So the golf here is more expensive than much of mainland Spain?
Of course it is, because funnily enough all that sand in those perfectly raked bunkers, and the fertiliser that is needed to produce those immaculate tee boxes and true, undulating greens has to be imported.
But if you want to play two of the best courses, not just on this beautiful island, but in the whole of Spain, just pay the small difference and enjoy.
I am talking about Mallorca and the top two courses by a distance of all 22 on the island are Alcanada and Son Gual. They are certainly no place for the novice and they aren’t cheap either, but you most certainly get what you pay for and a lot of hotels will offer a discount on the quoted green fees.
So do shop around for the right package and remember that you are paying to play the same standard of course that you would find at the likes of The Berkshire or Woking in the UK – that’s how good they are.
Having flown in to Palma International airport, it makes sense to make our first stop Son Gual which is no more than 18 minutes away provided you do not get as hopelessly lost as I did.
Just make sure, if you are driving yourself, you do not miss that tiny red sign on the right hand side of the road with the word ‘Golf’ on it.
Once you have followed that you will soon be outside the huge, stylish and welcoming clubhouse on the top of the hill with wonderful views across what is widely regarded as Mallorca’s number one course.
Son Gual
Once this was just 175 acres of at farmland and scrub and the brainchild of multi-millionaire German double-glazing magnate, Adam Pamer, who has a magnificent home in Mallorca but could not find a course on the island he thought good enough to play regularly so he decided to build his own.
Pamer recruited German golf architect Thomas Himmel, who shifted more than 1.8 million cubic yards of earth and planted 800 mature olive trees, some more than 1,000 years old, in a project costing around €30m.
The end result is stunning, delivering a course that has already featured on the European Senior Tour despite only opening in 2007.
There may be no natural lakes on Mallorca but there are plenty of artificial ones at Son Gual, seven to be precise, linked by sinuous streams that snake their way through the undulating greensward.
If the wind gets up, as it often does on Mallorca, Son Gual can be a ferocious challenge especially if anyone other than a professional is prepared to take it on off the black tees at 7,241 yards.
Fortunately, there are three sets of tee boxes for both men and women with the forward yellow tees, still no pitch and putt at 6,543 yards, the best place to start.
The crucial thing is to keep the ball on the fairway, and sacrifice one shot rather than disappearing into one of the vast bunkers or being snared in the short but extremely clinging rough.
There is not a weak hole on the course with stand-outs being the par-5 sixth across a lake the size of a football pitch and the relatively short par-4 14th that appears to have as much sand as it does fairway.
And having negotiated the truly nasty par-5 18th it is time to sit on the splendid terrace and gaze back over the scene of our triumphs or disasters.
Alcanada
While Son Gual is a course that has been created from nothing, Alcanada, an hour or so away in the north-east corner of the island, is the complete opposite.
Here architect Robert Trent Jones Jnr has partnered nature to create a course of seamless beauty with glorious views out on to the Bay of Alcudia and the lighthouse the club has taken for its emblem. It opened in 2003.
The Porsche family owns Alcanada and everything about it is just as slick as their cars. The clubhouse, a fine old converted farmhouse, serves wonderful meals, first-rate snacks and has a wine list so good that non-golfers come here simply to have lunch.
The course is a delight too although, like Son Gual, it is a place designed with the competent player in mind.
It starts off with a beastly par 5, especially if the wind is blowing off the hills, that is uphill all the way and over a ravine before we eventually find a rolling green tucked away on the left-hand side.
Like Son Gual there are a lot of raised greens that are easy to end up short of the first time we play so club up and, again, sacrifice the monster tee shot to keep the ball on the lush fairways.
There are so many glorious holes it is difficult to single one out but the 610-yard par-5 seventh is a stunner. You hit from a raised tee and sweep downhill back towards the clubhouse.
The ninth is a long par four through a tight opening of trees before aiming at the distant lighthouse – another beautiful, if daunting, challenge.
The back nine is less tough with a couple of short par fours and easier walking but there is still so much to enjoy.
And having survived the test then enjoy a moment of peace on the terrace and savour that cold beer or a chilled Spanish white wine and rejoice in the knowledge that you have played not only two of the island’s but the country’s very best.
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