Final Óbidos Open Signals Portugal’s Rising Golf Economy for Expats

The coming week on Portugal’s Silver Coast promises more than seaside sunsets. Royal Óbidos Spa & Golf Resort is preparing for its swan-song edition of the Open de Portugal, and the guest list reads like a who’s who of the 2025 Challenge Tour. Nine of the circuit’s top 10 players will test Seve Ballesteros’s water-laced layout from 11 to 14 September, chasing both ranking points and a €300,000 purse. For expatriates living in—or eyeing—a home in Portugal, the tournament offers a window onto the country’s growing golf economy, its sustainable tourism ambitions and an easy weekend escape less than an hour’s drive from Lisbon.

Why the final Óbidos edition deserves expat attention

International residents often watch Portugal’s real-estate pages more closely than its leaderboards, yet the two are quietly intertwined. Golf tourism injects more than €4 B into the national economy each year, according to the Portuguese Golf Federation, pulling property values in resort corridors upward and sustaining year-round air links. The Open’s fifth and last staging at Royal Óbidos underscores how regional tournaments can serve as market mood indicators: full hotels, upgraded roads and a burst of media exposure usually precede fresh foreign investment. For anyone holding a D7 or Golden Visa, the crowds descending on Óbidos offer a timely barometer of the West Coast’s post-pandemic bounce.

A star-studded field fighting for promotion

Leading the charge is Scotland’s David Law, current No. 1 on the Road to Mallorca ranking and already a DP World Tour winner. He is joined by fellow high-flyers Oihan Guillamoundeguy, Filippo Celli, Daniel Young, Joshua Berry, Renato Paratore, Maximilian Steinlechner and JC Ritchie—all sitting inside the season’s top eight. Throw in Swedish prodigy Hugo Townsend and defending champion Matt Oshrine and the recipe is set for one of the deepest Open fields since the event returned to Portugal’s calendar in 2017. Three victories guarantee automatic promotion to the main European circuit; several contenders arrive in Óbidos already holding two, making the stakes exponentially higher than a typical Challenge Tour stop.

Bidding farewell to Seve’s seaside puzzle

Ballesteros’s 7,200-yard design unfurls over rolling dunes with lagoons lurking on 10 holes; miss the breeze-swept fairways and a double bogey is never far away. Spectators will notice how the par-5 18th wraps around a lake, creating a risk-reward finish tailor-made for Sunday drama. The course’s tenure as Open host ends this year—organisers confirmed the tournament will rotate to a new venue in 2026—so 2025 is the final chance to see elite golf against the backdrop of Óbidos’s medieval castle. Expect green speeds north of 11 on the Stimpmeter and rough trimmed to penal levels; the resort’s meticulous agronomy team has been prepping since spring.

Economic ripples across the Oeste

Hoteliers from Peniche to Caldas da Rainha report occupancy close to 100 % during tournament week, while local councils estimate direct spending on lodging, meals and transport will top €2 M. Temporary hiring spikes in hospitality and event services add hundreds of short-term jobs. Crucially, global TV coverage on the European Tour’s streaming platforms beams Portugal’s lesser-known Oeste region to the same markets that already flock to the Algarve, reinforcing the country’s strategy of geographic diversification in tourism.

Golf that treads lightly on the coast

Royal Óbidos publicises a “Pledge of Sustainable Golf,” and auditors from GEO Foundation list the resort among Iberia’s renewable-energy front-runners: 292 solar panels power clubhouse operations, while harvested rainwater irrigates tees and greens. Electric-vehicle chargers—free for Tesla drivers—dot the car park. The low-rise villas that line the fairways were designed to sit below the dune horizon, limiting visual impact on a fragile coastal ecosystem already under pressure from real-estate growth.

Planning your visit: visas, tickets and a side of ginjinha

Daily grounds passes start at €25 and can be bought online through the European Challenge Tour portal. Children under 12 enter free. Drivers coming from Lisbon should budget 50 minutes via the A8; free shuttle buses link the resort gate with Óbidos’s walled town, where post-round rituals include a shot of cherry-infused ginjinha served in edible chocolate cups. Non-residents holding a NIF can claim parking discounts through the Via Verde app, while newer arrivals on digital-nomad visas might consider combining the trip with a reconnaissance of nearby surf towns like Baleal and Ericeira. Those inspired to pick up clubs themselves will find green-fee deals on Monday and Tuesday after the tournament, when the freshly conditioned course reopens to the public.

Whether you come for the leaderboard drama or to scout Portugal’s next property hotspot, the 63rd Open de Portugal offers a concise lesson in how sport, sustainability and foreign investment continue to collaborate along the Atlantic edge of Europe.