Vale do Lobo is a golf resort in the Algarve region of southern Portugal. Vale do Lobo comprises one of the three corners of the Golden Triangle of the Algarve's most affluent and expensive communities.

Vale do Lobo


Praia de Vale do Lobo
Club information
Vale do Lobo is located in Portugal
Vale do Lobo
Location in Portugal
Coordinates37°03′18″N 8°03′50″W / 37.055°N 8.064°W / 37.055; -8.064
LocationAlgarve, Portugal
Established1968; 56 years ago
TypePrivate
Total holes36
Events hostedPortuguese Open (2002–03)
Websitewww.valedolobo.com
Royal Course
Designed byRocky Roquemore
Par72
Length6,059 metres
Ocean Course
Designed bySir Henry Cotton
Par73
Length6,137 metres

The community hosted the Portuguese Open, part of the PGA European Tour, in 2002 and 2003.

History

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Vale do Lobo was among the first tourist resorts to be built in Portugal, having been catalysed by the Estado Novo's decision in 1962 to build Faro Airport[1] following the success in the 1950s of luxury Spanish resorts such as Torremolinos. In 1962, Trust House Forte acquired the land, which became Vale do Lobo, with the intention of turning it into a luxury resort. At the time, the region was a stone pine forest with a sand beach. Townhouses and villas were built for tourists and permanent foreign residents. An 18-hole golf course designed by Henry Cotton was built, and Vale do Lobo quickly became a popular destination with the British market. In 1968, Trust House Forte and Costain Group opened the first five-star hotel in the Algarve, the Dona Filipa, named after Philippa of Lancaster, whose marriage to John I of Portugal confirmed the 700-year-old Anglo-Portuguese Alliance.

In 1977, the Venlo-born Dutch entrepreneur Sander van Gelder acquired the resort out of receivership after it had struggled financially following the 1974 Carnation Revolution. He had originally intended to acquire just a small plot of land in the area but ended up taking the opportunity to acquire the whole resort.[2] The resort was run under van Gelder's ownership for the next thirty years, adding another eighteen-hole golf course and many facilities, including bars, restaurants and shops. The resort hosted the Portuguese Open in 2002 and 2003.

In 2006, a combination of Portuguese and international investors, together with the Portuguese state-owned bank Caixa Geral de Depósitos, acquired the development from van Gelder, installing Diogo Gaspar Ferreira as CEO. Over the next four years, the consortium took out twelve loans to further develop the resort for a total new debt of 249 million euros.[3] By the summer of 2015, all of these loans were in arrearage. Because five of these loans were from Caixa, at a time when Armando Vara was the bank's administrator, they were investigated as part of Operation Marquis,[3][4] and figured in the charges against José Sócrates and other Operation Marquis defendants.[5]

Golf Courses

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Royal Course

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Vale do Lobo Royal Course (meters)
Tee Rating/Slope 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Out 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 In Total
Pro 72.7 / 133 394 287 383 313 463 395 156 388 148 2927 326 494 331 352 360 303 224 366 322 3078 6005
Reg 70.7 / 129 360 261 370 288 450 375 126 365 133 2728 315 473 299 341 327 282 190 346 295 2868 5596
Ladies 71.6 / 129 317 264 309 230 371 336 101 296 102 2326 262 408 259 311 312 251 133 284 260 2480 4806
Par 5 4 4 4 5 4 3 4 3 36 4 5 4 4 4 4 3 4 4 36 72
SI 15 13 3 11 7 1 17 5 9 16 2 12 4 6 18 10 8 14


Vale do Lobo Royal Course (yards)
Tee Rating/Slope 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Out 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 In Total
Pro 72.7 / 133 431 314 419 342 506 432 171 424 162 3201 357 540 362 385 394 331 245 400 352 3366 6567
Reg 70.7 / 129 394 285 405 315 492 410 138 399 145 2983 344 517 327 373 358 308 208 378 323 3136 6120
Ladies 71.6 / 129 347 289 338 252 406 367 110 324 112 2544 287 446 283 340 341 274 145 311 284 2712 5256
Par 5 4 4 4 5 4 3 4 3 36 4 5 4 4 4 4 3 4 4 36 72
SI 15 13 3 11 7 1 17 5 9 16 2 12 4 6 18 10 8 14

Ocean Course

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Vale do Lobo Ocean Course (meters)
Tee Rating/Slope 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Out 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 In Total
Pro 74.1 / 140 429 349 497 381 192 416 171 385 347 3167 436 413 378 144 346 195 483 144 416 2955 6122
Reg 71.5 / 135 399 279 457 339 163 410 166 374 326 2913 425 386 283 135 344 178 429 135 367 2682 5595
Ladies 73.7 / 134 359 251 409 257 140 358 149 305 304 2532 413 355 265 101 332 137 404 126 340 2473 5005
Par 4 4 5 4 3 5 3 5 4 37 5 4 4 3 4 3 5 3 5 36 73
SI 5 13 1 7 17 9 15 11 3 10 2 6 18 8 12 4 16 14


Vale do Lobo Ocean Course (yards)
Tee Rating/Slope 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Out 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 In Total
Pro 74.1 / 140 469 382 544 417 210 455 187 421 379 3463 477 452 413 157 378 213 528 157 455 3232 6695
Reg 71.5 / 135 436 305 500 371 178 448 182 409 357 3186 465 422 309 148 376 195 469 148 401 2933 6119
Ladies 73.7 / 134 393 274 447 281 153 392 163 334 332 2769 452 388 290 110 363 150 442 138 372 2705 5474
Par 4 4 5 4 3 5 3 5 4 37 5 4 4 3 4 3 5 3 5 36 73
SI 5 13 1 7 17 9 15 11 3 10 2 6 18 8 12 4 16 14

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Sérgio Palma Brito: O Algarve às Sextas (2012.04.06)Penina e Vale do Lobo – Inovar em 1963".
  2. ^ Webster, Jack (1985). "The Making of the Algarve". Glagow Herald.
  3. ^ a b Oliveira, Mariana (21 November 2015). "Empreendimento de Vale de Lobo deve cerca de 300 milhões de euros à Caixa". Público (in Portuguese). Comunicação Social, S.A. Archived from the original on 14 January 2017.
  4. ^ Martins, Nuno André (8 June 2015). "Empreendimento em Vale do Lobo investigado no Caso Sócrates". Observador (in Portuguese). Archived from the original on 9 June 2015.
  5. ^ Oliveira, Mariana (9 February 2017). "Comissões de 200 mil recebidas por gestores envolvidos no caso Sócrates". Público (in Portuguese). Comunicação Social, S.A. Archived from the original on 9 February 2017.


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