The Riffa Golf Club which celebrated its second anniversary recently is offering special rates to visitors this summer.
And guests at five-star hotels in Bahrain will get a preferential rate on their green fees. The special summer offer at the club will run from June through August. Special deals are also up for grabs for groups of more than 12 golfers, including 18 holes, golf carts, lunch, tournament administration and prizes. Lessons with the club's two PGA golf professionals will also be available at attractive lower rate. The Riffa Golf Club celebrated the second anniversary of the opening of its clubhouse on March 25 which has become a Bahrain landmark in the two years of its existence. General manager Michael Braidwood says he believes the clubhouse epitomises the rapid infrastructure development currently being experienced by Bahrain. 'The country is in a period of economic expansion and development,' said Braidwood. 'Projects such as Riffa Golf Club, together with five-star hotels, shopping malls, cinema complexes and other leisure facilities, are primarily responsible for having established Bahrain as one of the Gulf's top holiday destinations. The course, opened in 1999, was designed by Karl Litten and is managed by Gleneagles of Scotland. The 6,817 yards, par 72 championship course features five lakes and more than 600 date palms, beautifully landscaped with desert sand rough. Landscaped to follow the natural rolling desert terrain of the valley and harnessing the underlying waters of Al Huayniyah Wadi to create the many water hazards, Riffa's course will challenge the skills of all player levels. Acclaimed as challenging and fair, the course enjoys a natural harmony between the desert rough, water and fairways of green. Interest in the game of golf has increased dramatically in Bahrain since the opening of the Club. The club is home to Bahrain's only Golf Academy, a major asset for the country. It includes two air-conditioned Swing Studios and a 30-person floodlit driving range and specific short game area for practise. A team of full-time golf professionals run the academy. The academy enshrines the Gleneagles's philosophy that improving a player's performance will improve the enjoyment fo the game and various options are available, including the popular 9-hole playing lesson. A range of tuition packages are offered including a junior programme for children. The original design for the clubhouse was created by Paul Swart of I.D.G, winner of a competition held in the United Kingdom. The clubhouse houses a fully stocked Golf Shop carrying the latest golf equipment and lines of sports apparel. Additional services at the club include two restaurants, the Braids restaurant serving refreshments and an all-day menu and Juliano's New York Italian restaurant. On the second floor is the Riffa Suite, a fully equipped venue for conferences and private functions tailored to individual requirements. The summer visitors rates are: Weekdays: 18 holes - BD18; 9 holes - BD 12; and Twilight - BD15. Weekends: 18 holes - BD25; 9 holes - BD15; and Twilight - BD19. Green fees for visitors staying in any of the five-star hotels will be: Weekdays: 18 holes - BD15; 9-holes - BD10; and Twilight - BD13. Weekends: 18 holes - BD21; 9 holes - BD12; Twilight - BD16.