Royal Golf La Bagnaia

The layout is an 18-hole par 71 of 6,672 yards, or 6,101 metres from the back tees, across 130 hectares of rolling terrain. It was designed by Robert Trent Jones Jr., who, according to the club, shaped each hole to blend into the landscape: wide fairways, undulating ground and well-placed bunkers. The club cites its World Golf Awards: “Italy’s Best Golf Course” in 2023 and “Italy’s Best Golf Hotel” in 2025.

The holes to remember. The 7th is a par 5 often swept by wind, with a small, heavily sloping green. At the 9th the second shot is blind: what matters is judging the distance to the flag. The 13th, a par 5, is the lake hole. The 14th is a downhill par 3 where the club choice depends on the wind. The 15th is a right-to-left dogleg with an uphill second shot. The 18th closes with a long, uphill par 5: the club recommends driver, then the second shot to the left to avoid the nine bunkers on the right, and not to come up short, because in front of the green lies a large depression that is hard to escape. The course has five par 3s (2, 5, 11, 14 and 17) and four par 5s (3, 7, 13 and 18); the hardest hole by handicap is the 4th, an uphill par 4.

The 2026 price list is the same from Monday to Sunday and changes with the seasons. For 18 holes the green fee is €85 from 20 February to 19 March and from 16 November to 20 December, €110 in the shoulder seasons (20 March to 16 April and 26 October to 15 November), €125 from mid-April to August and in mid-October, and €140 from 1 September to 11 October. For 9 holes the fee is €50, €65, €75 or €85; juniors up to 18 pay €55 for 18 holes and €35 for nine. On 3 and 4 August the greens are under maintenance and only nine holes are played, twice over.

A golf cart costs €50 for 18 holes (€35 for nine), an electric trolley €22, a manual one €8, and club hire €50: the sets are TaylorMade Qi10, also left-handed and junior. The website recommends booking in advance and gives no minimum handicap, closing day or dress code. Bookings on +39 366 6550031; the price list season runs from late February to mid-December.

The club house is a former brick works, now renovated with bright interiors. On the ground floor is the restaurant Il Rosmarino, with a panoramic terrace over the course: lunch every day from 12:30 to 16:30, dinner on Friday and Saturday from 19:30 to 21:30, with cooking inspired by Tuscan and Sienese tradition. The pro shop, gym and changing rooms with showers and digital-code lockers complete the picture.

The club describes the practice area as one of the best in Europe: a 300-metre range with more than 60 bays on natural grass, target greens ringed by bunkers, a short-game area with two pitch & putt greens and a large putting green in front of the club house. The academy has two PGAI instructors, Francesca Bartolini and Lorenzo Gagli, for individual lessons and group clinics.

The course is part of the La Bagnaia Golf Resort, a restored medieval village with 72 rooms.

• From kiln to restaurant. The club house occupies an old brick works.
• A blind second shot. On hole 9 the green cannot be seen from the fairway.
• Nine bunkers on one hole. On the right-hand side of the par 5 18th there are nine.
• A medieval village around the course. The course is part of a resort created from a restored medieval village.