Rowlands Castle Golf Club

Rowlands Castle, in idyllic Hampshire, not far from the hustle and bustle of Portsmouth and the A27/M27.

This is a par 72 parkland style course. There are 3 par 3s, 12 par 4s and 3 par 5s. Played off the yellow tees the course is 6,398 yards.

The course was formed in 1902 and designed by Harry Colt.

Visitor green fees are £45 weekday and £55 on Sundays/bank holidays. No mention of County Card rates on their website!

I got to play the course for the first time by entering their annual Seniors Open Stableford Competition. The £38 entry fee included coffee, 18 holes, a two course meal/cogffee and prizes. A great vfm way to play the course.

As at July 2018, the fairways were hard and fast moving, especially those with severe slopes. Trouble awaiting 'wild' or over-clubbed shots. There were challenging doglegs and ditches or OOB hazards. The greens by contrast were lush green though not as fast a pace as I would have liked.

The three par 3s were good without being unreasonably difficult. By chance I won the two nearest the pin challenges on the 2nd and 14th holes for two bottles of Pimms, but no birdies.

The par 4 4th and the par 5 17th were the most difficult holes because of ditches and OOB hazards. The lateral ditches were narrow and deep and unplayable out of!

This was a round of highs and lows; the lows being three offline drives all resulting in penalties. However, all in all this was a very enjoyable course to play and I would be very happy to play it again, possibly in next years competition. However, I wouldn't pay their 'full' visitor rates. However, I would say that of most golf courses.

The club hospitality, organisers, members/marshals etc was excellent and the food/catering also excellent.

Their website could be a lot more customer friendly for visitors!