On the very first day in Vilamoura I checked out the Dom Pedro Millennium Course. From my hotel „Dom Pedro Marina“ the clubhouse, which is shared by the Millenium and the Laguna Golf Course, was easily accessible with a seven minute shuttle ride.

Quick check-in, buggy pick-up from the friendly staff and I was off to tee 10, which is right next to the parking lot. I had no real idea what to expect but was already sold with the first look at the fairway. Well, now No. 10 was not directly my best performance of the day, but then hole 11 was again such a feast for the eyes with bunkers beautifully placed along the fairway that I could get back into a great mood right away; just a really great hole!

The Dom Pedro Millennium Course meanders beautifully through villas and some impressive estates but in general so that you don’t notice too much of it. The holes are very different and require a good but also well planned and thoughtful game.  Sometimes the course is very open, like on No. 1 where you can really push your luck with the driver, but then there’s the loop from 4 to 7 on the other side. Here I would suggest an absolute driver celibacy, if you are not Mr. „100% fairways hit“.

The greens fascinated me immediately. Very fast and top maintained, putting is an absolute joy here. What pleasantly surprised me are the lengths. There’s no thrashing par 3 where you‘d have to knock it out of the ball park. Precision is more important and you have to hit the exact spot on those fast greens, of which every single one is nastily defended by bunkers.

The fairways are all decorated with bunkers in the right places, so if you can’t hit the nicely cut middle, then have fun with that tough Bermuda rough…I had problems with my precision over and over again, so it was a real challenge to get the ball out of the thick stuff sometimes.

On the last holes, water comes into play, which makes No. 17 not only a beautiful, but also a very difficult par 4 with a 344m length and a great ruin on the right side next to the fairway. The 18th is a sweet par 5 that is close to impossible to attack with the second shot. The narrow green with water in the front is well defended. Better be precise when you’re going for a birdie.

One last bit of advice: Make sure you order the club sandwich after the round. Sensationally delicious!

So here’s my summary of Dom Pedro Millennium: It really is a banger golf course that is tricky and therefore to be played a little more cautiously.