The Best Golf Courses in Italy
From the parkland perfection of Royal Park I Roveri and the alpine classic of Le Betulle to the Ryder Cup drama of Marco Simone, Italy's golf is as varied as its landscape. Our ranked ten, with the verdict on each, the designers and indicative 2026 green fees.
Photograph: Associazione Sportiva Golf Club Biella 'Le Betulle', Dan Ozmec, via Google
How we chose
Italy has never been a one course destination. Its golf is spread the length of the country, from the great parkland courses of Piedmont in the alpine north to the modern resort links of Sicily in the deep south, by way of the lakes, Tuscany and Rome. We have weighed the quality and architecture of the course itself first, then its pedigree and tournament history, its conditioning and its standing among the rankings and panellists who know Italian golf, and finally how rewarding it is for the travelling golfer to actually play and reach. The 2023 Ryder Cup at Marco Simone put Italy on the world golf map, but the country's depth runs far deeper than a single week outside Rome.
The result is a top ten that blends the historic and the new. The classics of the north, Royal Park I Roveri, Le Betulle and Villa d'Este, hold the upper places on the strength of timeless design, while Marco Simone, Verdura and the Tuscan resorts reflect the modern era that has turned Italy into a genuine golf holiday destination. All ten welcome visitors, though access and green fees vary, and the best trips pair two or three of them with the food, wine and scenery that make Italy unlike anywhere else to play golf.
The ranking
Royal Park I Roveri
Routinely ranked the finest course in Italy and the first Italian design of Robert Trent Jones, opened in 1971 on the plain north of Turin. A handsome, mature parkland of oak woodland, water and bold bunkering, it has hosted the Italian Open more than once, and its par 4 17th has been named the best hole in the country by La Gazzetta dello Sport. The benchmark every Italian course is measured against.
Indicative 2026 green fee around €120 to €160, peak season. Always confirm directly before booking.Golf Club Biella, Le Betulle
Known as Le Betulle for the birches that line its fairways, the work of English architect John Morrison in the foothills of the Alps, and for many the equal of Royal Park I Roveri at the very top of Italian golf. A serene, classical layout that blends beautifully with its mountain setting, it is a former Italian Open host and a course the purist will not want to miss.
Indicative 2026 green fee around €100 to €150, peak season. Always confirm directly before booking.Circolo Golf Villa d'Este
Cut through pine, ash and chestnut forest above Lake Como by Peter Gannon in 1926, and as stylish today as it was a century ago. A short but exacting parkland of beautiful par 3s and tight, tree framed corridors, a former Italian Open venue and one of the most atmospheric rounds in the country, paired with one of Europe's most glamorous lakeside settings.
Indicative 2026 green fee around €110 to €160, peak season. Always confirm directly before booking.Marco Simone Golf and Country Club
The host of the 2023 Ryder Cup, a bold, modern championship course outside Rome designed by Jim Fazio and David Mezzacane, with dramatic elevation changes, water in play and views of St Peter's Basilica from the higher tees. You can play the same layout the teams contested, the closest most golfers will get to walking a Ryder Cup stage, though tee times are limited and the green fee is premium.
Indicative 2026 green fee premium and seasonal. Always confirm directly before booking.Verdura Resort, East Course
The flagship course of Sir Rocco Forte's Verdura Resort on the south coast of Sicily, a Kyle Phillips design that runs along the Mediterranean with several holes hard against the sea. Big, open and beautifully conditioned, complemented by a second 18 and a par 3 layout, it is the heart of one of the finest golf resorts in the Mediterranean and a regular European Tour host.
Indicative 2026 green fee resort and seasonal. Always confirm directly before booking.Castiglion del Bosco Golf Club
A Tom Weiskopf design that opened in 2012 in the Val d'Orcia near Montalcino, the only private course in Tuscany and the centrepiece of a Rosewood resort and wine estate. Routed through rolling hills, vineyards and olive groves with the famous Tuscan light over every hole, it is as much an experience as a golf course, and access is reserved for resort guests and members.
