Golfing road trip around the Bassin d'Arcachon.

Resolutely in tune with the times, the "Bassin" - as its aficionados familiarly call it - has established itself as one of France's most fashionable destinations. Its art of living is authentic, its atmosphere invigorating, its lights bewitching and its fervent supporters even lend it an incomparable microclimate. Here, the coastline is unspoilt and the panoramas are picture-postcard.

It's also the place to be for those who love the little white ball, with several courses on offer: Arcachon, Gujan, les Aiguilles Vertes in Lanton and a pitch and putt at Cap Ferret.

Arcachon, a pearl on the Bassin

Created by Napoleon III in 1857, the seaside resort of Arcachon soon attracted the crowned heads and aristocracy, and as early as 1894, the town was equipped with a golf course and tennis courts. Nine holes were first built in 1895 near the Pointe de l'Aiguillon on the initiative of William Exshaw, an Irish Cognac merchant. He felt it was the only way to bring his Anglo-Saxon friends to the small seaside resort of Arcachon.

In 1903, the golf course was taken over by the town and welcomed its first golfers on November^{1 of} the same year on this 9-hole links course just outside Arcachon. It's worth remembering that, in those days, the game was played mainly in winter. The site was closed in 1937, and it wasn't until 1957 that a new 18-hole course was built on the wooded dune of Laurey, in La Teste-de-Buch. It was designed by Cecil Brandford, a highly skilled amateur player and architect of golf courses in Italy and Annecy in France. Under the impetus of Jacques Léglise - president of both the club and the French Golf Federation - the course soon became a must. Since then, its success has never wavered. Varied and perfectly maintained, with bougainvilleas, azaleas and hydrangeas in bloom, the course is a delight for members and visiting holidaymakers alike.

A golf test on the first eight holes

The course (5523 meters, par 72) is set in a hilly landscape overlooking the Bay of Arcachon, which unfortunately can only be seen from the tee on 1 or the green on 18. The first eight holes, some of which are very hilly, such as the par 4 on 1 or the long par 3 on 2, are a real test of golf. Generally speaking, putting the ball into play is crucial. If the ball isn't on the fairway, it has every chance of getting lost in the vegetation and adding a few points to your scorecard. On the outward leg are the two signature holes of the Arcachon course: 4, a 368-meter dog-leg par 4, and 6, another 309-meter par 4, not very long but very technical, with a fairly narrow fairway and an elevated green well defended by bunkers. With the exception of a pond crossing on par 3 11 and a green surrounded by water on 14, the water hazards scattered along the return are not insurmountable. After this series of holes requiring a minimum of thought (and precision...), the final two holes, which are bound to be very physical, lead up to the clubhouse.

There's a treadmill along 17 to take the strain off your legs, just before you sit down on the terrace of the clubhouse's bar-restaurant, housed in a Gaume-style residence. It's a pleasure to enjoy a refreshment or lunch at one of Arcachon's finest tables in a very convivial atmosphere.

In short, a course that continues to improve over time and that the various presidents of the Sports Association and the Sports and Course Committees are constantly working to improve, with the help of major investments (renovation of the watering system, new design of the green on 17, refurbishment of certain fairways), not forgetting the remarkable work of the Course Steward and his team for regular work such as aeration.

Last June, the town of Arcachon launched an invitation to tender for a diagnostic, feasibility and programming mission for the reorganization and extension of the Arcachon golf course. The project would also include a real estate component, including a hotel. To be continued...

Golf d'Arcachon

Green fee from €32 to €65, depending on season.

Information: 05 56 54 44 00 andwww.golfarcachon.org

The Blue-Green golf course in Gujan-Mestras celebrated its thirtieth anniversary.

In 1986, Paul Lopez (who died on hole 2 in 2018), owner of 110 hectares of untamed pine forest between the Arcachon-Bordeaux expressway and the Route de Cazaux, decided to set aside 50 hectares for a real-estate development and offer 80 hectares to the Gujan town council to create a golf course. The golf course will be built and operated by Golf Espace, a subsidiary of Blue Green, under a 60-year emphyteutic lease signed with the municipality.

In 1990, the 18-hole "Les Lacs" and 9-hole "Les Pins" courses were completed, designed by Alain Prat, the same architect who designed Pléneuf Val André in Brittany. " At the time, the fashion was for American-style courses, with spectacular, challenging holes designed for competitions. In fact, we've hosted qualifying events for the European circuit on several occasions, and I'm not despairing of one day hosting an event on the women's professional circuit," points out Karine Rongier, who has been managing the Gujan golf course since 2008. She also points out a paradox: " Gujan is labelled as a tourist golf course, but out of 70,000 tee times a year, most come from our 960 season ticket holders . A figure that has climbed steadily over the years, supported by Blue Green formulas that enable new golfers to be trained.

Renovation of course watering system
For a golf course, watering is as important as the foundations for a house, and given the quality of the soil and temperatures, a good watering system was essential. The course is very wide, exposed to the wind, summers are hot and the sandy soil typical of the Landes Girondines does not retain water.

The refurbishment of the sprinkler system on the 18-hole course was completed on March 31, 2020. This involved sub-soiling the ground to allow the cables to be laid without leaving too many scars, before replacing the sprinklers. It was completed with the renovation of the 9-hole course and driving range.
Total cost: 1.4 million euros.

While hitting a ball at Gujan is a pure pleasure for the eyes and the game, given the superb surroundings, it's no easy feat either, given the technical nature of the course, with water hazards in play on half the holes, and bunkers that are sometimes small, sometimes huge and often very deep. The final hole, whose green is located in front of the clubhouse, is the finest illustration of this: a 340-metre par 4 with a 60-metre-long bunker on the left of the fairway and a well-defended green on the peninsula... Before playing this final hole of the Gujan Amen Corner, holes 16 and 17 were a no-holds-barred affair....

Golf Blue Green de Gujan

Green fee from 43 to 62 euros depending on season

Tel 05 57 52 73 73

www.gujan.bluegreen.com

Aiguilles vertes golf course. Wild boars are no longer allowed...

To round off this club-in-hand road trip, golfers will head north of the basin to Lanton, to play Les Aiguilles Vertes, the region's third golf course, planted within a drive of the resort's large lake.

Designed by Olivier Brizon in 1986, managed for six years by Guy Rechenman, a golf teacher turned best-selling author, and bought by Michael Minassian, this 9-hole course is the ideal place to learn to hit the little white ball or to perfect your wedging or putting skills.

Here, too, the environment remains unchanged. The 9 flat holes are spread out between giant maritime pines whose silhouettes are silhouetted against the sky throughout the round. Small, elevated greens call for calibrated approaches and precisely studied putt lines. But first, you'll have to negotiate three holes where water is at stake.

After a destructive wild boar invasion, Michael Minassian, the owner of the property, invested in a reinforced fence that runs all around the golf course. Since then, it's all been peaceful, especially as the order of the holes has changed: the tee of 1, which was far from the clubhouse, has become 9 and 2 has become 1....

Even if the pitch isn't as manicured as in Arcachon, the club has a friendly, family atmosphere.

Golf des Aiguilles vertes

Green fee from 21 to 28 euros.

Tel 05 56 82 95 71