Laid out in the late 1990s by David Mezzacane within a nature reserve near the medieval village of Acaya, the course was substantially remodeled by Michael Hurdzan and Dana Fry starting in 2007 and remains the only 18-hole course in the Salento peninsula.
"A relaxed resort round best paired with the Salento coast nearby; the Hurdzan/Fry remodel softened some of the original's rougher edges."
Founded 1996, with David Mezzacane's original course opening in 2000 beside the protected Le Cesine wetland near the Adriatic; Michael Hurdzan and Dana Fry's deliberately eco-sensitive remodel reopened in 2009 and was named Golf Digest Italy's Best New Course that year. It's a par-71 parkland spread among olive groves, poppy fields, old stone farm buildings and a shepherd's cave, a few minutes from the intact 16th-century fortified town of Acaya. The Challenge Tour played its Acaya Open here in 2011 and 2012, and it ranks first in southern Italy.
Template hunters — the 2nd is a proper Biarritz green modeled on Yale's — plus holiday golfers and anyone who wants a relaxed Puglia stroll instead of a beating.
The 2nd's Biarritz green — long, with a deep cross-swale — is the most distinctive design moment in the region. The 10th is a Cape-style par 4, and holes 16-18 route around the lakes for a watery, stroke-index-loaded finish.
Genuinely friendly: flat ground, good-width fairways, and the water mostly confined to the back-nine lakes. Wind off the Adriatic is the main defense — on a calm day it's a gentle round.
The golf academy is associated with Italian Ryder Cup hero Costantino Rocca, and the walled town of Acaya (rebuilt 1535) is worth the detour in real life.
Flat and quick — a good social-night pick. The Biarritz 2nd and the lake finish are the drama, so add some wind; that's the real course's only true defense.
Resort pay-and-play, visitors welcome: roughly €65-100 for 18 holes by season, with hotel-guest discounts. Book online via the resort's Chronogolf page.
Source: web verified · medium confidence
