Since 1971, La Pinetina Golf Club has been located in the heart of the Pineta Park in Appiano Gentile, to the delight of its members and visitors. A newcomer to the Golfy network – already well established in the north of Italy – this club and its hotel intend to reveal their charms to French customers.
By Claude Grandveaud-Vallat
There are many golf courses around the Italian lakes, and the setting of the Alpine foothills, together with the gentle way of life that it creates, lends itself perfectly to this. The Pineta Park in Appiano Gentile has not escaped this craze with the creation of La Pinetina Golf Club in 1971, in the middle of the foliage.
This centuries-old park on the south-western side of Lake Como has offered 70 hectares of its forest to the design of this course, which was conceived by John Harris, a British architect who was in vogue fifty years ago. On a gently undulating terrain, by limiting forest cutting, he created a narrow course, offering some beautiful views of the emblematic Monte Rosa, the 2nd highest peak in the Alps. Between the Scots pines – the Pinetina! -oaks, birches, chestnut trees and surroundings covered with ferns and lichen, the vegetation is dense near the fairways. Enough to lose a few balls! In spring, the undergrowth is adorned with lily of the valley, anemones and violets, a palette of colours that makes you forget to swing…
Not very long, the layout is nonetheless technical, particularly on the outward leg where precision is the key to a good card. The 3rd, a long par 5, was a real pain in the neck during the Alps Tour stage at La Pinetina Golf Club. In 2022, the Italian Gregorio De Leo set the course record at 59 (-11), before lifting the Giorgio Bordoni Memorial Trophy.
Even if the outward and return journeys do not intersect, the setting remains as wooded as the 10th. A few opulent villas also take advantage of this tranquil setting where a few red squirrels disturb the forest silence, hopping from branch to branch, while a hare or fox crosses a fairway at full speed. Saving the best for last, the 18th, a plunging, dogleg left par 5 approaching a well-defended green with three deep bunkers, is well deserved while bets on birdies are made on the clubhouse terrace, an idyllic place to eat or simply to have a drink after the game. The richness of Italian cuisine has not escaped the chef’s talent, who knows how to adapt his dishes to the expectations of the players as well as those of the visitors who take the time to taste his beautiful Lombardy dishes. With the hotel integrated into the main building, it is pleasant to stay on site, to jump out of bed on the tee…
Without waiting for “zero phyto”, the club anticipated the green era. As early as 2000, solar panels were installed on the roof of the driving range to meet the club’s electrical needs. Since 2010, the waste water is clean, thanks to the installation of two water purifiers, one for the clubhouse, the other for the greenkeeping workshop. These improvements have enabled the club to become the first Italian golf course to be certified by GEO (Golf Environment Organization) and to be awarded the “Energy Prize” by the Italian Golf Federation in 2013.
The club is only 25 km from the Swiss border, half an hour from Milan-Malpensa airport, and very close to the Inter Milan training centre, which is why it is not unusual to come across football stars on the greens of La Pinetina.
Now, thanks to the Golfy Network, you can discover the fifty-year-old charms of La Pinetina Golf Club. The end of summer and the autumn in Italy, months with a mild climate, are ideal to enjoy without delay… And why not the neighbouring clubs of Villa d’Este and Carimate.
La Pinetina Golf Club
Via al Golf 4 – 22070 – Appiano Gentile (CO)
Tél. : +39 31 93 32 02.
https://golfpinetina.it
18T : par 71, 5761 m., Harris , Albertini, Mezzacanes (1971).
