Playing golf in Buenos Aires

Famous for tango, prime steak and football, Argentina‘s capital city Buenos Aires has some brilliant golf courses too. Here’s our quick tour.

There’s a few courses in Buenos Aires itself, while some are in the city’s surroundings suburbs, close to Argentina’s gorgeous countryside famous for its endless grassy plains.

While many golf clubs in and close to the city can be quite exclusive, City of Buenos Aires Golf Course is a public course and very accessible for foreign visitors. Known locally as Campo Municipal de Golf Juan Bautista Segura, it’s in the city’s Palermo district and is considered one of the best public golf courses in Latin America. A parkland course with wide and straight tree-lined fairways, it’s a bit of a gem tucked away in the bustling city and a favourite with the locals.

Another public course is Ciudad Golf Buenos Aires, located in the heart of the city and surrounded by buildings. Famed architect Allister Mackenzie designed this charming 18-hole course, an oasis away from the hustle an bustle and easy to get to.

Also located in the heart of the city, San Andres Golf Club is the oldest course in Argentina, taking its name from Scotland’s St Andrews. It’s a traditional club steeped in history with a typical British parkland style course of old ancient trees, medium sized greens with gentle slopes, and penalising rough.

In the west of the city, Buenos Aires Golf Club is one of the city’s best known courses. The layout combines 27 holes and was designed by Robert Hagge in 1994 with nine interconnected lakes, excellent greens and top-level maintenance. It held the 2000 Golf World Cup when Tiger Woods played and the 2010 World Amateur Championships.

In the northern outskirts of the city, Olivos Golf Club consists of 27 holes of beautiful trees and greens of excellent quality and design. This is one of the most beautiful, best kept courses in Argentina and it has hosted the Argentine Open and Masters and the Golf World Cup in 2010.

Further north still, is Nordelta Golf Club with 18 holes designed by Jack Nicklaus. Deemed good enough to host the Argentine Open in 2009, a year after in opened, it’s one of the toughest courses in the country. But it’s an extremely pleasurable place to play golf with possibly the city’s best greens.

Another Jack Nicklaus layout, Pilara Golf Club opened in 2013. In the northwest outskirts of the city, it’s a parkland course and a Golden Bear signature design. With large undulating greens this course requires precise shots and thoughtful navigation around its 80 white sand bunkers and man made water hazards.

Other golfing highlights on a trip to Buenos Aires include Ranelagh Golf Club, The Jockey Club, and Martindale Country Club.

Stay & play

If you’re looking to combine golf and a place to stay, La Reserva Cardales Resort Country Club is around 50km north of the city and a great spot for a golf vacation. It offers five-star accommodation and access to its excellent 18-hole golf course which is laid out between streams and lakes.

Another great place to stay with a golf course is the Pilar Hilton, around 45km northwest of the city centre. It’s a five-star hotel with access to Pilar Golf Club, 27 English-style parkland holes with rolling greens, wide fairways, streams and lakes. It has hosted the Argentina Open, and was chosen by The Masters, USGA and R&A to host the Latin America Amateur Championship in 2015.