The inaugural event will take place from 30 October to 1 November at Pinheirinho Golf Course, marking the course’s first appearance on the international professional circuit.

Part of the Staysure Legends Tour, the championship is expected to bring together Major winners, Ryder Cup players and established Tour champions. The circuit is open to professional golfers aged over 50.

Among the names expected to compete are Michael Campbell, winner of the 2005 U.S. Open, and Paul McGinley, who captained Europe to victory in the 2014 Ryder Cup at Gleneagles.

They are expected to be joined by Jamie Donaldson and Stephen Gallacher, both members of McGinley’s winning European Ryder Cup team.

A new course gets an international debut

The tournament will also provide an international showcase for Pinheirinho itself.

Designed by Portuguese golf architect Jorge Santana da Silva, the 18-hole course sits within the 400-hectare Pinheirinho Comporta estate developed by VIC Properties.

Rather than imposing a conventional resort course on the landscape, the layout follows the area’s natural terrain, running through secondary dunes and pine forest. Undulating fairways and prominent bunkering form part of the design, while a 3.5-hectare lake is one of its most distinctive features.

Mark Aspland, Chief Operating Officer of the Staysure Legends Tour, described Pinheirinho as an exceptional addition to the international schedule and said the event would introduce the course to a global audience.

Golf beyond the Algarve

The choice of Comporta is also interesting for Portugal’s golf tourism industry.

International golf in Portugal is strongly associated with the Algarve, but the Portugal Legends Championship gives the Alentejo another opportunity to position itself as a golfing destination in its own right.

Holding the event at the end of October also fits Portugal’s efforts to attract visitors outside the traditional summer season. Turismo de Portugal considers golf a strategic tourism product, while regional tourism officials see the championship as an opportunity to promote not only golf, but the Alentejo’s food, wine, landscape and culture to an international audience.

Spectators will be able to attend the three-day championship free of charge. The Tour will also offer playing experiences allowing amateur golfers to share the course with some of the professionals competing during tournament week.

For Pinheirinho, hosting an international tournament during its first season gives the new course quite an introduction. For Comporta, it brings another high-profile event to a part of Portugal increasingly making a name for itself well beyond its beaches.