished, reaching the green requires a straight long iron or a wood.

The following hole, a dogleg right, presents yet another interesting dilemma. With a lagoon on the right and a large bunker in the center of the fairway, the golfer can try to carry the lagoon, which leaves only 140 yards to the green, relatively unhindered by the bunkers. But the wind or the slightest fade can send balls into the water—a pleasure when for cooling down after a long day out in the sun, but a one-stroke penalty if you’ve still got your spikes on. Playing it safe to the left side of the fairway bunker, on the other hand, leaves 200 yards over a sprawling third bunker that guards the whole left side of the green.

Another signature hole is the 17th, a long, narrow, and gentle dogleg right running along the lagoon. Accuracy on the drive is essential to avoid the sand and water traps to the right and the fairway bunker on the left. Rare is the golfer ambitious enough to carry both the lagoon and massive bunkers protecting the green. Playing it safe to the left leaves a relatively short iron to a large, sloping green. Tricky at first, but a good opportunity for a birdie once you know the lay of the land.