West Cliffs Golf Course

Óbidos, Silver Coast · Designed by Cynthia Dye (2017) · Est. 2017

9.0/10Edge Score

€€€€Green fee

72Par

6,979Yards

18Holes

Why this Edge Score: A spectacular modern links on the wild Silver Coast, Cynthia Dye's West Cliffs was named the world's best new course when it opened in 2017. A memorable oceanside back nine and a par 3 played from atop a giant dune make it one of Portugal's most exciting courses.

West Cliffs is one of the most spectacular modern links in Europe. Designed by Cynthia Dye — of the celebrated Dye golf-architecture dynasty — and opened in 2017, it was named the World's Best New Golf Course at that year's World Golf Awards, and it has been climbing the European rankings ever since. It sits on the wild Silver Coast beside its sister course, Praia d'El Rey, north of Lisbon.

The land is extraordinary: rolling sand dunes clad in coastal vegetation, with pine groves looking down on the Atlantic from above. Dye kept the natural terrain as undisturbed as possible, and the result is a true seaside links with a memorable oceanside back nine — the par-3 5th, played from the top of a huge dune straight towards the Atlantic, is one of the most photographed new holes in the game.

Big, bold, windswept and beautiful, West Cliffs is the headline reason golfers are discovering the Silver Coast.

Holes worth knowing

15th (par-3) — played from the top of a huge dune straight towards the Atlantic, one of the most striking new short holes in golf.
2The oceanside back nine — a run of windswept links holes along the dunes above the sea that has drawn worldwide acclaim.

Highlights

World's Best New Golf Course (2017)
A true modern links by Cynthia Dye
Memorable oceanside back nine
Beside its sister course Praia d'El Rey

Good to know

→Play it alongside Praia d'El Rey next door for a two-course Silver Coast trip — very different, both excellent, from one base.
→It is genuine links golf: check the forecast, keep the ball low, and embrace the wind, which defines the round on the oceanside back nine.
→The medieval walled town of Óbidos is minutes away — grab a Ginja cherry liqueur in a chocolate cup and wander the ramparts at dusk.
→Nazaré, half an hour north, is where the world's biggest waves are surfed each winter — the lighthouse-fort viewing platform makes a dramatic day out — and Peniche and the Berlengas islands are close too.
→The Silver Coast is a quieter, wilder alternative to the Algarve, under an hour from Lisbon airport.