218 - Woldingham

Location: London, England

Rating: 7.4

A quick trip to London to see friends and with the clubs on hand and some time to spare we searched around for a course that would have us on a Saturday at a reasonable rate and so we settled on Woldingham. A short drive from south west London (relatively speaking, nothing is ever quick in London) and we found ourselves at this pretty course, nestled in a valley still within the M25.

As you approach the course you can see most of the holes set below in the valley and nestled in between the two 9’s the distinguished clubhouse, known as The Mansion House.

I’ve had a few friends play here before in the summer and shoot incredibly low scores for their handicap so was intrigued to see what it was all about. Needless to say it is very wide open. The fairways are generous and lined sporadically with tree with the opportunity to also miss on neighboroughing holes. Having said that I did quite enjoy the course, it is nothing amazing but for a £45 round in and around London with plenty of tee time availability I am definitely not complaining.

There are certainly some interesting holes, the par 4 10th being one. A blind tee shot with the hole bending to the left really leaves a lot to the imagination on where to hit, especially with the driving range serving as OB down the left hand side. Once you’ve hit your drive you’re then left with a downhill approach.

Despite its openness, it is still somewhat challenging with several bunkers dotted throughout, slanting fairways and having played in December, some boggy conditions and leaves doing a great job of hiding balls.