Golf Club Sokolov

Overview: Golf Club Sokolov is an 18-hole course built into the reclaimed Silvestr brown-coal mine in West Bohemia. The former industrial ground has been reshaped into a cascading parkland landscape, with broad fairways, large greens and a 42-metre difference between the highest and lowest points. The result is a course with a strong sense of movement, where the elevation and changing lies are as important as the bunker and water strategy.

History: The project formed part of the ecological restoration of the Sokolov mining area. Landscape work took place between 2002 and 2004, early golfers played portions of the course in 2005, and the official opening followed on 28 September 2006. Christoph Städler’s design turned the former mine into a full championship facility while making the site’s industrial past visible in the shape and scale of the land.

Did You Know? Sokolov is a notable example of golf being used as part of post-mining landscape restoration. The course does not simply hide the former mine: its terraces, broad views and dramatic changes in level make the transformation part of the experience and give the layout a character that could not have been created on untouched farmland.