Richmond Park Golf Club - London

Despite being in the middle of London this course has a nice little tree-lined country feel to it. The fairways were in perfect condition but the greens could have been cut a little closer, we will overlook this as we did play it at the end of September after it was wet all week. Well placed ditches in the middle of the fairways come into play from some of the tees and you have to watch out for the occasional deer crossing in front of you. One thing we did not like was the bunkers, there was slightly more mud in them than sand.

Aldwickbury Golf Club - Hertfordshire

Aldwickbury is laid out among 170 acres of mature undulating parkland, the course was under very wet conditions when we played it but the fairway's were still in good condition and there was nothing wrong with the tees either, we couldn't really comment on the greens as they had just started spiking (vertidraining) them.

Although in some areas where there were no holes the ball did run well and some of the greens looked to have interesting slopes on them. The trees around the course do come into play on some holes and a few holes have some well placed bunkers, the 9th being one example.

Altogether a nice course to play and we will have to revisit in the summer under better conditions.

Pine Ridge Golf Club - Surrey

A very scenic public pay & play golf course, the fairway's on most holes are flat and lined with pine trees but they are very undulating with slopes going in all directions. The whole course is surrounded by pine trees but there is space amongst these trees to find gaps to recover back onto the fairway (Simon can verify this as he spent most of the time around the course amongst the trees).

The greens are undulating too and you will find some interesting putts on some holes if you are more than 20ft away. The tees on this course are amongst the best tees we have played on, they are all built-up tees with log surroundings and look great, the course is not too hilly overall but the second nine is definitely more tiring than the first.

Wokefield Park - Reading, Berkshire

Wokefield Park is set in the lovely Berkshire countryside, the long layout consists of many mature trees, nine lakes, beautifully contoured greens and large American style bunkers. A nice feature is an intercom on the ninth tee where you can order refreshments so they are ready for you at the halfway house before carrying on your round at the tenth, a nice touch.

Silvermere Golf Club - Surrey

Nice course with some tight wooded holes at the start, opens up after then and is more forgiving to the odd wayward shot. There is water on every hole after the 13th and the lake at the clubhouse makes the 17th and 18th holes very interesting.

The 17th would be easy if it was all grass but it is a 170 yard carry over water, I bet a few thousand pounds worth of golf balls are in that lake.

Oak Park Golf Club - Hampshire

Oak Park is a very nice 18 hole course which also has a 3200 yard 9 hole course. The main course is hilly in places and most holes have very tight tree-lined fairway's which were in excellent condition as well as the greens, considering how good the fairway's and greens were the tees were a little bit of a disappointment and could have been better.

There is some sort of water feature or ditch on nearly every hole so careful placement of your tee shots are required for good scoring.

Shendish Manor Golf Club - Hertfordshire

Shendish Manor is a nice tree-lined, if a little short, course, the trees and woodland around this course are mature and come into play on quite a few holes. Don't remember seeing any water on the course and a few of the par 4's are very reachable from the tee.

This course is a good one to play if you are a high handicapper as most of the holes are a bit on the short side in length, mind you the greens are very tough to putt on. They were in good condition and the ball rolls well on them but they are certainly not flat, Tony had nine birdie putts in his round and did not make one of them.

West Middlesex Golf Club - Middlesex

West Middlesex is a nice tree-lined course in built up area, you have to cross a main road twice on the way round, but the fairways, greens and tees were in great condition. If you have not played this course before, as I had not, then I suggest you go round with a member or walk the course first. A few of the holes have blind shots and you can easily lose a ball into trees or river if you do not know where the hole goes.

The fairways have quite a few ups and downs in them with some well placed mounds in the middle of some. There is only one hole affected by water, the 11th, a river runs along next to the 17th but does not really come into play unless you miss the fairway by a long way to the left.

What I liked about this course was the par 3's, most were long and the short one is over a lake.

Stanmore Golf Club - Middlesex

Stanmore is a nice course which is very close to London, there is a variety of wooded holes and some hilly ones too. The hilly part of the course tests your hitting power and length as many of the tee shots land on an uphill slope so will stop where they land. The wooded part of the course is where accuracy is required otherwise you will find yourself in the middle of a spinney looking for a gap to get back to the fairway.


The 7th hole was the highlight of the round, the tee shot looks daunting, it's a raised tee up on the high part of the course down to the fairway on the low part of the course. The drop is flanked on either side by trees and it looks as if one pine tree directly in line with the tee and fairway got just a little bit too big as it has been cut down to size allowing the tee shot to sail straight over it.

The fairway does open out a little when you get down there so a wayward looking shot from the tee might not seem too bad when you walk down to the lower level. If you hold your nerve on the tee then you will have just a short iron shot left to the green where the only danger is if you go long or right into more trees.

