From the moment you drive through the gates at the entrance you just know you are going to enjoy the experience of playing here. The staff were very helpful & the hospitality of the whole place makes you feel like a member. The clubhouse is superb with nice changing rooms plus a number of rooms for societies to rejoice after their rounds. The facilities too are great especially the 3 hole Academy course where you can warm up before taking on the real challenge.
The course starts with a straight forward par 4, keep out of the bunkers and you should have a mid-short iron approach to the green. After this gentle start comes a tough par 3, the bunker in front will catch anything coming up short so unless you feed the ball in from the left you really need to make sure you take enough club. The 3rd is a par 5 that plays like a par 5, the bunker & water hazard are right on the driving distance so accuracy is required from the tee and there really is no way of reaching the green in two unless you are long enough to fly the ball all the way up the hill to the green over the double row of bunkers at the front.
The 4th is another par 5 that also requires an accurate tee shot to thread the ball between the bunkers on either side of the fairway, you are then left with a choice of going for the green over the water or laying up, taking the water out of play. Sand traps come into play on the 5th as well but if avoided will leave a short iron in to a large double green, so an accurate approach is needed. The 6th is another long par 3 where coming up short will once again leave you in the sand unless you can run the ball in from the right. From the tee on the 7th all you can see is bunkers, it really is quite difficult trying to pick a line down the fairway that does not involve trying to avoid the sand.
The 8th is a hole of choices where the wrong one made on the tee could spell disaster and the 9th once again has sand traps to be avoided then you are left with a straight forward approach to the green. We must stress how the course rewards good shots and brave ones but punishes the wayward golfer. There are hardly any holes that run parallel to each other so just missing the fairway leaves you in a cut of light rough, stray a little further off course and you will find some rough, but stray too far and you are in knee high grass where your only hope, if you find your ball, is to play back on to the fairway.
The 10th is a long par 5 where the two bunkers need to be avoided from the tee, after that it's pretty straight forward but the tiered green means making sure your approach lands on the right level. The 11th looks great from the tee and the temptation to try and cut the corner is immense, a par is quite easy to get here if the hole is played sensibly. The 12th is all uphill so distance is difficult to judge but it is so important to get on the correct tier as 3 putting on this green looks like a very easy task. The 13th is a long par 4 where if you are long enough you could cut the corner over the bunker on the left to leave yourself a shorter approach otherwise a long iron approach over the bunkers is what you will probably be left with.
The 14th is a short par 4 where caution off the tee will help avoid the bunker and leave a nice short iron approach to that large double green. The par 5 15th again gives you the temptation of trying to cut the corner but doing so puts you right in the line of the lone tree in the fairway totally ruining your second shot, if you do have a shot to the green then there is almost no chance of running on to it as the bunker in front will catch any rolling approach. The next hole is a monster par 4 where a par is a very good result, bunkers and a ridge in the fairway at driving distance all try to hold up your tee shot so a long approach to the green is very likely. The 17th at last gives you a good birdie opportunity but the two bunkers still ensure you get the distance correct. The water hazard on the last should not really come into play unless you are going to belt your driver off the tee, keep it up the right, avoiding the bunker and you will be left with a clear approach to the green.
The greens here were a treat to putt on with the ball running very smoothly, the fairways were great too and with lots of tee options the tee areas should not get too cut up. We also have to mention that there are some great views while walking the course and the White Horse and Lansdowne Monument can clearly be seen from certain holes. Overall a very enjoyable day.
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