{"id":1940,"date":"2010-11-24T10:28:59","date_gmt":"2010-11-24T17:28:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/jeffwallach.com\/?p=1940"},"modified":"2011-02-19T15:15:39","modified_gmt":"2011-02-19T22:15:39","slug":"golfers-eat-up-turkey","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jeffwallach\/golf\/courses-and-travel\/1940\/golfers-eat-up-turkey","title":{"rendered":"Golfers Eat Up Turkey!"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Above: Maintenance Crew at Perge, photo by Jeff Wallach. \u00a0All other photos by David Whyte<\/a>.<\/p>\n

While it hasn’t blipped onto the radar of most North American golfers yet, Turkey– the gorgeous, culture-rich nation, not the delicious Thanksgiving day feast– is well-known to northern Europeans looking for a warm, upscale golf destination at a great price.<\/p>\n

On a recent trip to Belek, located on the southern Mediterranean Coast, one of my favorite stops was the Gloria Serenity Resort and its two terrific golf layouts. \u00a0The hotel is one of three Gloria’s in the vicinity along with the Gloria Verde Resort and Gloria Golf Hotel. \u00a0Americans will be stunned to see that five-star accommodations right along the Mediterranean with breakfast and dinner included, a luxurious spa, lovely gardens and more are available for what we might expect to pay at a chain motel here in the states. \u00a0And the golf is equally affordable. \u00a0During my visit the entire package of everything I might have paid for in a day, excluding lunch, came to less than $200. \u00a0Which of course meant more cash for golf balls.<\/p>\n

Gloria’s golf courses– called \u00a0“Old” and “New” although built only ten years apart– were designed by French architect Michael Gayon, who imparted a clean, simple aesthetic without moving too much dirt. \u00a0The golf complex also includes a nine-hole course called Verde, which helps make this the largest collection of holes in the country. \u00a0And it’s all carpeted in fluffy Bermuda grass.<\/p>\n

The Old Course, which stretches to just under 6,800 yards, carves elegantly through uncrowded gatherings of pines and routes around seven lakes. \u00a0It has played host to several European Tour events. \u00a0Number fourteen is one of the best holes, concluding on a double green with lovely bunkering around a horseshoe-shaped lake. \u00a0The course is narrow off the tees and easier up around the greens.<\/p>\n\"\"\n

The New course opens intimately between pines and lovely moundings \u00a0Number two features a classic chute that opens up quickly and bunkers offset short left and long right with a ramp between them. \u00a0The third is a great short hole with tiered islands of green and if the pin is tucked behind a mound I wish you luck getting to it. \u00a0The 17th is modeled on the same numbered hole at TPC Sawgrass. \u00a0Overall, the course presents four lakes and 67 bunkers.<\/p>\n\"\"<\/a>\n

Close by to Belek are several ancient sites that are reason enough to visit Turkey. \u00a0The Coliseum at Aspendos is the best-preserved arena from Roman times anywhere in the world. \u00a0The Ruins of Perge begin to help modern people understand the scope and beauty of ancient cities. \u00a0And the town of Antalya, with it’s ancient harbor and winding stone streets lined with shops and restaurants may be one of the most romantic cities you’ll ever see.<\/p>\n\"\"\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Above: Maintenance Crew at Perge, photo by Jeff Wallach. \u00a0All other photos by David Whyte. While it hasn’t blipped onto… Read more »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1941,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3729,5048,17],"tags":[5249,5250,5251,5252,5253,5254],"class_list":["post-1940","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-golf-travel","category-alternative-golf-assoc","category-courses-and-travel","tag-turkish-golf","tag-belek-golf","tag-gloria-old-course","tag-gloria-new-course","tag-aspendos","tag-perge"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jeffwallach\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2010\/11\/L1030094.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jeffwallach\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1940","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jeffwallach\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jeffwallach\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jeffwallach\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jeffwallach\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1940"}],"version-history":[{"count":23,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jeffwallach\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1940\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2215,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jeffwallach\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1940\/revisions\/2215"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jeffwallach\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1941"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jeffwallach\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1940"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jeffwallach\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1940"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/jeffwallach\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1940"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}