West Malling Golf Club

To be honest I was not expecting to enjoy West Malling as much as I did. I was attending Marky Marks Charity event, so knew I would have good time. I had received poor comments on the Hurricane course, so was not expecting much at all.
I played 27 holes on the Hurricane and thoroughly enjoyed it. The course is pretty flat and I'd describe it as parkland. The Tee boxes, bunkers and greens were all in good order. The Fairways were also lush as we had had such a wet July.
The club house and facilities sufficed, the staff were friendly. The only down side was the cost of the buggy...£30
All in all, I really enjoyed West Malling and would definitely play it again.

Bit of a trek but pleasant drive. Easy to find course, well established clubhouse and pro shop pity it was closed after the event. The course was in pretty good condition, greens I thought were a touch wooly. Clever use of topography and a busy road to cross. No really memorable feature holes just a good walking course, with a couple of elevation changes in need of a sherpa. Did a texas scramble in the morning and 18 holes after lunch. A long day and no balls lost.

Breakfast rolls OK, lunch could have had a few more calories and carvery dinner was OK.

Drive back in heavy rain was a bit of a challenge.

So, having been to West Malling Golf Club numerous times, I was sure I had played both The Hurricane (Marky Mark's Annual Golf Day) and The Spitfire.

But despite playing both courses within a week of each other, I had absolutely no recollection of The Spitfire course (which I am reviewing here).

And how would I forget the behemoth of a golf hole, otherwise known as The Eiger!

Yep, a 332 yards, Par 4, 15th, that drops twenty feet from the tee and rises another sixty feet to the green.

Oh and I should mention, it's a blind second shot!

The rest of the course is parkland in layout and while the course undulates in many places, it's a pretty easy walk.

Whilst most fairways are open, there are a couple of narrow holes and some excellent little Par 3 to navigate, all reachable and fun to play.

In short, I like the course and with most greens true and manicured, it's in great condition. There was a couple of greens that could be better but nothing that would take away from a good days' golfing enjoyment.

Now, I should add there is always a nice relaxed and chilled atmosphere around the Clubhouse but I didn't know they also had a Pro shop the size of a small warehouse. Packed to the rafters of golfing goodies.

Needless to say, I look forward to going back and playing both courses again soon, and on spending more time in the Pro shop!

Hurricane Course - Tricky greens but not a very interesting short course, I'm told Spitfire course much better so like to give that a try.

Played as part of a society and was dissappointed with the course. Some interesting holes with water hazards and elevated greens/tees, but others rather featureless. The short par 3 3rd that plays accross the 2nd green is evidence that the course isnt particularly well laid out and feels like it was squash to fit the 18 holes in. The tees were fine and the fairways dry, however there was no distinction between fairway and rough and the greens were very poor. The greens that were in play were very bumpy and caused deviations in the speed and line of a putt that made putting very difficult and often frustrating. The temporary green was fairway that had not been cut in anyway and was poor.

Excellent breakfast. Played the Spitfire course. A disappointing wait of 3/4 hour before we were able to tee off. Fortunately it wasn't cold or raining, but it was obvious that the members were not very happy and those of us who had paid green fees were worried if we would get in before daylight. Fortunately we did - just. Very challenging, but enjoyable round, and I would think you could plot your way to a decent score after a couple more practice rounds. It was hard going underfoot but that is to be expected at this time of year after the rainfall. Beware the 14th.....you will enjoy it if you are a mountaineer. Great Par 3 18th to finish, offering that final test. Ladies - don't drink too much before you go out, as you will have to wait until after 13th to leg it to the clubhouse. Clubhouse hospitality very friendly and inviting. Ladies changing rooms don't have lockers, which is always a disappointment.