Golf In Almerimar

January 9th, 2008 - Sandra Marshall

It seems ages since I actually played golf, but I am feeling a little more keen this year as the golf course is now completely open with the 18 hole Master Course and the 9 hole Classic Course.

We are members of the Bahia San Miguel Club, and I have just received the new Green Fees for members for 2008.

Prices depend on the number of vouchers bought and for the Master Course are:
30 - 900€, 50 - 1,350€, 100 - 2,160€, 150 - 2,430€, 200 - 2,700€

Prices for the Classic Course are:
30 - 540€, 50 - 750€, 100 - 1,200€

I’m not sure that I will buy vouchers again this year as I’m not planning to play too much and as a San Miguel member I am allowed to play 25 times at a reduced green fee anyway. San Miguel also has special agreements with the following golf courses:
Alboran, Dessert Spring, Envia Golf, Playa Serena y Santa Clara (Granada).

For more details on San Miguel and to enquire about joining please click below:

Bahia San Miguel

About Almerimar

Almerimar is located in the region of Andalucia, Spain. The nearest airport is 30km away in Almeria. Other airports that are within 3 hours include Malaga, Murcia, Granada, and Alicanti. Other holiday resorts in the region include Mojacar , Aguadulce and Roquetas de Mar

Almerimar is a great place to live as an expat amongst the expats, or to work amongst the Spanish. There are all kinds of properties including villas, apartments and town houses for rent or sale. It is a very traditional part of Spain, with traditional Spanish foods so if you plan to travel to Spain either to look for jobs, for your company to trade with companies in Spain, or to learn Spanish and enjoy the Spanish weather then come and take a look.

If you are interested in purchasing a property in Almerimar please visit our sponsor Mirror of the Sun

Almerimar is also one of the largest marinas in Spain with over 2,000 births and excellent boatyard facilities.

Trackbacks & Pingbacks

Almerimar Golf Course | AlmerimarLife Says:
January 12th, 2008 at 12:07 pm
[...] Comments Chris Marshall on Golf In AlmerimarSandra Marshall on Golf In AlmerimarJohn W on Golf In AlmerimarDream Home Demolished | AlmerimarLife on Spanish Property - Homes in the [...]
Golf In Almerimar 2 | AlmerimarLife Says:
January 15th, 2008 at 8:31 pm
[...] few days ago I posted an article ‘Golf In Almerimar, giving details of the reduced green fees offered to members of the Bahia San Miguel golf society. [...]
Golf In Almerimar | AlmerimarLife Says:
February 7th, 2008 at 9:16 pm
[...] Golf In Almerimar Special February 7th, 2008 [...]

10 Responses to “Golf In Almerimar”

John W Says:
January 12th, 2008 at 9:05 am Quote
Hi,

Sadly, the situation is more complicated than this. I´ll try to summarise.

Since the AGM of the society in mid December the committee has been negotiating with the owners of the course about pricing and there have been some misunderstandings.

In 2007 members of the society could buy 50,100,150 or 200 tickets at a reduced fee. Also, if they didn´t buy tickets they were allowed to pay and play 25 times at a reduced rate (around 36 euros).

For 2008 the committee thought it had agreed with the owners that all members could buy between 30 and 200 tickets for the master course at the prices shown in your post. In addition, the owners had a separate set of higher prices for tickets for people that were not members of the society.

Also, the 25 times pay and play option has been changed for 2008. It is now available on an unlimited basis to members of the society. However, the price is 48 euros in high season for the master course(discounted from a standard price of 65). The discounted price for low season is not yet know for this option (list price is 45 euros for June - Sept on the master course).

However, the owners have implemented something different from what the committee thought they agreed. The prices you quote for the master course appear to be only available to those members of the society who purchased tickets in 2007. Also, to get the discount you have to order how many tickets you want and pay for them (or agree to pay by 6 months payments if you buy 50 or more tickets) by January 29 2008.

Any member of the society in 2007 who didn´t buy tickets (and probably used the pay as you go option) has to pay the higher price of books of tickets which can be bought by the general public. Also, any new members of the society in 2008 cannot get the benefit of a discount on books of tickets either.

It appears that the owners of the course are trying to discourage membership of the society bu removing the discount for a proportion of the membership.

However, as you say there are a number of other benefits of membership of the society including reduced prices at other courses (including a particularly good deal at Playa Serena in the summer months that has just been published on the site) and participation in golf competitions organised by Bahía San Miguel (including 2 major competitions in August and December that include dinner, prizes and a free raffle with lots of good prizes).

