Defending Madeira Islands Open champion James Morrison gives his guide to the stunning course at Porto Santo Golfe, designed by the late, great Spaniard Seve Ballesteros...
Hole 1:A fairly long par four to start, which slopes downhill and from left to right. Depending on the wind you can be hitting three or four irons into a small green, so par’s definitely your friend here.
Hole 2:Another tough hole where you’re hitting into the wind, more often than not. Your ideal drive is up the right hand side, just short of the bunker, which leaves you with another long approach with a four or five iron to another small green. So if you can get through the first two holes without any bogeys, you’ve had a good start.
Hole 3:A par five, which takes you up and over the hill. It’s two good hits to get there, unless the wind’s helping you. There’s water short of the green, which is short and slopey, so you’ve got to be very careful with your approach. People will automatically assume that because it’s a par five you should be looking at making birdie, but four’s a good score here.
Hole 4:This is a short par four which takes your round the corner. If the wind’s into you, a solid drive will leave you with an eight or nine iron for your approach shot. There’s water to the left of the green, so if the pin’s on the left then you need to be very careful.
Hole 5:The first par three on the course. I’d normally hit a six or seven iron to this small, slopey green. If you can hit the middle of the green every day, you’ll make at worst a three.
Hole 6:A par five which is straight down the hill. With the wind behind you can reach the green in two, so it’s a birdie chance. But if it’s against you, you’ve got no chance but to lay up really – unless you’re super long, which I’m not!
Hole 7:A tough par three, where if you’re off the back tee you can be hitting anything up to a two iron. Again the green’s fairly small, so your control’s got be very good. If you make par here every day, you’ll be picking up shots on the rest of the field, no doubt about it.
Hole 8:Onto a par five, with a big gulley up the right. It’s pretty tough to get there in two, unless there’s a strong wind helping you. If you lay up you’ve only got 50 or 60 yards left to the green, so it’s a good birdie chance.
Hole 9:Another long par three – I took a three iron in the practice round. The green here’s small again, so par’s a good score – even though Callum Macaulay had a hole in one last year!
Hole 10:A risk / reward par five, with water up the right off to the tee and to the left of the green. If you get your drive away you can get home with a two or three iron, but you’ve got to be brave and really commit to the shot fully. The lay-up area’s really narrow, so if you get out of position off the tee, then you’re really in trouble. There’s water if you leave it short and out of bounds if you go through the fairway, so the tee shot’s absolutely key. But if you play it well and be aggressive, you can make a four here.
Hole 11:A short par four, you only need to take a hybrid off the tee which will leave you with a sand wedge for your second shot. There’s water short of the green, but it doesn’t really come into play unless you try to drive it. Personally I don’t see that as the right play, because the green’s quite small so it’s tough to hold it. But either way, this is definitely a good birdie chance.
Hole 12:A par five with water on the fairway, but it’s not quite in play. If you get your drive away you can get on in two with a three or five wood. Even if you just miss the green you’ve still got a decent chance of getting up and down for a four, so you should probably be looking to make birdie here.
Hole 13:This signature hole is the first in a spectacular run of holes. I normally take a five iron over the cliffs, but if you’re you leak it right you’ll be playing your next shot from the beach! If you’re brave you can make birdie, but if the pin’s on the right and you’re too brave you can just as easily make a bogey or worse.
Hole 14:A great hole – probably my favourite on the course. A short-ish par four which is again a risk / reward hole. It doglegs from left to right, but it’s straight as the crow flies because the green’s right on the cliff. So your best play is to hit a driver straight over the cliffs and take the most direct route to the green.
Hole 15:A short par three, with a gulley just short of the green. It’s only 120 yards but if the wind’s into you, which is often is, it can be tricky to get the club right. If the pin’s on the front right of the green it can be a deceptively tricky hole, so it’s definitely no gimme birdie.
Hole 16:A good par four, where a drive off the tee leaves you with a seven or eight iron if the win’s with you – but a four iron is if isn’t! It’s straight down the hill and the fairway’s quite wide, so if you keep it in play you can make a birdie with two good shots.
Hole 17:A long par three, you’ll probably need to take a three iron or a hybrid off the tee. I think I made three birdies here when I won, which was good going because it’s a tough hole.
Hole 18:A long par five to finish. Off the back tees, you’ve got no real chance of reaching in two, but if they move the tees forward you can make it – although there’s water guarding the front of the green. On the last day Oliver [Fisher] was way ahead of me, which made my mind up to go for the green in two. Luckily I hit my three wood into the back bunker and got up and down for a four to win by one shot, so looking back it was definitely the right play!
