Golf in Italy

Marco Simone Golf Club

As professional golf’s Ryder Cup is scheduled to begin on Long Island this week, I am reminded that the event was last held in Italy in 2023.

Over the last several years, Italy has become the favorite vacation destination for me and my wife.

While I rarely play golf these days, I thought it could be a cool place to eventually play some golf down the road.  Therefore, a while back I did some research on the golf scene in Italy.

What I learned is that you could actually put together a few different golf trips that would also take you to some of the best destinations in Italy.

Imagine heading to Rome and being able to see The Vatican, the Colosseum, the Roman Forum, The Pantheon, Trevi Fountain and other sites while also getting in a round of golf at nearby Marco Simone Golf Club, which hosted the Ryder Cup.

And from what I gather, that’s not even the best course you can play near Rome!

You can then venture northward up into Tuscany, visit Florence and perhaps a couple of the beautiful small towns such as Montepulciano and San Gimignano.

While in Tuscany, you could have the opportunity to play at Royal Golf La Bagnaia, Le Pavoniere and Castelfalfi.

Le Pavoniere

Le Pavoniere is closest to Florence while Castelfalfi is about 75 minutes away by car from Florence.

Northern Italy, in the Lake region and around Milan and Turin is where the highest rated golf courses are located.

This should be of no surprise since Northern Italy is the economic engine of the country.

In fact, the Piedmont region of which Turin is the capital, has most of the top rated courses in Italy.  The best of these courses is Royal Park I Roveri near Turin.

From Turin you can head up to Lake Maggiore, where you can find a couple more excellent courses, including Golf Club Des Iles Borromees and Castelconturbia Golf Club, about 40 minutes south of the town of Stresa, which lies on the western shores of the lake.

Several more excellent golf courses can be found by heading east to visit Lake Como and Lake Garda.

These include Arzaga Golf Club and GardaGolf Country Club near Lake Garda and Villa D’Este and Menaggio Golf Club near Lake Como.

If you want to combine golf with a beach trip, then look no further than the island of Sardinia.

Sardinia is world-renowned for its spectacular beaches with turquoise waters and powdery white sand.

What it is less known for is its golf, but there are several golf courses that will wet your appetite.

Pevero Golf Club

The two best courses on the island are Pevero Golf Club in the Costa Smeralda area on the northeast part of the island and Is Arenas Golf and Country Club on the west coast.

There are a few more courses worth considering if you head down to Cagliari at the south side of Sardinia, including Tanka Golf Villasimius and Is Molas Golf Resort.  These courses are worth playing just for the views they offer!

Lastly, I should mention a couple other resorts that you can visit on a trip to Italy.

First is the Argentario Golf and Wellness Resort which is located at the southwest corner of Tuscany along the coast.  This facility hosted the Italian Open in 2025.

The second is the Verdura Resort on the west coast of Sicily.  This is highly regarded as one of the best golf resorts in all of Europe.

The best way to travel around Italy as part of a golf trip is by car.

I recommend looking for a rental car through DiscoverCars.com, which will help you find the best deal for a rental.

I’ll be getting into more details on how to put together a golf trip to various regions of Italy down the road.

With that in mind, you will definitely need to rent a car while visiting Sardinia with your golf clubs!