Golfclub Kralingen

Golfclub Kralingen plays at Golfbaan Kralingen in Rotterdam, South Holland: nine holes in the Kralingse Bos, designed in 1933 by the firm Copijn & zoon.

Golfbaan Kralingen lies at Kralingseweg 200 in the Kralingse Bos park, inside the Rotterdam city limits. This polder course sits seven metres below sea level (NAP), and golf.nl describes it as the lowest-lying polder course in Europe.

The idea for Golfbaan Kralingen came from Abraham Dirkzwager, a keen golfer who had lived in the Dutch East Indies and saw room for a course on a neglected, marshy meadow. Golfbaan Kralingen opened on 1 October 1933 to a design by the firm H. Copijn & zoon. It was later reworked by C.K. Cotton, who was also involved with Royal Lytham and Ganton in England.

Golfbaan Kralingen is the shortest course with A-status in the Netherlands, with the course and its buildings covering about 16 hectares. Its length is no measure of its difficulty: narrow fairways and plenty of water put a premium on accuracy, and the tight site keeps the holes close together. The 5th hole comes in two versions, 5A and 5B.

Can visitors play Golfbaan Kralingen? Yes. It is a public course run by Stichting Golfbaan Kralingen, open to golfers of all ages on a green fee. A nine-hole round requires a handicap of 54 or better, and tee times for 9 or 18 holes must be booked in advance.

Golfclub Kralingen is the members' club based at Golfbaan Kralingen. The golf club runs its own competition calendar, including a men's day on Mondays and a ladies' day on Tuesdays, and has a junior section.