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| A view of the golf course at Desert Springs, Europe’s only international award-winning luxury family resort and championship desert golf course in the Almanzora region of Almeria in south-east Spain, which has been selected by lady golfers from Scotland as the venue for their winter training. |
Lady golfers from Scotland are the latest to select Desert Springs, Europe’s only international award-winning luxury family resort and championship desert golf course in the Almanzora region of Almeria in south-east Spain, as the venue for their winter training.
The success of the first training weekend at Desert Springs arranged for seven members and four coaches from the Scottish Ladies Golfing Association (SLGA) has prompted them to return in February.
The decision to train at Desert Springs followed a visit by the SLGA’s national coach Kevin Craggs who used the golf facilities to make training films for players. He was so impressed by the resort and its staff that he decided it should be used for training by what he describes as ‘the best lady players in Scotland.’
By opting for Desert Springs, the SLGA follows the Ladies Golf Union and the Golf Union of Wales which have selected the resort as their base for pre-season training.
Commenting on her group’s initial visit, the SLGA’s chairman of training Betty Patterson said: “The mild climate was conducive to productive practice at a time when the climate at home is cold.”
Betty was enthusiastic about the range of resort facilities within easy walking distance of the golf clubhouse. Those which the group used included the gymnasium and private film screening room. Others available include a spa, sports and fitness club, and pools.
Simon Coaker, director of golf at Desert Springs, said: "Desert Springs has become very well known as a destination for the warm weather winter training of the Elite players of both the English Counties and a host of National Squads.
“The squads of the Scottish Ladies Golfing Association represent the very best women’s amateur golfers in Scotland and we are obviously delighted to be host to such an elite group of young players and feel that this further underlines our commitment to the world of women’s golf.
“Desert Springs can be presented to test the skills of the best players and I am delighted that as prestigious a body as the SLGA have selected the Indiana course and its Golf Academy as its winter training base and we very much look forward to welcoming them back this year.”
For more information about properties available, or golf at Desert Springs, contact The Almanzora Group on telephone +44 (0) 1242 680 116 or visit the website, www.almanzora.com
Background information about the Indiana golf course at Desert Springs
The resort
Desert Springs is Europe’s only international award-winning luxury family resort and championship desert golf course in the Almanzora region of Almeria in south-east Spain.
The resort occupies more than 300 hectares (750 acres) on an elevated plateau over the Rio Almanzora, near the coast of the municipality of Cuevas del Almanzora.
The first phase of the resort – already up and running – includes the Indiana Desert Golf Course and Club House and its international award-winning El Torrente Restaurant, as well as the Crocodile Club family restaurant and bar, with its pools, sun lawns and sand play bunkers.
Also open is the Sierra Sports and Fitness Club which has facilities for tennis, paddle, gymnasium and football.
The golf
At the heart of Desert Springs is its 72 par 18-hole USGA Indiana golf course designed by former Great Britain and Ireland Golf Team Captain Peter McEvoy. He was inspired by the desert courses of Arizona and California.
The dramatic nature of the Desert Springs fairways, set in a landscape of cactus, rock and flowering desert, is said to have taken golf in Spain to a new level of excellence.
Golf Club joining fees for Non-resident Membership, for a family of up to four, are waived in the case of Almanzora Bay Group’s own property purchasers.
The club runs a year-round calendar of tournaments for members as well as open tournaments including The Indiana Masters, The Desert Classic and The Professional Challenge Cup. In 2004 and 2007 it hosted Europe’s most prestigious amateur tournament, the King’s Cup – the Copa Del Rey – which is the Spanish International Amateur Open.
From October 30 to November 1, 2008, the Sir Ian Botham Charity Golf Classic was held at Desert Springs, raising more than €70,000 for Leukaemia Research. Sir ‘Beefy’ Botham was joined by celebrities and professional sportsmen captaining their amateur teams.
The climate
The resort takes it name from the region’s desert microclimate which is unique in Europe. It has the warmest winter weather on the continent with an annual average of more than nine hours of daily sunshine and maximum daily temperatures of between 16°C (60°F) and 30°C (86°F) throughout the year. Annual rainfall is less than 200 mm. The Almanzora’s coastal waters are among the cleanest and warmest in Europe, attracting both fish and diving enthusiasts.
Getting there
The Almanzora region is easy to reach, thanks to three international airports. The current journey time from Almeria International Airport to Desert Springs is around 50 minutes by road. Other international airports are at Murcia – 70 minutes by car on the new toll motorway direct to the Almanzora Valley (the toll is €11.5) – and Alicante which is less than two hours by road.
For further information contact: The Almanzora Group
E-mail: tag@almanzora.co.uk
Telephone: +44 (0) 1242 680 299
