Sweden, Norway - golf in the mountains

Facts Funäsdalen
Where: Western Härjedalen in the municipality of Sveg.
Population: 2,000 residents year round. During the ski season about 25,000 people.
What to do: golf, climbing, hiking, mountain biking, canoeing, fishing, mountain riding, kayaking and more. In the winter - winter activities such as skiing, snow mobiling, dog sledding and more. For more information go to www.strapatser.se
Stay: Hotel Funäsdalen which dates from the fifth century, has 49 rooms and a relaxation area with pool and sauna.
Facilities: Sauna, outdoor Jacuzzi, pub, restaurant - an opportunity for full and half board. Wireless Internet access in public areas.

Facts Idre
Where: In northern Dalarna in the municipality of Älvdalen.
Population: Approximately 1,000 permanent residents.
What to do: golf, climbing, mountain biking, hiking, rafting, kayaking, paintball, beach volleyball and more.
In the winter - skiing, snowmobiling and more.
Stay: 5 kilometres from the course at the Pernilla Wiberg Hotel: 40 rooms and four suites. Well equipped and clean rooms.
Facilities: Restaurant, bar, swimming pool, sauna, gym, spa, tennis, conference facilities

Facts Trysil
Location: Norway, 4o kilometres west of the Swedish border in Hedmark.
Population: Around 7,000 inhabitants.
What to do: Golf, Fishing, hunting, mountain biking, climbing, hiking, canoeing and more. In winter - skiing, snowmobiling, other winter activities.
Stay: Trysil-Knut Hotel, 54 rooms including 24 renovated rooms by 2005. Restaurant, bar, conference facilities.

Sweden, Norway - Golf in the mountains

In northern Scandinavia golf is elevated to higher levels...literally.

Funäsdalsfjället Golf Club is first out on our mountain journey. Here we’re talking golf at its most physically demanding. The course has a lot of differences in level that make our first encounter with mountain golf a spectacular experience to say the least.

The golf course is located 600 metres above sea level. This is a mountain air and seaside experience wrapped up in one, especially the thirteenth hole where it’s time to really gasp for air. The outlook offers Funäsdalsfjället’s top station and all along the left edge the lake glistens blue and cold.

The end of the round is phenomenal, and after the last putt on the eighteenth hole we realize that we have experienced the sport at its best, despite several three-putts and crooked shots. It says a lot about the course.

From one ski resort to another...the car journey from Funäsdalsfjället to the Idre Mountain offers beautiful northern roads and a lot of meetings with reindeer because this is an animal rich landscape we’re travelling through.

The Idre Mountain’s seventh hole catches my eye. A par five of 450 metres...one of the most beautiful holes I've played. Perfect in design and every hole would have been a sight to behold if my club had wanted to read my thoughts. Afterwards there is one of course’s most difficult holes – a par four of 355 metres, dogleg right.
Several of the course holes become new favourites. The twelfth hole, a par 5 of 450 metres, where the height differences characterizes the hole and where the shot can be as long as you like. Even the fourteenth hole is a great reason to make Idre an annual destination. A beautiful par three of 160 metres with stunning views of the landscape and that deserves a landing on the green. As most of the holes on Idre’s course, the greens and fairways are of admirable quality.

After a luxurious night at the hotel the car rolls on towards yet another ski resort, but this time we leave Sweden for our neighbour to the west, Norway. There it’s the turn of Trysil to offer challenging golf.

The clubhouse we encounter is relatively simple, but manager Mariann Kristiansen tells us that there are grandiose plans for expansion.

Simple, however, is a description that is far from the truth when it comes to the golf course. With its 5,718 metres from the yellow tee, the 18 well-designed holes stretch out along the foot of the Trysil Mountain and offers challenges of various kinds - for example, reaching the green in headwinds on the thirteenth hole, which is a par 5 five of 436 metres.

Apart from pleasant "tryslingar" (the name for the residents), Trysilfjellet has also been blessed with a short course which is definitely worth a round. The hole is around 100 metres on average but it has the same charming mountain character of the eighteen-hole course and the greens are top quality.

After a good night's sleep, it is with some disappointment that I pack up my things and drive home towards flat Central Sweden again.

Text: Anna Brolin
Photo: Samir Soudah

FUNÄSDALSFJÄLLETS GOLF COURSE
Course designer: Nils Skold
Opened: 1973
Number of holes: 18 Par: 72
Length: Yellow tee: 5,575 metres, red tee: 4 705 metres
Other: Season from early June to mid-October.
Green fee: High season EUR 29 (7/7-9/9).
Other times EUR 25. Junior high season: EUR 21, EUR 17 other times.

IDREFJÄLENS GOLF CLUB
Course designer: Bengt Lorichs
Opened: 1992
Number of holes: 18 Par: 72
Length: Yellow tee: 5,630 metres, Red tees: 4,810 metres
Other: Season from 25/5 until 1/10.
Green fees: High season 22/6-9/8 EUR 40. 10 / 8 - 17 / 9 (Monday-Thursday) EUR 35 Junior high season: EUR 17, off-season EUR 11.

Trysilfjellet GOLF
Course designer: Jeremy Turner
Opened: 2003
Number of holes: 18 +7 short holes
Par: 72
Length: Yellow tee: 5,718 metres, red tee: 4,426 metres
Other: Season May-October
Green fees: Weekdays EUR 33 Norwegian per round. Roughly EUR 32. Holidays EUR 44 or approximately EUR 42. Short course EUR 20 per day, approximately EUR 20.

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Sweden, Norway - golf in the mountains