France has over 500 golf courses, of which several are ranked among the world's best. Up there at the top is the challenging – and absolutely immaculate – Les Bordes course (www.lesbordes.com), near Orléans, which boasts Europe's largest putting green and excellent practice facilities. Other first-class courses include Kempferhof (www.golf-kempferhof.com), outside Strasbourg; Royal Park Evian (www.royalparcevian.com), near Geneva and home to the Evian Masters women's tournament; and Spérone (www.sperone.net) in Corsica. This last is a very technical course made even more demanding by strong winds, but boasting superb views – on a clear day you can see Sardinia. You'll find plenty of scenic courses as well in Provence and all along the Côte d'Azur, where the Monte-Carlo Golf Club (tel 04.93.41.09.11) stands out for its setting perched 1000m up on the slopes of Mont Agel.Down in the southwest, Pau Golf Club (tel 05.59.32.02.33) was the first course to be opened in continental Europe, in 1856, followed three decades later by Biarritz Le Phare (tel 05.59.03.71.80); both are still excellent and challenging courses. Also near Biarritz, the Chiberta Golf Club (tel 05.59.63.83.20) is a traditional links alternating between pine forest and seashore which rates as one of the top ten in France. In fact, the whole area stretching north along the coast from Biarritz to Bordeaux is a golfer's paradise. Green fees are usually in the range of €40 to €60.
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