Abama Golf

Overview: Abama Golf climbs the western slope of Tenerife beneath Mount Teide, combining volcanic terrain with Atlantic views toward La Gomera. Dave Thomas designed the 18-hole, par-72 resort course around a changing sequence of elevation, subtropical planting, lakes, waterfalls and white-sand bunkers. The official course description records more than 300 species of subtropical plant life and over 20,000 palm trees, so the setting has a dense botanical character rather than the open look of a conventional links. Fairways rise and fall across the slope, and the change in elevation alters both the visual line and the club needed into the green. Twenty-two lakes are distributed through the course, making water part of the strategy without turning every hole into the same problem. The result is a technical layout where views, planting and terrain are integrated into the playing experience.

History: Abama Golf was constructed in 2005 to form the golf centrepiece of the resort on Tenerife's west coast. Dave Thomas was responsible for the design, using the volcanic hillside and existing subtropical environment to create a course with strong changes of height and repeated ocean outlooks. The layout was also used for the Abama Open de Canarias in 2005, an event that brought European and Challenge Tour professionals to the new course in its opening year. Since then, the course's identity has remained closely tied to the combination of resort infrastructure, volcanic landform and Atlantic scenery.

Did You Know? The highest point of the course is around 315 metres above sea level at one of the elevated greens. Abama's own hole guide notes that the approach can require two more clubs than normal. It is a precise example of how the mountain setting changes the golf, not just the view from the fairway.