Antognolla Golf - Dramatic Golf in Umbrian Hills

Gunnar Kobin
Dec 12, 2025
4 min read

Updated: Mar 23

Antognolla: Golf With a Medieval Flair\n\nAntognolla Golf leaves you with a sense of awe that very few other courses are able to replicate.

Antognolla Golf is set in the stunning hills of Perugia, Italy. With all the many medieval stone ruins, the deep valleys, and the mountains with their dense forests, it is one of the most beautiful courses in Italy. The majestic Antognolla castle, located high in the hills, towers above everything and makes the course even more stunning. Every stone wall the castle has watches you play the course and makes it an epic experience.\n\nThis is one of the most beautiful and stunning courses I have played on, and all the reviews I have read have not prepared me for the experience.\n\nAn Experience Unlike Any Other\n\nAll of the medieval structures set Antognolla Golf apart from other modern championship golf courses. It truly is a unique experience.\n\nPlaying a round of golf while having the magnificent stone walls of the ancient castle up close is not something you would have in mind unless you visit Antognolla Golf. It is one of very few courses in the world to have such a stunning combination of modern design and old, ancient ruins.

The wild Umbria surroundings are astounding. It is surreal calm. Drive ways are choked by dense forests, large valleys carve the property, and the majestic ridgelines offer vistas of many miles.

Once you step onto the course, the outside world dissolves. My phone stayed in my bag the entire round. First time that's ever happened.

RTJ Jr. Let Loose Here

Robert Trent Jones Jr. has always maintained that exceptional golf needs to be challenging, strategic, and aesthetically pleasing, and Antognolla is perhaps one of the finest examples of his philosophy.

The course is a par 72 which feels longer than it is, due to the challenging terrain.

Shots have to be shaped, iron shots have to be committed, and every single green takes absolute precision.

Antognolla is one of the modern resort courses that doesn't apologise for its difficulties. It is challenging but never cruel, and maintains its course's identity.

The course is very vertical, and feels extremely elevated. When approaching the course, it is often likely that you will be forced to use one to two clubs more than you would expect due to the elevation changes. Generous downhill tee shots are given to you, but they can punish you if you do not use good judgement.

Too many times to count, I have confidently selected a club, struck it well, and then watched the ball come up short... or fly over the green. I have to remind myself that most of the time, the ground is not flat. I have lost count of the number of times I have had to rework my stance because of uneven ground.

You can not simply walk this course and hit the distance shown on your clubs. You have to use your imagination. You have to visualize the shot you want to hit. Then, Antognolla will give you a lesson, to teach you how to think differently.

Golfing Below the Castle

Having Antognolla Castle in your line of sight gives your round a magical feel. You do not simply come to play golf, you come to be a part of the history.

Having the medieval castle made of rough-hewn stone alongside the smooth and even grass of the golf course reminds the player that there is a great juxtaposition. There was one single point on one of the par threes, I think it was the seventh or eighth where I just stood there, and I think it was the seventh or eighth, and just completely lost in the view. At that point, I think I completely forgot to pull the club out of the bag and play the shot.

There is a moment in the golf course where time really does stand still, especially when the sun gets low in the sky and you can see the castle through the trees.

There is a time to just stop and forget about playing.

Achievement: It's About Walking

For the sake of leg muscles and sanity, Walking Antognolla is not meant for the faint of heart. The numbers tell the story: long climbs, steep descents, great lengths between holes.

No, I probably should not have walk during this heat, but I am quite stubborn; by 14, my legs were screaming; by 16, I was asking myself what on earth was I doing. The effort is part of the achievement.

Having walked Antognolla, you have done something. You left the course and walked off the 18th green, not just played another course.

Suffice to say, I slept like a rock that night

Unmatchable in All of Italy

It goes without saying, Antognolla Golf is not a place for a relaxed and easy round of golf. It is, engaging, defiant, and shall remain permanently embedded into your memories.

There are just not that many places in Italy where you can delicately touch the long iron and play a shot against the backdrop of a medieval castle, surrounded by a wild and untouched expanse of forests and deep valleys.

For its championship level golfing and the way in which the course tests, sharpens and defines the player; Antognolla is without peer in Italy

This is golf as performance. Golf as something to be experienced. Golf as something that goes beyond the game. You're not going to remember this round for the score. You're going to remember it for the location and the all the incredible things going on around you as you played.