Cannes: Glitz, glamour and glorious golf
The last time I was in the south of France, basking in all that Mediterranean beauty, I was 18-years-old and inter-railing with friends.
We spent two nights in Cannes: I slept one night on a kitchen floor and the other in a campsite bathroom block as a storm raged outside. Those were the days.
Thirty years later and things were looking up. The Mimozas Resort is a four-star property on the edge of Europe’s most famous film-loving city. True, there was a kitchen floor and a bathroom floor in my apartment, but the bed proved more tempting. There was a balcony, too, looking down on the golf course next door.
Our itinerary indicated we were to play the Cannes-Mandelieu Old course the morning after our arrival but it seemed as if the storm from three decades earlier had returned to greet me again. The lake in front of the restaurant was being whipped into a frenzy and the rain was pounding and pummelling the windows. The French staff were transfixed by the deluge as if they’d never seen rain, thunder and lightning before. Even in October, long days of sunshine and 30 degree temperatures are expected. It’s one of the reasons this region is so popular with Irish tourists. The beach is only minutes away, on the other side of the golf course, and despite the stormy conditions, two of our group went off for an early morning jog and swim on the first day. There were few others out braving the elements.
The following day — in sunshine and 24 degree heat — they repeated their trek but this time they were accompanied by a mass of joggers, cyclists and walkers. French people and rain really do not mix down on the Cote d’Azur!
When it comes to heading south for winter sunshine, most golfers look no further than Portugal and Spain. France doesn’t have the same allure, which is bizarre when you think about it. This is a country renowned for its food and drink, and it doesn’t get more ‘Mediterranean’ than this corner of France. The Mimozas Resort also has the golf course alongside: the Cannes-Mandelieu is the oldest course in the region, opened in 1891 for Russian royalty no less (Grand Duke Michael Mikhailovich). There are 10 courses within easy reach of the resort and the designer names will be familiar to many: Robert Trent Jones Jr, Willie Park Jr, Peter Alliss and Robert von Hagge.
There is an abundance of quality courses and with the Alps visible to the north and the Mediterranean glittering to the south, golf promises an explosion of sun, sea and scenery.
This may be winter sunshine but if you drive north for an hour you could be skiing in those Alps. This merely emphasises the extraordinary contrasts of what is on offer on France’s southern coastline.
The Cote d’Azur is glamorous and it lures the rich and famous by the private jet load. You might think cost is a prohibitive factor in these parts but Irish visitors can take comfort in the set up at Mimozas, where self-catering presents the inexpensive option.
The resort is laid out like a hotel, with spa, pool and restaurants, but the rooms here are actually apartments of one, two and three bedrooms, wrapped around a lake.
The restaurant at Mimozas, La Table du Lac, was kept open for our late arrival on the first evening and, despite ordering at 11pm, the steak was cooked to perfection. It sits up there amongst the best I’ve ever eaten and yet it was just one of the superb meals we enjoyed. France is known for many things but its flair for cuisine is legendary. At the wonderful La Brouette de Grand Mere (My Grandmother’s Wheelbarrow, in case you were wondering), in Cannes the following night, guests do not even receive a menu. We sat in the open air on a quiet street and listened as the different dishes were announced by our waiter.
The smells of the food filled the street, seeming to change as he described each dish. This is traditional provencal cooking at its best and we chose rabbit, duck and a splendid local favourite, Boeuf Bourguignon. Even the golf clubs serve exceptional food as we discovered at the Cannes-Mandelieu Golf Club before our opening round.
The course combines simple elegance with gentle charm. It has a peaceful, relaxing rhythm as you stroll over mostly level fairways, between tall umbrella pines and towards expansively bunkered greens. Some almost feel like beaches, such is their scale. It pulses with ‘old-school’ values, thanks to Harry Colt who redesigned it in the 1920s, and little has changed over the years, including its length.
The ‘Old’ course is a mere 5,250 metres (par 71) from the middle tees, with six par fours under 350 metres, and five par threes. The combination of generous fairways, inviting greens and manageable length make Mandelieu a sweet course for all levels of golfer.
Only the trees will create difficulties as they occasionally wander in to play. Now toss in a ferry ride across the river (to the third tee and then back again to the 13th) and you have the ideal warm-up for your golfing holiday. And don’t be surprised to see France’s famous TGV barrelling along the railway tracks next to some of the holes. Private jets are not the only way to reach the Cote d’Azur.
