Denmark Golf, Royal Golf Club, Copenhagen, July 2026

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So the funny story here is that in the Copenhagen area of Denmark there are two golf courses, the Royal Golf Club of Copenhagen and the Royal Copenhagen Golf Club.  Jeff thought he booked with Royal Copenhagen Golf Club and expected the club to be about 30 minutes north of Copenhagen. So we rented a car so that we could then continue north to see other sites like castles!  Thankfully the night prior Jeff double checked our Tee Time and the address and wouldn’t you know it, the address was 15 minutes south of Copenhagen. Which is when we realized that he booked the Royal Golf Club of Copenhagen and not the Royal Copenhagen Golf Club!  Well that would have been disappointing to have showed up at the wrong place, and potentially miss out playing, or had to double-pay, since we prepaid!   Alas, we caught the mix-up and course corrected our plans.  Going south to the course and then later heading up North anyway!

We were greeted by the very friendly and “do-it-all” Rainy Lion James who was the greeter, Golf Coach, Starter and course care-giver!  He had a wonderful personality to go with his fantastic name. And a variety of life and career skills.  Before we headed out Jeff got an un-solicited, but appreciated, mini lesson from Rainy at the driving range. His biggest advice is to not reach for the ball.  Step forward and also not to swing all arms but to extend the arms after the body turns.

As a pleasant surprise Rainy played the first 2 holes with us to ensure we know our way around the course.  The course is public and owned by the state/county.  They are not allowed much signage so being alert for very small arrows indicated the next hole direction is important. 

Each hole was fairly independent and you did not see many other flags or holes, and while it was a Saturday, it was quite empty.  There is not a lot of business when there are no conferences in the area. There is a Marriott AC Hotel just across the road and several other hotels and buildings, so this is a popular location for corporate events.

The Greens were in excellent condition but the Tees and Fairways need a lot of love and care.  Seems like they are budgeting and prioritized the greens, leaving the fairways with minimal grass and lots of weeds.  Despite the look, the design is quite fantastic. You need good course management because there are a lot of natural barriers, including various fescues, sand and water between the Tees and the Greens. This is a scrappy but creative golf course with lots of twists and turns and ups and downs.  It felt like a combination of a Links and Park course because there were lots of hills like a links course but then surrounded by trees and white and yellow flower beds.

The Scorecard does not have the course layout, so be sure to check out the Tee Box signs to get an idea of the golf hole design.  Speaking of signs, at hole 10 there was not great signage on which direction for the next hole.  It’s to the left when facing the Green and take the gravel path a long way through a wooded area and there will be hole 11! 

While our experience at the Royal Copenhagen golf course may have been very different, thanks to Rainy’s welcoming spirit we had a joyful day with beautiful weather, beautiful surroundings and great memories.  Thank you Rainy!!

One quick note: the course is situated very close to an outdoor shooting range, so the sounds of gunshots were ever present. After a while they just became background noise.

After our round we headed north to the Kronborg Castle.  Worth the ride outside of Copenhagen, it has spectacular views, and you can see Sweden’s southern area.  There is even a ferry that can take you there.  The Castle has several activities, is family friendly and it was a great way to learn more about Denmark. The castle is said to be the inspiration for Shakespeare's Hamlet.

Just across the way is a great Street Food Market, called Elsinore Street Food.  It’s indoor/outdoor with fun, creative and eclectic seating and decor and offers a variety of “food truck” types of food and beverage.  A great place to meet up with family and friends too.  Seemed like many many locals were there.

Beyond Golf, the city of Copenhagen is just lovely.  Very relaxed with a friendly vibe.  The main form of transportation is biking and there were thousands all over the place.  There is a waterfront where during the summer there are tons of people soaking up the sun and chilling out.  Talking and not on their phones!!

It’s so worth going to all the areas of the city.  You can take the Hop on Hop off bus to reach them.  Home of Carlsburg provides a history lesson beyond beer, walk up the Tarn Tower at the Church of our Savior for a wonderful view.  Stroll around Christinania’s hippie/artsy town and then head for dinner at Reffen, another open Food Market, by the water and great to see sunsets.  Summertime the sun sets about 10pm.