So the committee is hoping that there will not be too great a drop off in membership for 2008.

Finally, please note that Jacqui and I are members of the scoiety but we are not on the committee. We look after the website for the society so we know some of the background of what is going on. For example, the reason the discounted prices for 2008 were not published on the site was because the owners requested this as part of the deal about discounts for members.

Jacqui and I will continue to update people with further information on this issue when and if it becomes available.
Sandra Marshall Says:
January 12th, 2008 at 12:05 pm Quote
Thanks John, that’s useful. Dosn’t seem to be getting any simpler AND not good news for we members who don’t want to play a lot!
Chris Marshall Says:
January 12th, 2008 at 12:05 pm Quote
Sounds like another year and another step towards ‘getting rid’ of the locals! In all the years we have been here the ‘deal’ has got worse and worse each year, which is one reason why we stopped buying the vouchers.
Dermot Fagan Says:
January 16th, 2008 at 3:39 am Quote
Hi — it’s a shame that the Hotel/Golf Course owners continue to bite the hand that feeds them (ie)they can depend on members of the Bahia GC paying green fees in excess of €250k+ in 2008,a princely ‘bread & butter’ sum that is surely the envy of most Clubs? An additional and substantial revenue stream is generated at the bar by the ever-loyal Bahia members,notwithstanding the fact that it’s the most expensive in the area! I will play most of my golf this year in Alboran(€35)and La Envia(€30),who appreciate my business.Playa Serena is also great value(more than 50% cheaper) if you spend alot of time in Almerimar between May & October. Maybe it’s time for the Committee of the Bahia to negotiate membership terms with a different Club, one that would appreciate the business and treat them decently? Yes — Almerimar GC is very convenient,but how much more are the members prepared to take? Food for thought,I hope — comments appreciated.
Dermot Fagan
johnmw Says:
January 16th, 2008 at 11:58 am Quote
I understand your frustration. However, my view is that the society is unlikely to break its links with Almerimar Golf Club completely. It was founded here in Almerimar and a lot of the members live or have property in Almerimar.The only way I can see a complete break with Almerimar GC is if the plans for a golf course in the lakes area ever deliver. Then there would be some competition here in Almerimar and perhaps a decision might be made to move courses. But at best that will be a few years away.

In the meantime, I think all the society can do is look to get as good a deal they can from as wide a variety of courses as possible. It is then up to the members to decide where they want to play. For example, Jacqui and I have reduced the number of tickets we have bought for Almerimar and are planning to play at Playa Serena in the summer. This is the best balance of cost versus convenience for us.
Chris Marshall Says:
January 16th, 2008 at 3:18 pm Quote
I know they have spent money on refurbishing it recently, but that has been a bit of a disaster and not exactly a success and it has only papered over the cracks as far as I can see.

At best I see the golf course as a good municipal one. They don’t manage it well and let all kind of crap players hack their way around. It once took up 3 hours to play 6 holes!!! The rangers are non existent, and overall I think it is a real waste of money to pay to play on the course as it is currently presented.

I can see totally the ‘benefit’ of the convenience and the social life, but that isn’t what this post is about As a course it has a very high opinion of itself that it comes nowhere close to delivering.

Has to be said that I haven’t played for over a year as I got so fed up with it so I accept I am biased and maybe a little out of date, but I rarely hear a good word said about the course and the way it is run.
John W Says:
January 19th, 2008 at 3:35 pm Quote
I agree totally about the attitude of the owners.

However, I think the course itself has improved a lot since I first started playing it a number of years ago.

Also, the green keeping staff seem to be working harder than they used to so the state of the course is still improving each time I play it. The design is great, the refurbishment has all been for the good apart from a couple of bridges that look out of place and may be dangerous when wet.

We have a one bedroom flat that we rent out and we did not consider suggesting the use of the apartment to our golfing friends in England because of the state of the course last year. However, we feel that the design of this 18 holes and its condition are good enough now to attract serious golfers interested in playing a challenging course.

My view is that this is the best course in the whole of Almeria and is now good enough to compete with a lot of other courses in the rest of Spain in terms of playability.

For me, the big thing missing now is a clubhouse or dedicated golf facility of some sort. Trying to run the golf from a small pro-shop tucked away in the basement of the hotel is not a good idea. If the owners ever get their act together and get working on the hotel refurbishment (and/or associated proper golf facility) this place will be fantastic for golfers.