W

ith two centuries behind it without a war Sweden has developed a living standard higher than that of the United States and with one of the most extensive social welfare systems on earth Sweden is in many respects the envy of Europe, but their earthly paradise does not come cheaply; the Swedes carry the world’s heaviest tax burden, and their welfare services cost more than 70% of the national budget. Some Swedes feel that social featherbedding has led to over-governments, and are uneasily aware of a blandness and uniformity in the world about them. But no-one could deny that there is a great deal of comfort too.

Falsterbo Links

Sweden is a large, handsome, northerly country whose southernmost tip is on roughly the same latitude as the border between England and Scotland. Its northernmost tip, some 1500 km away, lies well within the Arctic Circle. Much of the south is flat, while the north is mountainous, and the coastline a bewildering scatter of 20.000 and more islands and islets. But to summon up a general picture, most of Sweden is an undulating plain whose chief elements are coniferous forests and water, dark lakes scoured out of granite during the ice age.

Spring is a good time to visit

On the whole the climate is extreme. Summers can bring heat waves, but they are brief. Winters in the north are seven months long and in the south three. To all areas they bring deep snow and ice

Around 6% of Swedes play golf, the highest percentage per capita in the world, although in winter most have migrated to the courses of Andalucia in southern Spain. Of the nearly half a million Swedes who play golf a third are female. The expansion of golf in Sweden also coincided with the worldwide surge in its popularity and professional Swedish golfers such as Jesper Parnavik, Carl Petterson and the unbeatable Annika Sorensten help raise the popularity of the game as well as becoming well known players on the European Tour.

Visby Links on the island of Gotland

Now there are approximately 450 golf courses in Sweden serving a population of nine million. As in many other countries golf is no longer an elitist game, but something for everyone and a sport that both parents and children can enjoy and as in most parts of the world businessmen find a golf course the perfect environment to relax while making a deal and many foreign businessmen visiting Sweden include the golf bag in their luggage.

Halmstad golf course

Golf Digest lists of the top five Swedish golf courses as
1. Barseback in Loddekopinge
2. Tylosand Halmstad in (36 holes) Halmstad
3. Ljunghusens (27 holes) in Hollviken
4. Falsterbo Links in Falsterbo
5. Visby in Gotlandstofta

The average green fees on Swedish courses is 56 USD in town areas and 42 USD in rural locations.

Barseback course in Loddekopinge

A view of Stockholm