Estonia’s fast-growing golf scene offers tricky courses set among birch forests, lakes and streams, finds Minty Clinch.
Saare Golf
WHERE IS IT? 1.5km from Kuressaare, the capital of Saaremaa island, and 233km south-west of Tallinn (a 30-minute ferry crossing or a 45-minute flight from Tallinn – Estonian Air flies there on Saturdays). WHAT'S IT LIKE? Located on the Gulf of Riga in a prime position on Estonia’s largest holiday island, the course meanders along stretches of water with target greens, many of them defended by long grass. It has wider horizons than the other courses, but poses a different set of questions that are no more easily answered. In a mellower climate, play is possible from April to mid-November. In Kuressaare, a 15-minute walk away, disappointed golfers can find consolation in a medieval castle and town centre. However, the 19th hole offers an even more effective antidote – a flagon of strong, locally brewed Tehumardi beer, an island speciality (along with historic windmills and Saaremaa sweet and sour black rye bread). ADDRESS Merikotka Street 35, Kuressaare CONTACT Tel +372 4545 120, saaregolf.ee PRICE 18 holes €50, nine holes €30 CLUB HIRE €1.60 per club CLUB HOURS 8am-8pm MINIMUM HANDICAP No certificate required FACILITIES 18-hole course (par 72, 6,310m), a driving range, a practice area and putting green, and a golf academy run by an English-speaking Finnish pro. AFTER THE GOLF The inspirational Pegasus restaurant in the stylishly contemporary glass and wood clubhouse has an à la carte lunch menu, with food served indoors or on the 100-seat terrace overlooking the course. Local accommodation options include manor houses, farms and spa hotels.Otepaa Golf Club
WHERE IS IT? 5km outside Otepaa, the largest city in southern Estonia, and 258km south-east of Tallinn. WHAT'S IT LIKE? The Estonian interior is roughly 60 per cent forest, a statistic mirrored by Otepaa’s hilly layout in a nature reserve. As at Niitvalja (see facing page), narrow fairways rule, with a frustrating level of support from Saagjarv and Maha lakes. Thread the eye of the needle off the tee, but don’t rejoice too soon unless you have the confidence to hit with precision over large stretches of water. As the climate is less snowy here, winter golf is usually possible. ADDRESS Looritsa, Maha Village, Otepaa, Valgamaa CONTACT Tel +372 5090 208, otepaagolf.ee PRICE 18 holes €38-45, buggy €26 CLUB HIRE €13-32 CLUB HOURS 8am-8.30pm MINIMUM HANDICAP No certificate required FACILITIES 18 holes (par 73, 6,148m), a driving range, chipping and putting greens, and an American Full Swing simulator. AFTER THE GOLF The self-styled gourmet Swing restaurant, the centrepiece of a handsome stone and wood-roofed clubhouse, seats 190 people, 80 of them on a covered terrace with an outdoor grill. The ground-floor saunas, one of them infrared, are fitted with glass walls to allow heat soakers to spy on the outside world.Estonian Golf and Country Club
WHERE IS IT? 24km east of Tallinn WHAT'S IT LIKE? Like several Eastern European countries, Estonia is fairly new to golf but is keen to jump on the bandwagon. Its flagship resort is the Estonian Golf and Country Club, a European Tour venue that expects to host its first PGA qualifying tournament on the 18-hole Sea course this September. The existing nine-hole Stone course, named after rocks in the grounds here that allegedly date back to the Ice Age, will be extended to 18 over the next year or so. The Sea course descends from the hilltop clubhouse to the long Baltic shoreline separated from the water by impressive reed beds. Both nines follow a similar pattern, the opening and closing holes laid out on undulating parkland, the middle ones on links-like terrain near the water. On the inland holes, stands of mature oak and juniper form the main hazard, while the coastal ones require an intelligent approach to lakes and reeds, usually taking into account the stiff prevailing breeze. The design makes commendably varied use of the landscape, although the huge boulder-strewn bunker between the eighth and ninth fairways seems aggressively artificial in otherwise natural surroundings. The Estonian is real-estate led but not, as yet, to the total exclusion of nature. Villas with six twin bedrooms, opened in June, suit groups geared to golf rather than nightlife, while lads on tour can stay overnight in the medieval fortress city of Tallinn, with its rapidly multiplying choice of boutique hotels, bars and restaurants, and drive out to the club during the day. The website offers bed and breakfast packages for both options, with minibuses to transport golfers from downtown Tallinn to the course. ADDRESS Manniva Village, Joelahtme, Harjumaa CONTACT Tel +372 6025 290, egcc.ee PRICE Sea course: 18 holes €45-60, nine holes €27-36. Stone course: 2 x 9 holes €35, nine holes €21. CLUB HIRE €23, Wilson CLUB HOURS 7.30am-9pm MINIMUM HANDICAP No certificate required FACILITIES Sea course (18 holes, par 72, 6,462m), Stone course (9 holes, par 36, 2,903m), a driving range, practice area and putting green. AFTER THE GOLF A Scandinavian-style buffet breakfast is served in the clubhouse restaurant from 7.30am, and a quality buffet and à la carte lunch from 11am. The terrace overlooks the fairways and the sea makes a rewarding 19th hole.Niitvalja Golf Course
WHERE IS IT? 32km south-west of Tallinn WHAT'S IT LIKE? Niitvalja takes pride in being the oldest course in the Baltic region – a true, if slightly misleading, description, as it opened only 16 years ago. It is strikingly different to the Estonian Golf and Country Club, the other half of a satisfying double-header within easy reach of the capital. At Niitvalja, the water is in your face rather than on the horizon – there are only two holes, the 11th and the 18th, on which it is virtually impossible to drown your ball. On the savage 15th, a par five with an island green, it is virtually impossible not to, especially for gung-ho risk takers who go for the flag in two. On a green with no hiding place, front, back or sides, any tiny deviation is an instant card wrecker. The landscape is quintessentially Estonian, with minimal fairways cut out of silver birch forest set among ponds and streams. The trees are slender but plentiful – again, any slight wobble is rewarded with bitter cries of “timber”, and a surprising number of irretrievable balls. The overall concept rewards accurate players accustomed to American target golf, with raised greens ringed with bunkers in addition to the water hazards. ADDRESS Niitvalja, Keila vald, Harjumaa CONTACT Tel +372 6780 454, egk-golf.ee PRICE 18 holes €44-55, nine holes €31, buggy €30 CLUB HIRE €25 CLUB HOURS 7.30am-9pm MINIMUM HANDICAP No certificate required FACILITIES 18-hole course (par 72, 6,411m), driving range, practice area, putting green and an unusual landscaped putting course among ornamental beds. AFTER THE GOLF The low-rise clubhouse has a fairly basic self-service counter. Early-bird golfers start their rounds with local delicacies – substantial meat pies and salmon – from 8am. Lunch is available from 11am to 3pm and is mostly smorgasbord, with a hot plat du jour to comfort players chilled by invasive Baltic winds.Getting there
Easyjet flies daily except Monday from London Stansted to Tallinn – visit easyjet.com. Estonian Air flies from Gatwick to Tallinn on Thursdays and Sundays – visit estonian-air.ee
