Golf Son Servera - Classic Mallorcan Golf by the Sea
- Gunnar Kobin
- Dec 12, 2025
- 4 min read
Updated: Mar 23
Son Servera: Traditional Mallorca Golf
Nestled in the hills of north-eastern Mallorca is the Son Servera Golf Club.
It is located just inland from the Cala Millor and the more tranquil coastal towns of the Llevant region. This region of the island is quite different from the area around Palma. It is more rural and less developed commercially, allowing for a greater connection with the island's traditional way of life.
The course presents a typical Mallorca landscape of undulating inland hills, dry stone walls, olive trees, and farmland, creating an authentic landscape.
I wanted to come here to experience Mallorca golf before it became a tourist destination.
An Escape from the Tourist Spots
From the moment you step onto the course, it is a breath of fresh air. There are no massive hotels or artificial lakes.
The fairways are simply designed and are fitted to the natural contours of the landscape. Over the opening stretch of the course, you are deep in a pine forest. The terrain is narrow and the lateral challenges are made. Tee shots are tightly framed and defined.
Every new hole is a new experience with new challenges. I had a nervous drive on the first hole and I felt a little claustrophobic. My partner, a local, just smiled and said, "Welcome to Son Servera."
Over the course of the game the landscape and your perspective on the course open up. The forest is more open, the fairways widen, and the views are longer. The full scale of the property becomes visible.
The difference is noticeable.The Second Oldest Course on the Island.
Son Servera was the second golf course on Mallorca, opening in 1967. The layout was designed by John Harris, a British course designer known for his strategic placements. His work with the land is still visible.
Later, refinements were added by Dave Thomas, a Ryder cup player and course architect. He enhanced the strategies but kept the layout the same.
You can feel the history when you play the course. There are no distractions, just golf.
You can feel the history when you play the course. There are no distractions, just golf.
The Son Servera course doesn't distance itself with length. It just demands more.
With each hole having its own unique characteristics, you will need to consider the best type of shot to play, giving the course more than just brute force. Each hole requires strategic and precise shot placements, especially in the more wooded sections of the course where the risks of making a mistake with shot placement are greater.
On the more open sections of the course, players tend to think course plays itself. However, it is in the more open sections where you need to make more strategic decisions about shot and placement. The course may look inviting, but the fairways can be deceptively tight.
I’ve learnt this the hard way on 11. I smashed what I thought was a great drive, but ended up on the “wrong” side of the fairway and had to pull off a tricky, punch shot just to get under the branches of a tree. In contrast, my playing partner was a good 20 yards shorter than me but was on the “right” side of the fairway and so had a clear, unobstructed shot to the green.
Compounding this need, the greens are small and have subtle contours making short games and iron play especially more important.
Ideal Location for a Multi-Course Trip
Son Servera is strategically located in exactly the right spot. The north-eastern edges of Mallorca is developing in to one of the best golf destinations on the island.
Son Servera Golf is the perfect spot to base an extended golfing holiday, with Pula Golf, Canyamel Golf, Capdepera Golf and Vall d'Or all within a short drive.
From the championship challenge at Pula to the dramatic inland terrain at Capdepera, each of these courses presents a unique style of play giving the region impressive variety to tackle serious golfers.
In most places, you wouldn't be able to stay in the same area for three days, play four different courses, and not drive more than 20 minutes to each one.
An oasis, like Mallorca used to feel, Son Servera’s uniqueness lies in it’s timeless atmosphere. There is no rush here.
The clubhouse actually feels like a place to gather, and not a commercialized one. The whole place feels like authentic calmness that is very rare to find in a golf course these days.
The course even amplifies that feeling and creates an atmosphere of reflection, conversation, and the let the rhythm of the game flow.
After the round, I took a seat in the clubhouse and witnessed a group of older Spanish members finish their game, laughing and bantering about who had to pay whom. It wasn’t a tourist facility, it felt like a real club.
Why It’s Important Son Servera Golf Club is not trying to be an Instagram hit. It’s meant to be played. It’s character more than makes up for the absence of length and spectacle that Mallorca’s new championship courses have, giving it more lasting qualities.
The transformation from dense corridors of pine forests to expansive farmland reflects the true character of the island.
For Mallorca golfers looking to connect with the golfing heritage of the island, Son Servera cannot be missed.
This is what golf courses used to look like before they became the thin line of a marketing brochure. And that is more important than I thought when I made the tee time.
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