For the fourth consecutive year Portugal has been voted as the World and Europe’s Golf Destination at the 2017 World Golf Awards.

The awards, which were held in Murcia, Spain, are widely considered to be the “Oscars” of the golf tourism industry, and highlight the very best golfing destination, courses and players in the world.

Desidério Silva, the head of the Algarve Tourism Association said: “It is with great satisfaction that we see Portugal named both the World and Europe’s Best Golf Destination and the Algarve being acknowledged for its excellent conditions.”

He added: “Besides offering an integrated tourism experience, the Algarveans’ unique hospitality and a year-round mild climate, the region also boasts Portugal’s best golf course and hotel.”

There were further accolades for the Algarve and Portugal with the Quinta do Lago-Sul golf course being voted as the Best Golf Course in Portugal, while the Hilton Vilamoura As Cascatas Golf Resort and Spa also picking up the award for the best Golf Hotel in Portugal.

The West Cliffs Golf Links course, located to the north of Lisbon was named as the World’s Best New Golf Course.  The Cynthia Dye-designed course, which has already been tipped to become the new number one layout in Portugal, opened in June and has already received numerous other awards.

Francisco Cadete, director of golf at West Cliffs Golf Links, said: “To win such a coveted global award in our first six months is an amazing achievement and one that makes everyone at the resort very proud.
“The course has lived up to everything it promised to be when Cynthia was designing it, and more, and is something truly special. We’ve received some incredible feedback from golfers all over the world since opening and believe the course will get even better in the years to come.”

The Algarve has long been a favourite with golfers from around the world and the region continues to grow in popularity. In 2016, a record 1.3 million rounds were played, 10.5% more than the year before.

Portugal currently welcomes 420,000 golfers to its 90 courses every year, with 82 percent of all rounds played by foreign tourists.