The course does get quite high up and there are some great views of the surrounding areas at it's highest point. The greens were in great condition and putting on them was a pleasure, fairway's were good too but I did not like the severe rough that was around the course. Miss the fairway or a green by more than five yards and you are in grass that is about six inches tall and very thick, the best you can hope for is to chop it out about ten yards back onto the fairway.

Ashford Manor Golf Club - Middlesex

Ashford Manor is a very nice course with a nice clubhouse which was once the mansion house of the Ashford Manor Estate. The greens are very good and look to run true, some are very undulating and the pins were placed on the slopes of some greens making those little tap-ins a little more difficult.

The fairways look great as well and are lined with woods of pine, oak, elm, fir and cassia. The course looks as though it is in the middle of the countryside, not right next to Heathrow on the outskirts of London. The only disappointing thing about this course was that the par 4's feel all the same, straight up and down, there is only one dogleg on the whole course. The only other thing that is worth mentioning is that it is Jackets and Ties in the clubhouse after 7pm.

Aspect Park Golf Club - Oxfordshire

Aspect Park is a good looking new course but there is a lot of development still going on, the tees and fairway's were in good condition but the greens were a little worse for wear. Although the greens are undulating and most of them are raised greens so if you just run off a green you won't be right on the fringe you will be a couple of feet away from the green.

The hole that stood out for me was the 8th, a par 5 double dogleg, the green was being rebuilt when I played it but I still think it is going to be a very good hole when finished. If you can drive accurately and long then you will have a good chance for a birdie. I say you have to be accurate because the gap in the fairway where there is a sort of double dogleg is reduced to about 30 yards across and is reachable.

Windmill Hill Golf Club - Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire

Windmill Hill is a little pay and play parkland course, the fairways are mostly tree-lined but not too much of a problem. The course is made shorter in the winter, as it was when I played, so it could be more difficult during the summer. The greens are very large so are quite easy to hit, but be prepared for some long putts, it is a nice course for beginners but it may be a little easy for the experienced golfer.

Dummer Golf Club - Hampshire

Dummer has a slightly new feel to it but has areas where you would never have guessed it was built in the 90's. The tees are great with a good variety of positions, the fairways too are very good but the greens were a little slow although they did putt smoothly, it just took a little getting used to having an 8ft downhill putt pulling up before it got to the hole.

The course starts with one of six 400+ yard par 4's, the only trouble on this hole being the driving range on the right, the 2nd is a very different story, the green looks drivable but a ditch that runs across the fairway short of the green makes you think twice about it. The 3rd is a tough par 4 from the yellows but a lot easier par 5 from the whites, the bunkers that surround the green make the approach a tricky one especially if it is from around 200 yards. The 4th tempts you to cut the corner by aiming at the bunker on the right but we would advise against it, drive it to the start of the slope and you are left with an easy pitch down the hill to a large green.

The 5th needs a solid shot into a green with the right club and the 6th is a tough uphill par 4 that needs two very good shots to reach. The 7th & 8th holes give you a break from long approaches, needing just a pitch into the greens, while the 9th needs a drive down the left or a right to left shape off the tee to leave an easier approach.

The start of the back nine needs a left to right shape of the tee & the approach to the very wide green is hampered by a few bunkers around it. There is hardly any trouble on the 11th as long as you do not try to cut off too much of the dogleg and the 12th can leave you with a blind approach. The 13th's fairway is tough to find from the tee & you best bet is to aim for the right side of it as it slopes from right to left and the 14th is a straight forward par 3 if you can ignore all the sand between you and the hole.

The 15th with all it's bunkers makes cutting the corner a brave choice and the 16th tee shot requires you to drive between two trees either side of the fairway. The penultimate hole needs a solid long iron off the tee and the last hole needs a good drive off the tee to carry the gully which then leaves you needing a well placed second shot avoiding the lake.

The staff & members here were very pleasant and the course marshal was very kind to ask the two fourballs in front of us to let us through. With many plantations still at the sapling stage this course could well mature in to a great one in years to come, they just need to speed those greens up a little.

Alresford Golf Club - Hampshire

Found the the grass on the fairways just a little too long when I played Alresford but you can understand for the time of year. The greens were in great condition, maybe a little flat with a lot of straight putts but strangely rolled a lot slower than they looked.

The course has a good mix of holes although in some places it looks like they have tried too hard to fit them all in, with a few that could do with a little extending. But to be fair the club does not try too hard to be anything its not and all in all I had a good day.

Twickenham Golf Club - Middlesex

Twickenham is not a great 9 hole course, just an average pay and play one. The fairway's are tree-lined but are quite bumpy so nice lies are hard to come by, there is water affecting one hole and the greens are on the small side.

It was hard to pick a favourite hole on this course because they are all pretty average but the 7th is probably the best one. The fairway bends round to the left but there is a large tree on the edge of the fairway so if you want to cut the corner you will need a slight draw. If you hit the ball straight then there is a bunker in the middle of the fairway to catch any reasonable length drives, clear the bunker and you will soon run out of fairway.