Golf Course Review – Bonalba
This course was designed by Ramon Espinosa and was opened to the public in 1993 and is located just outside Alicante and is just a short distance from the beaches of San Juan.
To find this course ravelling from the South take the A7 motorway and pass through the tunnel and take the first exit signposted for Mutxamel and Jijona and follow the signs in the general direction of Jijona and after approx 2km take the exit signposted for Busot and Bonalba. After entering the urbanisation turn right at the large roundabout and the clubhouse is located after approx 600 metres on the right.
The clubhouse is excellent with a large restaurant with terrace overlooking the course, good changing and shower rooms; well appointed pro-shop plus for the non golfers there is a swimming pool and spa. The practise facilities are just outside the clubhouse with two putting greens plus two practise nets
This is very much a true golfer’s course which is a genuine par 72 championship layout of 6,367 metres (7,004 yards) from the white tees and a handicap slope of 132 which indicates the level of course difficulty. The course designer has incorporated water hazards, numerous dog-legs and undulating fairways and greens in his plans which ensure that you do not just ‘grip it and rip it’ but need to plot your way around this course. The front nine holes of this course have three of the five lakes in play and the locals refer to the stretch of holes from hole 6 to hole 9 as ‘Amen Corner’ with stroke indices 1 and 3 included in this group of holes. The back nine incorporates a number of dog-leg holes and the 12th hole is particularly interesting because they have positioned a tree right on the correct line and length for a good tee shot. The par 5 15th hole and par 4 16th holes in particular need well positioned drives to give good birdies opportunities BUT stray off line and you have a card wrecker on your hands. If you are visiting the region and looking for a challenging game of golf then pay this excellent course a visit.