How the Algarve evolved into one of the world’s leading golf destinations
— October 8, 2026 | Text Alexandra Stilwell
The Algarve, Portugal’s southernmost region, is widely known as one of the world’s top golfing destinations. With its mild year-round climate and dozens of verdant courses stretching from east to west, the region attracts well over a million golfers each year.
Today it is hard to imagine what this 165km stretch of coast was like before the sport arrived. Yet it is only now celebrating a milestone: 60 years since the opening of its first 18-hole course, Penina, in 1966.
Some argue that golf arrived in the Algarve as early as 1937, just a few years before the Second World War broke out. In fact, nine holes were built in Praia da Rocha: sand fairways with ‘browns’ (greens made of oil and sand) designed to entertain the Brits who stayed at the Grande Hotel da Praia da Rocha. Sadly, the course’s management changed hands, and it was left to wither. Golf was not heard of again in the Algarve.
That is, until John Stilwell, an Englishman born in Lisbon, decided to invest in tourism in the Algarve. On holiday with his family in Praia da Rocha in 1961, as tourism was starting to develop, John had the idea of opening a hotel. He realised he needed something more to attract tourists and decided that golf was the answer. As he would later recall, the choice fell on Tapada da Penina, a rice-producing property owned by a distant cousin, because it could supply the vital irrigation water. There, together with family and friends, he built the region’s first five-star hotel and golf course.
With the help of Sir Henry Cotton, who designed Penina’s iconic course, his vision became a reality. Some 300,000 trees were planted across the property where the golf course was built.
On June 1, 1966, the first players teed off on Penina’s Championship course. By inviting journalists and opinion leaders from the UK and the USA to visit the brand-new resort, Stilwell quickly brought the spotlight onto this blossoming region, which had otherwise been overlooked by the rest of the world. He died in 2018, having lived long enough to see the Algarve become a global golfing reference.
Penina attracted some of the era’s greatest golfers and celebrities: Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Tony Jacklin, Nick Faldo, Bing Crosby, Bob Hope, Sean Connery and Lee Trevino, among others, came to spend time with the living legend Sir Henry Cotton, who was always accompanied on the course by his faithful caddie, Pacífico the donkey.
But the most notable celebrity to stay and leave his mark on Penina to this day is Sir Paul McCartney. During a stay at the hotel in 1968, he famously joined the house band in the bar one evening to play the drums and even wrote a song about Penina. The rest is history – 60 years of it today.
Since then, both Portuguese and foreign entrepreneurs have flocked to the southern coast to realise its potential, transforming it into a popular holiday and golf destination. Visionaries such as André Jordan, who pioneered integrated golf and real estate resorts at Quinta do Lago, and Sander van Gelder, who acquired Vale do Lobo and transformed it from an early coastal development into one of Europe’s top luxury golf and lifestyle destinations, have boosted the Algarve’s international reputation and continue to attract global attention.
In Vale do Lobo, Henry Cotton designed two additional nine-hole courses – opened in 1968 and 1972 – which would later become the Ocean Course.
Meanwhile in 1969, Vilamoura inaugurated the Old Course, designed by Frank Pennink.
A few years later, another world-famous course was built at Quinta do Lago. Then came the Portuguese revolution in 1974, which brought tourism to a standstill for a while.
Penina itself became the subject of political discourse that year, as the Portuguese government chose the hotel as the venue for the conference that led to the “Acordo de Alvor”, the treaty for the independence of Angola, making Penina a historic landmark.
A second wave of golf course development in the Algarve began in 1988 with San Lorenzo in Quinta do Lago.
It quickly gathered pace, and the region now boasts more than half of Portugal’s courses, some ranked among the best in Europe and worldwide.
As with Seve Ballesteros (Quinta do Vale, 2008), several celebrity course designers, including Arnold Palmer (Victoria Course, 2004), Jack Nicklaus (Monte Rei, 2007) and Sir Nick Faldo (Amendoeira Faldo Course, 2008), contributed to the region’s high-quality golf courses.
Sir Henry Cotton, who lived in a villa on his beloved Penina Championship Course, went on to design three more courses in the Algarve: Alto Golf near Vau, once again with his friend John Stilwell; Vale do Lobo Royal; and Benamor in Tavira. He died in 1987 and is buried in the Mexilhoeira-Grande cemetery, but his legacy lives on throughout the region.
In the past decade, the map of Algarve golf has continued to evolve, with new layouts and redevelopments adding fresh variety to the offering.
Recent openings and reopenings – from boutique 9-hole projects and reimagined resort courses to ambitious new 18-hole layouts – have introduced contemporary architecture, more sustainable turf and irrigation choices, and modern practice facilities, ensuring that even long-time visitors can still discover ‘new’ golf in the region.
Today, the Algarve caters for every golfer’s needs, not only with some of the world’s top courses but also with the supporting infrastructure the sport requires, such as golf academies and specialist shops.
Vilamoura Golf School alone has produced some of the greatest Portuguese players of all time. This is where António Sobrinho, Ricardo Santos and Ricardo Melo Gouveia picked up their first club and went on to become national heroes.
In recent years, a new generation of Portuguese professionals and promising juniors has continued to emerge from the region’s academies, further cementing the Algarve’s reputation as the cradle of Portuguese golf.
The Algarve’s popularity has continued to grow. The pre-pandemic years saw record numbers of rounds played, and the region has since recovered strongly, with several courses reporting figures at or above previous highs. The region not only attracts players but also draws fans to its international events to support their favourite golfers.
Over the years, the Algarve has hosted dozens of tournaments on the DP World Tour and Legends Tour, as well as Qualifying Schools and top amateur events, reinforcing its status as a stage for elite golf.
This summer added a new chapter to that story with the Portugal Invitational at The Els Club. The event attracted a high-profile international field to one of the Algarve’s newest championship venues, showcasing both the quality of modern course design in the region and its ability to deliver a truly premium tournament experience.
Looking ahead, the next decade will be defined by sustainability and quality: water-saving technologies, smarter course management and investment in year-round experiences that go beyond golf.
Yet the spirit that sparked everything at Penina 60 years ago remains unchanged – a vision of the Algarve as a place where great golf, warm hospitality and natural beauty come together.
From a single pioneering course on a former rice field, it has evolved into a mature, world-class golf destination – and the story is still being written, one fairway at a time.