The true quality of the region’s golf was revealed the following morning when we visited Royal Mougins, in the hills above Cannes.
The hillsides are swathed in olive trees and sunshine and it is hard not to like a course in such conditions… but Royal Mougins bristles with muscularity and colour. It has swagger. This is one of France’s top courses and it was designed by Robert von Hagge (designer of the ‘Blue Monster’ at Doral, Miami, and Le Golf National, Paris, where the Ryder Cup will be held in 2018), who used a tumbling landscape of hillside and valley forest floor to create a masterpiece of 18 dramatic holes. But it is the green settings which stand out most of all. Their shapes are beautiful, their bunkering is dazzling and the physical setting both impressive and daunting.
They sit at the top of slopes or cocooned by an ampitheatre of trees. There are several water fronts (there are eight lakes here, all connected by streams) while the third and 18th form a double green which wraps around a lake below the clubhouse terrace.
Golfers need to play out of their socks to do well here, so choosing the right tee will make a major difference to your day. There’s no doubt that green fees are pricey (€200 at peak season) but from late October, as the off-season kicks in, the price is €125, which includes a buggy.
And a buggy is recommended: There are some lengthy green-to- tee walks and I confess that my partner and I got lost in the maze of paths to reach the 1st tee.
It would be a shame to visit the Cote d’Azur and not experience the bright lights of Cannes. Our meal at La Brouette de Grand Mere was exceptional but that came only after we had been dropped off at the Radisson Blu. The five-star hotel overlooks the marina where yachts the size of houses bob quietly in the water.
But it gets better: Seven storeys up is a rooftop terrace bar and restaurant. This is where the rich and famous come, drinking mojitos and enjoying the bustle of the town below. From here you can look down on those yachts, along the beach to distant mountains and out to the Île Sainte- Marguerite in the Med. Our visit coincided with sunset and we were directed to the Grand Corniche, a coastal driving route along the French Riviera, which stretches for 150 km and leads into Italy.
Hitchcock was so impressed by the setting that he used it to film ‘To Catch a Thief’, starring Cary Grant and Grace Kelly. From up on that seventh storey terrace, the urge to hire a convertible and drive along the coastline was almost irresistible.
Driving with the top down would have to wait for another time as the next day saw us touring the Old Town, in Nice. The artist Matisse lived here. His former house is a fading yellow building standing tall at one end of the Cours Saleya, which is home to the daily flower and vegetable market. There are dozens of crisp, white stalls where you could spend your entire morning sampling the fruit, pastries, cheese and other local delicacies on offer.
Throughout the old town you’ll find outdoor stalls selling all kinds of foods, including the Socca. This is a Nicois pancake made from lentil or chickpea flour with olive oil. Eating al fresco is a popular tradition and you’ll struggle to find space to sit in the various parks or on the beach.
From Nice, we headed north to our final golf course. During our stay discussions about golf in the region had seen Saint Donat mentioned several times. Royal Mougins may be a touch too tough for some but Saint Donat combines its beauty and quality with playability. It is routed over heavily rolling terrain and promises doglegs which tease and taunt from the tee. The course may not boast the space or swagger of Royal Mougins, but this is fun golf from start to finish. The landscape has been used to perfection as holes roll up and down between the trees, creating a rollercoaster rhythm which never stops. Streams and ponds appear frequently and the many high tees show off the countryside as well as offering delicious driving opportunities. This is not a long course — at 5,267 (par 71) from the middle tees it is the same length as Cannes-Mandelieu — but golfers need to pause for breath before reaching for the driver. Accuracy and placement are more important and Saint Donat is an entertaining and rewarding round of golf for those with the patience to tackle it sensibly.
In terms of what golfers can expect in France, the Cote d’Azur offers something different — but just as good — as what you can expect from a jaunt to Portugal and Spain. Throw in the food and drink and you will be surprised you haven’t been coming here for years.
It is not yet packaged as neatly as Portugal and Spain, but France has the golf and the extras to attract golfers looking for sunshine winter golf with extra fizz.
One final thought, which can be summed up in two words: Monte Carlo. It is an hour’s drive from Cannes. Why not take a trip to the playground of the rich and famous and roll the dice at one of the casinos, knowing it is the only gamble you’ll encounter when you choose the Cote d’Azur for golf.
