8 nights with breakfast at Villa Carolina Resort and four green fees per person (GC Villa Carolina, GC Colline del Gavi, GC Valcurone and GC Margara)

As soon as you leave the county road connecting Novi Ligure to Ovada and take the avenue lined with centuries-old chestnuts, leading to the clubhouse, Villa Carolina Golf Club will fascinate you, from the very first moment. The clubhouse, an eighteenth century villa, carefully restored according to listed building regulations, offers a wide range of facilities in the heart of a big park: the complex belonged to a noble family from Genoa and in 1992 was acquired by a group of 5 co-founding partners. Nowadays in the estate there are two 18-hole golf courses, tennis courts, two swimming pools and several dwellings, some of which made out of the renovation of ancient farmhouses. The historical imprint and the familiar atmosphere define the charm of a club where you really feel at home. The “La Marchesa” course was the first one created and alternates an American style – long fairways, light undulating ground, large greens – with more delicate holes such as hole 10, 11 and 12, that leave little margin for mistake. The “Paradiso” course, with its back 9 holes, completed in 2014, is much more hilly, with more important height drops and rather insidious greens. La Marchesa most beautiful spots are on tee 7, a 305m par 4, from which, with a little luck, you may see many ducks and herons in the nearby stream; hole 11, a 402 m par 4, stunning in its natural beauty, runs through the woods without any intervention on the ground; after the second shot, getting closer to the green, you may happen to see deers grazing the grass.

Last but not least, the most refined dining, (and the best value for money) is undoubtedly here.

Pro’s comments

Villa Carolina offers two outstanding courses: La Marchesa and Il Paradiso.

La Marchesa is the more level of the two, with broad greens that are well-defended by insidious bunkers. I would like to mention two very challenging par 3s on this course: Holes 5 and 12, very long (both 189 meters from the yellow tees) with greens well-defended by water (the 12th) and bunkers (the 5th). Scoring two pars is complicated even for expert players.

Il Paradiso is completely different, as it is more undulating with small and difficult greens. I recommend Hole 7 to Bubba Watson's emulators: a par 5 of 561 meters from the furthest tees, all uphill, with a lake on the right side which affects the second and third shots and a split-level green. Majestic and imposing, a signature hole you aren't likely to forget.

Technical details:

Course: “La Marchesa”, 18 holes, Par 72, 6161 meters

Architect: Bryan Silva

Topography: flat

Distinctive features: great concentration is required because of artificial hazards.

Course: “Paradiso”, 18 holes, Par 72, 5820 meters

Architect: Graham Cooke

Topography: flat

Distinctive features: easy at first sight, but it requires a technical game mostly on the green

Opened originally as the Golf Club Riasco, the Colline del Gavi changed the name it had had for several years, in order to better collocate its geographic position. In fact, it is located amongst the vineyards of a hilly region wedged between Liguria and Piedmont and known precisely for the Gavi wine also referred to as Cortese, a white produced here in the province of Alessandria. The 18 holes, inaugurated in 1998, extend over 110 hectares, utilizing the morphology of the terrain including woods, hills, streams and ponds, which affect no less than nine holes. The course was designed with the goal of entertaining yet all the while challenging player's skills: natural obstacles such as trees and bodies of water make each hole different, constantly stimulating the need for new strategies. Add to that the differences in levels of the course which demand strong physical resistance.

In addition to the championship course, there is a 9-hole executive course with Hole 1, the most famous, which is proudly considered by members as “probably the most difficult par 3 in Italy”. The other holes also require a high level of experience, being very narrow and insidious due to the bunkers defending the green.

Equally, delightful is a stop at the end of the match in Cascina Spinola, a renovated historic farmhouse housing a charming and cozy restaurant just meters from the modern clubhouse.

Course championship : 18 / 9 holes, Par 73 / 62 6380 / 3790 m

Architect : Luigi Rota Caremoli

Topography : vineyards, hilly, wooded area, natural rough 

Special features : Played by all golf levels.

