The world´s best Live Golf

With stands up to 75,000 people will be able to follow the final holes from their vantage points in Victory Valley. Photomontage.

Both Stockholm and Sweden need a really good competition course. Björn Örås’s basic idea was to entertain the spectators – who should be able to see well, sit well, stand well and watch from the right vantage points. There should be a lot to look at; several players and activities simultaneously. Everything should be pleasant and well-ordered so that people can enjoy the view.

National arena for golf

Bro Hof will be one of the world’s best competition courses - a Stadium Course - a national arena for golf.  Everything is thought through from the spectator’s perspective, and the spectators on site should be able to get close and follow the players, live. At present there few courses that provide the public with a good experience of the game. The majority don’t have time to follow one player, but instead queue for hours to see the final putt on the 18th hole.
“Normally you can see golf better on the television. Spectators come mostly to meet people and to mingle. But for many of them they only ever visit one golf competition,” says Björn.

“Stadium Points” with good spectator places

In five places on the Bro Hof Stadium Course, spectators can sit down and follow the game at several holes simultaneously. They are called “Stadium points” and are absolutely unique. 

Everything is thought through from the spectator’s perspective, and the spectators on site should be able to get close and follow the players at several holes.  Photomontage.

“I wanted to build a course that’s really good for the players, but which also considers the spectators,” continues Björn. Five different “Stadium points” apart from Victory Valley and the stands at holes 15 and 16 cover the entire course. At the second green there is the “Gallery” with 15,380 seats. Without moving, the spectator can see both the approach to the second hole and putts and tee shots on three, tee shots on seven and putts and tee shots on eight.

Victory Valley – stalls for 75,000 spectators

It is Victory Valley that is really unique, situated between the castle and Lake Mälaren. From the stands all the spectators can watch tee shots and putts at the 17th hole as well as tee shots, approach play and putts at the 18th… as well as the prize giving. Not to mention the beautiful view over Lake Mälaren.
“In order to succeed with this, we have counted backwards: How much space do the stands need? Then we created the hole. Victory Valley is the only place where we have interfered with nature to achieve our aim.”
The area has been excavated in order to create a “natural area” with good views. Here 40,000 spectators can have a good view – without stands! With stands, up to 75,000 people will have the chance to follow the final holes from the first row.
Bro Hof is able to welcome 2-300,000 spectators, sitting and standing. In comparison, Barsebäck has had a maximum of around 100,000 over four competition days, of which 50,000 were on the final day and 15,000 people were at the 18th green.

A working infrastructure

A prerequisite for attracting the crowds is that there is functioning transport and infrastructure. The commuter train stop in Bro, 29 minutes from Stockholm Centralen, is just over ten minutes’ walk away and there is enough space for 20,000 cars in the planned car parks.


Electricity and telephone cables, as well
as water and sewerage pipes, have already
been installed for the media, sponsors and
competition organisers.Electricity and telephone cables, as well as water and sewerage pipes, have already been installed for the media, sponsors and competition organisers, as well as space for a 450 m² press tent. Separate areas are planned for the European Tour’s organisation, about 80-90 persons, as well as for sponsors and a tent village. The area also has planned parking spaces for broadcasting vehicles and the lorries that are required for transporting all the necessary equipment. Naturally, food outlets and toilets have also been included in the plans.
“If the visitors experience the event as a positive occasion they will want to come back and watch golf again. And then we will have even more visitors. In that way we hope to initiate a beneficial spiral,” rounds off Björn Örås.

The 16th hole of TPC at Scotsdale, Arizona, has an arena for 35,000 spectators; TPC Saw Grass’s 17th hole is well-known, and Amon Comer at Augusta and the National outside Paris both provide views of both approach play and putts. Perhaps the best for spectators is Eagle Trace in Florida, where the public can see two greens and a tee at the same time. The stands there are permanent, all year round.