Like a granite reef in a stormy ocean for most of its thousand-year history Poland has been battered, overwhelmed and not infrequently submerged. Yet it always appears again in the sunlight; sturdy, unbroken and unchanged.

Poland’s weakness has always been the vulnerability of its borders. Situated on the wide north European plain, its frontiers are open to invaders on almost every side. The Mongols came from the east and the Teutonic Knights from the west, followed by Russians and Germans down the centuries to our own time.

The gentle, sandy dunes of the Baltic coast, too, were difficult to defend against Swedish invaders and only in the south, where the Carpathian Mountains climb up to almost 2500 metres is there any degree of natural protection. Their history is long and complicated and well worth skipping if we want to get on to their emancipation of golf. Their current position should hold fast as they are now a member of the EU and their future as a democracy secured.

Paczoltowice golf course, Krakow

Krakow Valley golf course

Rajszew golf course, Warsaw

Currently 29 golf clubs from all over the country are registered with the Golf Association, 12 of them are 18-hole layouts, the rest are either 9-holers or just driving ranges. Three golf centres operate in the Warsaw region.

The Toya course, Warsaw

The 2007 season saw eight championship tournaments and a match-play Polish Championship replacing the former Polish Cup, but the season’s highlight was the Polish Open which was won by Tim Spence from England.

Slowly golf facilities in Poland begin to market for golfing tourists which should be a long uphill struggle with what else is available from their neighbours and the warmer climates of Spain and Portugal.

A view of Gdansk

End