The mostly sloping terrain makes play painful. 

I really like the Colline del Gavi Golf Club; very warm and friendly atmosphere; all the holes on the course have a strong character and remain engraved in one's mind perfectly; all the par 5s (1,5,7,13,18) are wonderful, all reachable in two strokes by stronger players, but scoring par is within everyone's reach: watch out for the greens, many of which have rather steep slopes; never putt if you aren't clear on what line to follow

Here you are, an American in Italy. Valcurone, near the villages of Curone, Grue and Ossona, perfectly shows to the golfers the meaning of discipline. If you don’t choose the right club… you’ll regret it! Large bunkers, thick roughs and well-protected water hazards, render the play a nice challenge. The club’s restaurant is renowned for its truffles, excellent strawberries, rustic wines and fresh water fishing and is specialized in typical Piedmont cooking together with its wide wine list, ranging from rustic local wines to more sophisticated ones.

Technical Details

Course: 18 holes, 71 Par, 6145 meters

Architect : Luigi Rota Caremoli

Topography: flat with several water hazards

Distinctive features: beautiful since the beginning, you immediately perceive what is arriving next. A precise and meticulous play is required, if you want to reach the end of the course without exhaustion.

Pro's Comments

Valcurone is an area which has not yet been discovered by mass tourism. It is in the Alessandria province, on the border of Lombardia, and it is never crowded. The Momperone's 18 holes are a must, 80 km from the Milan barrier and 20 km from the Castelnuovo Scrivia exit on the motorway to Genova. The golf course, designed by Luigi Rota Caremoli, opened in 2008, not long before the completion of the extraordinary clubhouse with its long, deep red portico which contrasts beautifully with the green of the course and the woods and has been ready to welcome golfing tourists who love both the game and fine dining ever since.

The course requires a high level of concentration and golfers cannot ever let themselves be distracted. The fairways are long, narrow, full of hills and a quantity of water obstacles that intimidate even expert golfers. The first nine holes are fairly level whilst the second nine are on steep slopes, it is wise to study the best place to land your ball to avoid losing it in an obstacle or in the rough, beautiful to watch as it sways in the wind but potentially terrible for your final score.

The most beautiful panorama is at the start of the 4th hole, a long par 3 with an elevated tee, it has a view which includes the course, the Curone valley and a Cortese vineyard behind the green.

Founded in 1972 by Dr. Glauco Lolli Ghetti, today the Margara Golf Club is a renowned golf club both nationally and internationally.
With two 18-hole championship courses, every year it welcomes tourists and professional golfers from all over the world.
The oldest course, “Glauco Lolli Ghetti”, named after its founder, has a Parkland-type structure: it is surrounded by trees that are now imposing, has wide fairways that extend over the rolling hills of Monferrato and greens that put even the most experienced players to the test.
The more recent “La Guazzetta” course, completed in 2006, is also 18 holes and has a more modern, links-style character, with wide bunkers that design the slopes and covers important distances.
Margara has hosted 22 European Challenge Tours, 1 Italian Ladies Open and every year is the scene of several Italian National Championships.

Technical Details

Course : 18+18 holes, par 72/72, 6048/6176 meters

Architect : 

Topography: Sometimes hilly landscape with some woods, sometimes flat

Distinctive features: It has a varied topography that requires a good strategy from the player who must continually adapt his play to the landscape.

Pro’s comments

The two Margara courses have a great virtue. If you don’t face them from the furthest tees, they are entertaining and stimulating for all playing levels. The Glauco Lolli Ghetti 18-hole course hosted tournaments on the European Challenge Tour for 17 years and all the professionals have always given very positive reviews of the course. The amen corner (Holes 15, 16, 17,18) must be faced with great attention and respect: 4 very delicate holes that can ruin your score in no time.

La Guazzetta is very long but also very wide except for Holes 10 and 11 where erring to the right is absolutely forbidden. A forest thick with water hazards is waiting there to receive your sliced shots. So be careful!!!!!