Why the Aegean Messinia Pro-Am is a Must on the Golfing Calendar

By Paulina Björk Kapsalis

“This competition is getter stronger and stronger every year,” smiled Liam Bond, the Great Britain and Ireland player who took the professional top honors at the Aegean Messinia Pro-Am last year. “There are now sixty teams playing, boasting many players with European Challenge Tour experience. It’s a younger field – I’m an old guy who somehow managed to creep on top.”

Standing in the sun at The Dunes Course, where he played his nail-biting final round against PGA of Spain professional, Liam Murray, he gestured to the greens: “This Pro-Am is the best one we play! We’re looked after so well by all the hotels here, including the new ones. The golf courses are all immaculate, as you can see, and the players will all tell you that they’re some of the finest in the world.”

The courses at Costa Navarino have been designed to seamlessly meld into the landscape, with its centuries-old olive trees and verdant hills, and the destination is currently ranked 7th in the world for golf. Each of the courses offers a different challenge, making the playing experience interesting. The Dunes Course (designed by Bernhard Langer) by the sea is considered the hardest by many, due in part to the gusts of wind coming in from the Ioanian; The Hills Course and the world’s only International Olympic Academy Golf Course (both designed by Jose Maria Olazabal), located in the hills above the resorts, offer an exciting variety of holes and sometimes distracting panoramic views; while The Bay Course (designed by Robert Trent Jones Jr), where Bond managed to score an impressive new record of 62 during last year’s tournament, challenges golfers of various skill levels, making it a favorite among many players for a leisurely game among friends.

“I’ve been coming here for about ten years now, and I’ve seen the destination evolve from having just two golf courses and one clubhouse, to having four courses and three clubhouses – which are all beautiful. The new Mandarin Oriental, Costa Navarino is also simply stunning – I have no words to describe it,” enthused Italian pro player Federico Elli, who previously won the Messina Pro-Am in 2017. Locals also marvel at the evolution of golf in the area, spurred by the Navarino Golf Academy. “I started playing here when I was about eight years old, I grew up here and became the top one amateur in the country. It’s the best program in Greece, to be honest,” said, who played on Bond’s team. now instructor at the Navarino Golf Academy, echoed the sentiment, saying that: “being a ‘homegrown professional’ here has been amazing. Since I was twelve, I’ve had two golf courses to play on, and for the last two years I’ve been lucky enough to have another two!”

The annual Aegean Messinia Pro-Am has evolved as well, especially since two became one, when the established Aegean Airlines Pro-Am and Messinia Pro-Am tournaments merged in 2022. At last year’s tournament, 60 teams from 23 countries gathered. PGA of Austria player Georg Schultes, who returned for another year after his win in the inaugural combined event, said: “The combination of the two tournaments has brought all of the best professionals here. I remember playing the Aegean Pro-Am back in the day, and it still has the flair of that tournament today, but with a huge field of professionals. It’s lovely to see all of these friends and colleagues here.” “The evolution of Costa Navarino has been amazing. The Navarino Agora and the new hotels towards the bay are amazing, and my amateurs and I visited some amazing new restaurants,” he continued, pointing to the fact that Costa Navarino is a growing destination, not just for golf. It’s currently home to no less than four resorts, a dynamic new marketplace (the Agora), residential neighborhoods, as well as Europe’s first Mouratoglou Tennis Center.

The 2023 tournament was brought to a fitting finale at a prize-giving event at Between, located at the vibrant new W Costa Navarino, followed by a live music party on the beach. “I’m here with my girlfriend and we’ve had a wonderful stay. We had the luxury of going to the W Hotel last night, to a raving party that was thrown for us. It was a wild affair, so that was nice, although I had to head out early so that I could play today,” said Bond, adding: “Every box has been ticked at the Costa Navarino resorts now.”

Costa Navarino is set to welcome the most important tournament in the destination’s golfing calendar, the Aegean Messinia Pro-Am, again on November 20-24, 2024.

The 54-hole event, sanctioned by the Confederation of Professional Golf and supported by the Hellenic Golf Federation and PGAs of Greece, will take place across three of Costa Navarino’s four signature 18-hole golf courses – The Dunes Course, The Hills Course and the International Olympic Academy Golf Course. The tournament will feature a maximum of 70 teams, with each team comprising one professional and three amateurs, with a total prize reaching €70,000.