If I had been asked to write about my favourite courses when I was a young PGA Professional I would have probably chosen the amazing Championship courses that at the time had little or no other amenities nearby. Since those ‘heady’ golf tournament days I have spent most of my working life advising amateur golfers where to play their ‘winter vacation’ golf in the sun. This means that I now see golf courses in a totally different light. For a start, each of the resorts I have chosen below have the great benefit of being able to fall out of bed and on to the first tee.

Situated in the famous Costa Brava Region of Spain famous for its stunning views and gastronomic restaurants – The PGA Catalunya lies just an hour’s drive from Barcelona or 10 minutes from Girona Airport. It has 2 magnificent golf courses and a practice facility second to none! I know of nowhere else where you have an enormous rolling putting surface surrounded by various different replica bunkers ‘from the world’s top golf courses’ such as Augusta and St Andrews, containing similar sand composition as well! There are also all the various types of grasses from around the world on the fringe of the practice putting green, to test your skills in every sort of lie – good or bad.

Ranked No. 3 in Europe, The Stadium Course is a tough challenge in anyone’s book and I strongly suggest that mid handicappers play from the forward tees to enjoy the course at its best. If you are good player then by all means play from the back – but be warned because you will need your best game in the bag for this course!

The Tour Course is kinder but still no push over. The pine trees and lakes make the course a beauty, but remember, they are there to catch the wayward shot and they do just that! This may be their ‘second course’ but even so, it is still the venue for all those budding tour players and is used for the PGA European Tour Qualifying School Finals.

Built right in the heart of the resort with the golf facilities all around you is the excellent ‘designer feel’ Melia Golf Vichy Catalan Hotel.

My second choice is a wonderful 5 star resort with plenty of history all linked to the legend, three times winner of The Open, Sir Henry Cotton who designed the course and was also resident at Le Meridien Penina. I had the great pleasure of meeting with Sir Henry at Penina many years ago together with friend Jimmy Tarbuck and they did an impromtu duo comedy act together, which in a word was ..... amazing. So you can imagine that this golfer’s haven has many a great memory for me. This is a real golfer’s resort with a championship course and plenty of other fine golf available around the hotel. The practice area has been beautifully upgraded to a superb golfer’s dream facility.

The Sir Henry Cotton Championship Course is a true masterpiece and has hosted 10 Portuguese Opens and many other prestigious tournaments. Originally built out of rice fields, this was the first resort course in Southern Portugal and over the years has matured to a fabulous one that is known by golfers worldwide. It is complemented by two others: The Resort Course which is a lot more forgiving and has many a tree lined fairway and lakes are nearby. The 9 hole Academy Course ideally suits the beginner or casual golfer or even better players can sharpen up their short game after 18 holes.