Penati Golf Resort

Wat een geweldige baan is dit. Wij speelden de legend course. Een uurtje boven Bratislava, ook makkelijk te bereiken waarschijnlijk vanuit Praag of Wenen, 100% het tripje waard. Een behoorlijk glooiende bosbaan, maar wel met wijde fairways. Zeer goede greens, stimp 9.5. Goede ontvangst, parkeren voor de deur, prachtig restaurant. Catering kar vier keer gezien in de ronde, dus ook top geregeld. Alles staat zeer goed aangegeven per hole. Hij is prima te lopen, maar met 32° wordt het op een gegeven moment wel een klein beetje zwaar. Voor de ervaring zou ik dat echter toch aanbevelen. De andere course schijnt nog beter te zijn, Dan is het advies, beide spelen en overnachten in een van de appartementen. In het clubhuis kan prima gegeten worden.

Every year I try to revisit best course in Slovakia. This year my timing was August to see how they handle enormous heat wave which is squeezing whole Europe and forcing courses to close water pipes. I can tell you I was very nicely surprised in what shape the course is. Fairways are still 80% green color and nice and juicy. Best parts of the course are greens, you do not see any damage from heat on them. The greenkeeping team does unbelievable job there. I had discussion with them and they keep hand watering some spots especially around greens and tee boxes. Yes there are no high roughs now, so course is very much easy to play. Also they try to avoid any fire or anything, so buggies are not allowed grass only on path. All that is very affordable even in peak the green fee is 100Eur, where in other countries you pay even more to hit ball from dead fairways. I suggest to visit this number 1 course in Slovakia. If you are interested in course description read my old reviews where is more info, this is only update on current situation. Nevertheless there is one big update, now they do have their own accommodation directly in clubhouse and rooms are really luxury.

I had the chance to visit this course again after five years. Right from the beginning, who wouldn’t want to read the rest, this is #1 in Slovakia and among the top 100 in the EU, especially in terms of service, price, location, and quality. What a pleasure it is to always come here! From the first step into the clubhouse, you feel welcome; it’s always bustling with activity. The receptionists are very helpful and friendly, making you feel like you’re at your home club. The clubhouse also features a very good and affordable restaurant where you can enjoy tasty food and a variety of beverages. Not far from here, there are vineyards with excellent and competitively priced wines. I quickly checked in and rushed to the practice area. I see a lot of improvements from the last five years. The course is in great shape, and the level of maintenance is very high; this is already evident in the practice area. There are two courses, and each of them is a bit different. The Heritage course is full of water hazards, narrow fairways, and challenging shots. I would say the greens are more undulated than those on the Legend course. Both courses have different designers: Heritage is designed by Jonathan Davison, currently a local resident in Bratislava, while Legend is designed by Nicklaus Design Studio. Each course has a classic routing where the 9th and 18th greens are close to the clubhouse. The front nine on Heritage starts with two good holes to warm up, both very scorable. The last stretch of holes, especially 8 and 9, encourages you to be more aggressive and can be intimidating due to the large water hazards. Honestly, I would love to see Bryson play hole number 9, driving directly from tee to green. The back nine takes you from the lake area more uphill. I suggest everyone play shorter and smarter; the roughs are really deep there, and it’s often not possible to play from the forest when you hit pine trees, as the forest is not as clear-cut as in Turkey, making it difficult to find your ball. Returning to the course, the 18th hole is situated to the left of the clubhouse terrace, partially surrounded by water. So, try to keep your ball to the left of the tree, and then you will have a clear shot to the green. The Legend course is more forgiving for players who cannot consistently hit the fairways, as mentioned earlier from the Nicklaus studio design perspective. The entire course is located to the right of the clubhouse. Similar to Heritage, the first two holes are scorable and serve as good warm-up holes. After that, you will notice differences compared to the previous course; it's up and down with many elevated tee shots, numerous waste areas, and wider fairways. Penati is situated in a sandy area within a pine forest, creating a vacation-like atmosphere for the entire resort. I would like to highlight a few holes on the Legend course for which Penati is famous. For sure, hole 15 is a par 6 that measures 702 meters. Another very picturesque hole is 8, a par 3 with an elevated tee, which presents a scary shot; and certainly, the last hole features an island green, despite its size, many golfers end up in the water. To summarize, both golf courses are in perfect condition, thanks to the entire Penati team, who do an incredible job here. I suggest everyone add this course to their golfing bucket list. As mentioned earlier, take the time to enjoy lunch or dinner in the restaurant and observe the 18th greens from the restaurant terrace. Penati is not only a golf course, it’s a center of sports and fun after the game. Recently, they have also added great accommodations, making it one of the greatest golf resorts in Europe.

An exceptional golf resort, perhaps even on a European scale, with numerous international awards. In a specific area of windblown sand covered with pine forests, two different 18-hole championship courses – Legend and Heritage – were built by world-class designers. Playing here is like visiting a golf temple. You walk through nature, each hole is separate and belongs only to you. The scenery is beautiful, the course is very varied, and the combination of dark green forests, yellow sand, blue skies, and mirror-like water surfaces is simply... gorgeous. And the quality and maintenance of the course are superb. Considering how large the resort is and how many golfers from different countries it attracts, the clubhouse is relatively modest, but it has a top-notch restaurant. A large residential and recreational area is gradually growing up around the resort, which now also offers accommodation and various golf packages. Of course, you have to pay extra for such exceptional quality. It is the most expensive golf course in Slovakia, but it is worth it at least once in a while. And you can also take advantage of some of the discounts they offer – as I do, so that I can play on both courses at least once a year. As a personal reward 😊

Wir haben den Legende Course gespielt und waren von Design (samt markanter Par6 Bahn) Herausforderungen und Platzpflege begeistert - sicher einer besten, den ich meinem langen Golferleben jemals gespielt habe. Das sehr freundliche und flexible Sekretariat verdient dazu auch Lob. Leider ist die Umgebung furchtbar arm, was man an den Menschen und Häusern sehen kann - da ist ein Luxusclub in the middle of nowhere mit zur Schau getragenem Reichtum der neureuchen Clubmitglieder ein sehr protziger Kontrast... Schlimmer ist das Restaurant, das erst nach sehr langer Wartezeit passable Speisen auf den Teller bringt. Am schlimmsten ist jedoch das extrem unfreundliche und unwillig Servicepersonal, das den Spaß einer gelungenen Golfrunde binnen Minuten zu nehmen versteht...