Indicative 2026 access reserved for resort guests and members. Always confirm directly before booking.Argentario Golf Club
Designed by David Mezzacane and the former tour player Baldovino Dassu in 2006 on the Monte Argentario peninsula in southern Tuscany, a modern, hilly layout of native Mediterranean scrub and sea views, run on sustainable lines and attached to a stylish resort and spa. A scenic, strategic round and a fine base for a Tuscan coast trip.
Indicative 2026 green fee around €100 to €150, peak season. Always confirm directly before booking.Circolo Golf Bogogno
Two Robert von Hagge eighteens that opened in 1997 in the countryside near Novara, with the Alps and Monte Rosa on the horizon. The Bonora and Del Conte courses offer big, sculpted American style golf of mounded fairways and dramatic bunkering, a popular and well conditioned resort destination between Milan and the lakes that suits a group wanting volume of quality golf.
Indicative 2026 green fee around €90 to €140, peak season. Always confirm directly before booking.Olgiata Golf Club
A magnificent tree lined parkland north of Rome along the Via Cassia, opened in 1961 and a host of the World Cup and the Italian Open over the years. A traditional, mature test of golf among umbrella pines and broad fairways, long one of the most respected clubs in the capital and an easy, classy round to pair with a Rome city stay.
Indicative 2026 green fee around €90 to €140, peak season. Always confirm directly before booking.Acquasanta Golf Club
First laid out in 1903 and the oldest golf club in Italy, set amid Roman ruins and aqueducts on the Appian Way just south of the city. A short, historic and characterful parkland rather than a modern championship test, it earns its place for heritage alone, a living piece of Italian golf history that no enthusiast visiting Rome should overlook.
Indicative 2026 green fee around €80 to €130, peak season. Always confirm directly before booking.Designers, opening years and tournament history verified June 2026. Rankings reflect our editorial view alongside the established Italian course rankings. Course profiles are added across the site as the directory grows.
Where they sit on the map
The leading courses cluster in three areas. The north, around Turin, Biella, Novara and Lake Como, holds the great classics within easy reach of Milan and its airports, the richest single region for a quality trip. Tuscany strings Castiglion del Bosco and Argentario among the vineyards and the coast, ideal for a golf and wine week. And Rome combines the Ryder Cup venue at Marco Simone with the historic Olgiata and Acquasanta, an easy add to a city break. Sicily's Verdura sits apart in the deep south, a destination resort in its own right. Most trips build around one region and add a second by short flight or fast train.
Plan your Italy golf trip
Tell us the courses you want and roughly when. One concierge costs the whole trip to the head and replies within one working day, with no obligation.
Italy golf questions
What is the best golf course in Italy?
Royal Park I Roveri near Turin, the first Italian design of Robert Trent Jones and open since 1971, is routinely ranked the finest course in Italy. Golf Club Biella, known as Le Betulle and laid out by John Morrison in the foothills of the Alps, runs it close at the top, with the classic Circolo Golf Villa d'Este on Lake Como completing the leading group.
Can you play the Ryder Cup course in Italy?
Yes. Marco Simone Golf and Country Club outside Rome, designed by Jim Fazio and David Mezzacane and the host of the 2023 Ryder Cup, is open to visitors, with views of St Peter's Basilica and the same bold, modern layout the teams played. Tee times are limited and sought after, so book well ahead and expect a premium green fee.
How much does it cost to play the best courses in Italy in 2026?
Indicative 2026 peak season fees run roughly from €90 to €160 at the leading classics such as Royal Park I Roveri, Le Betulle and Villa d'Este, and higher at the marquee resorts and the Ryder Cup venue at Marco Simone. Shoulder season rates are lower. Always confirm directly before booking.
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The Tee Sheet
Marco Simone tee windows, the best of the northern classics and the Tuscan golf and wine dates worth moving on first. Every other week.