Review's of Hever Castle Golf Club
Clubhouse/Hospitality
Quality of Course
Practice Facilities
Value for Money
Beautiful, long & demanding.......
The golf course is situated on the large estate of historic Hever Castle, Kent. Very impressive setting be it the grounds, the clubhouse and the design of the course which is just over 20 years old.
We played the Championship course comprising the Kings & Queens, two very different halves but equally challenging, may be more so the 2nd half which comprises a very long Par 5, 618 yards from the yellows ! On this very peaceful environment you will enjoy all that golf has to offer: lovely scenery, warm welcome, delightful Clubhouse and a well presented & maintained course with a strong challenge. Some dog legs , a few blind holes if I recall but the sleek & beautiful contoured greens are to be remembered. The bunkers are not many but very well designed for that strong challenge that the Championship course offers.
The practice facilities are 1st class too: the large putting area which makes a focus point from the terrace, the open & covered driving range, a large chipping and sand bunker a little further away down a well laid out path.
You will encounter a variety on each hole: some with very wide fairways impeccably cut, some narrower, large bunkers, and the natural water hazards, bridges, ponds, streams, ditches, etc. present on numerous holes. The trees are very mature, the ponds & streams are a haven for wildlife. The 2nd nine seems a little "wilder" in appearance, so probably more beautiful to my own eyes.
Today (Tuesday 30 April 2014) was a gorgeous sunny day on an empty course, a very pleasant mixed 4 balls taking advantage of a special £80 voucher kindly offered by our coolest, friendliest & most handsome TSG Ian F. Thank you from the 4 of us.
My favourite hole is the 12th, a Par 3, not that long, very beautiful, a large pond in front of the green, 2 huge bunkers, 1 on the left side and 1 at the back, the green is encircled by trees, also present on the right hand side. I think the tees were slightly raised.
Another hole worth mentioning is the 13th, a tough "cookie" which can upset your scorecard, the shot from the yellow is one of the most awkward as it facing sideways towards the narrow fairway bordered by a pond nearly as long as the hole on the left, mature trees on the right. The green slopes towards a stream waiting to catch the rolling ball and a large bunker on its left.
The Clubhouse is very attractive with a feature on its roof: different coloured tiles spells the name HEVER. A huge paved terrace with classy metal furniture & sunshades, lots of flowers arrangements, to the side of the terrace is a water feature: a pond, an old bridge, a weeping willow, looks very romantic. a lovely & scented rose path leading to the Ladies changing rooms which are well equipped. The lounge is spacious with lots of natural light,, nice furniture providing a pleasant seating arrangement.
Food is excellent: club burger with blue cheese and side salad + chips is recommended. Reasonable price for drinks too. Smiling & happy to serve Bar staff.
The Pro shop is well stocked and you get a nice welcome.
Large car park. The course is situated quite far away from all the main roads and if George (my GPS) does not behave, it will take you down single track lanes which I hate !!!!
A lovely experience on a very beautiful course but would not like to play on a wet and windy day.
There are special offers throughout the year.
By the way, I never saw or had a glimpse of the castle, so may be I shall return.
THE END.....
(My very own personal views usual).
Clubhouse/Hospitality
Quality of Course
Practice Facilities
Value for Money
Gorgeous course
It's hard not to love this course, although if you're looking for a good score then at 6500 yards from the yellows you maybe need to play elsewhere.
The front 9 is fairly generous with the fairways, but on the back 9 it tightens up and adds 200 yards. The 12th is a lovely looking par 4, but with a lake, trees, and a stream running in front of the green, there's lots of potential to ruin your round.
The par 5 17th has to be conquered if you want to get a good score here. At 600+ yards, and with a narrow landing area from the tee, it is far from easy.
The first three par 3's are all really pretty looking holes, and add in the scenery, clubhouse, and practise facilities, you should really enjoy the experience. Just don't expect a low score.
Clubhouse/Hospitality
Quality of Course
Practice Facilities
Value for Money
a very nice, if sometimes v tough course
I only scored 31 points on my first visit, but this was down to my mistakes.
The course had been burnt by the heatwave, and then rained on heavily the day before we played, the course had drained very well indeed, far better than expected, just some of the burnt areas and gone a little mushy, but not overly so. I will not criticize the greens for being a little slow, as they had been working on them a few days before we played.
I will not lie, there are some rather tough holes on this course, and if you don't take care this course will not only chew you up and spit you out, it will stamp on you afterwards, with a few rather tough tee shots... High handicappers, I tell you now, on some tees accept your handicap and play safe or ELSE.
Now for the important bits, it is a really nice walk this course, with some nice scenery, and the course is cut through trees and more trees. The greens, (ignoring the works being carried out), have some tricky breaks and slopes on them, so accept the odd 3 putt from a misread line. practice facilities are ok, and even nice views from the practice areas.
I havent looked what the regular prices are, but we paid £20 and I assure you it is a course that was well worth the money. I would most definately play this course again, despite the drive of over 40 miles. I gave it only 4/5 for value, but only due to the weather damage. This is a good ol tough course that you need to play well and hit long off of the tee where possible to score well. I nearly forgot, I reached the 600 yard par 5 in 3 blows of the golf sticks YESSSS, driver, 3 wood 21 degree rescue to a yard onto the front yehaw!
Clubhouse/Hospitality
Quality of Course
Practice Facilities
Value for Money
Hever Castle Golf club
I played here for the first time at the TSG championships on 16th April 2010. We played off the whites, which made the course extremely long & tough for a 20 handicapper!
This course is very nice visually, but has some very tough holes especially on the back 9, which has their version of Amen corner, with 3 holes that have to be played with pinpoint accuracy. The 13th has a lake to the left of centre, Large trees scattered all over the right of the narrow fairway & a wide ditch surrounding the small, right to left sloping green! This is index 1.
The course has Index 1, 2 & 3 all on the back 9, which is unusual, but still has some very tough holes on the front.
Incidentally the 17th is a par 5 629yd hole. Not being a massive hitter, I needed a driver, two 3 woods & an 8 iron just to get on the green!
I was very lucky to come away with 29 points (24 off 3/4 !)
It is definitely worth playing & I can't wait to take on this, 6700 yd challenge again sometime.
Is golf the perfect pandemic sport?