THE ELS CLUB is now one of the most exclusive golf clubs in not only Portugal, but all of Europe.
It only opened last year and signalled the first Els Club in Europe with the other four sitting outside of the continent.
The majestic par five 11th hole is a real standout on the course
An aerial shot of the magnificent golf course and the lake that influences several holes
The Victoria Golf Resort and Spa is one of the seven hotels under the umbrella’s guidance
My dad and I on the 18th green
When we played it, the grass looked like there was barely a blade out of place. Pristine might be a word ever so slightly overused at times to describe photogenic greens, but these were picture perfect.
Why? Well, it’s a private golf course with, at the moment, just 50 founding members. And to become a member, you need €150,000.
Sign up for the Sport newsletter
Thank you!
You can only play the course if you are invited to do so by a member. They are going to be opening up another round of members soon, but many of those will have to have purchased some of the surrounding properties to even be eligible.
The prices for those? Starting at €1.6 million and finishing at €3.3 million.
So anyway, believe us when we tell you this is an exclusive course! The first time the public will really get a great look at it will be when the Staysure Legends tour holds an event there from July 31 until August 2.
Names like Colin Montgomerie, David Duval, Jose Maria Olazabal and Els himself will all be in the field for the course’s inaugural event.
WORLD CUP 2026 FREE BETS AND SIGN UP OFFERS
Unbeatable golf travel deals
GOLF fans can get to see the world’s best tournaments for less than you think.
We have teamed up with some of the UK’s leading travel companies to come up with some unmissable trips.
🏆 The Open — See the world’s finest golfers at Royal Birkdale with ticket and hotel packages to suit every pocket— MORE INFO HERE
⛳ The Masters — Book a bucket-list trip to Augusta next year with 3-night packages to see Rory McIlroy — MORE INFO HERE
✈️ Plus check out these golf holidays to some of Europe’s finest courses — MORE INFO HERE
* If you click on a link we will earn affiliate revenue.
What’s the course like?
Let me just start by saying the back nine holes are among the very best I have experienced on a golf course. Full of character, ambition and challenge; the course enters another stratosphere once you make the turn.
But, we’ll get to that.
Rather unconventionally, we kick things off with two par fives. With my visit to the marina the night before just seeping out of my pores, it was a hell of a way to try and get out of the blocks!
This used to be the Victoria Golf Course that hosted the Portuguese Masters 16 times and some of the holes, mostly on the front nine, retain some hallmarks of that legendary course.
The practice area that sits behind the driving range
The close of the front nine sees you play up to one of their neighbouring hotels
There’s plenty of wide fairways that are friendly to a variety of abilities, but the positioning of the greens is what makes most of the holes challenging.
A par three over water greets you on the fourth hole and while it’s only 136 yards, you obviously cannot afford to be short, and there is zero room off the back either. You either hit a pearler or fade off to the right – those are your only options.
The world class facilities and obvious exclusivity – we barely saw anyone else during our round either out on the course or in the clubhouse – are massive perks, but the back nine is where the true magic is.
The 11th is a monstrous 550-yard par five where water runs up along the left side of the fairway and then crosses over to the right giving you a tough decision on your second shot: Do you go for it or layup?
The first of two par threes that test you directly over water
The second par three with water is slightly more forgiving
There’s still work to do once you get across that bridge to cap off a remarkable hole. What follows is a drivable par four if you smash around 270 off the tee before another par three over water on hole 14.
Hole 16 is stroke index one on the card and is a true joy to play. The drive over water is not an overly long one but, like the 11th, where you end up presents you with a difficult choice for your next shot.
You either play along to the left and layup around the water, or you go for it diagonally to a tucked green. The rush of making it is something I would highly recommend!
That kicks off the closing stretch that is followed by fairly straight forward par three as long as you don’t ping it in the water on the right and then a dogleg left par four to bring us back home to the obviously multi-million pound clubhouse. Gorgeous.
The 18th plays back up towards the clubhouse – look at that pristine fairway!
A final thing on this course. It looks and plays like there are only 50 members of this club. There is barely a hair out of place on the fairways or greens – even a divot is pretty hard to find outside of a tee box. it’s the very definition of pristine.
The project
I’ve seen dozens and dozens of golf courses taken over and undergo multi-million pound renovations. Countless, in fact. But I don’t think I’ve ever seen an entire region moulded around what could be a perfect golfing destination.
The Algarve is a renowned golf destination in Europe already, but the Vilamoura area has enjoyed serious investment from Arrow Global to the tune of €1.5 billion in Portugal alone.
They have a portfolio around Europe worth around €125 billion and have grand plans to make Vilamoura the destination for golf.
Brits already make up just under half of the visiting tourists in the area and with seven hotels and four golf courses under one umbrella – in addition to the beach, the marina and much more in the area, it’s easy to see why.
The Els Club appears to be the crown jewel in the project, but by all accounts, they are not done. By 2028 they plan to open more luxury residences in and around the golf course and it’s likely those will come with a membership to the club.
It would be easy to go to the region and spend a lot of money having a good time, but if you do approach it under the packages these guys provide, it’s hard to think where better value for money could be found.
Sun, sea, golf and even a cheeky drink should you want it. That’s the goal, isn’t it?!