La Galiana

Fashioned by Felipe Rodriguez and the Madrid-based Moon Masters design company, the 18-hole layout at La Galiana is located an hour’s drive to the south of Valencia and it’s set within a beautiful secluded valley, flanked on both sides by a perfectly preserved Mediterranean pine forest.

Opened for play in 2011, La Galiana enjoys a secluded setting amongst the hilly terrain that characterises the inland region lying around ten miles from the Mediterranean coast, with terraced fairways laid out in splendid isolation, far removed from any hint of residential development.

Measuring 6,201 metres from the back tees and playing to a par of 72, the course features a handful of holes where water hazards come into play. The most striking of these aquatic holes is the 522-metre 10th, which plays downhill to a green that’s guarded by water to the right and rear of the putting surface.

The toughest hole on the outward half is “La Serpentiente,” a snaking par five at the 4th where the fairway falls away into oblivion on the right side. On the back nine, the most difficult hole is kept until last at “Los Entrepinos,” with its S-shaped fairway climbing steadily uphill all the way from the 18th tee to the home green.