Close House Hotel and Golf

[TheDoctor]

I'm due to play the Colt course in a couple of weeks. Free 4 ball, although not free bar. I've played the Filly before but not the Colt. Any newer reviews from people? Anyone played it this year? Top tips?

Played both the Filly and Colt at the beginning of July this year, a couple weeks after the ISPS Handa event that was there in June

The best advice I can give for the Colt course is don't miss the fairway, the rough was pretty penal and if you head for the thick stuff off the tee then I would advise a provisional

And if you aren't the fittest of people, I would recommend doing something about it very quickly as the 10th and 11th holes are all uphill and quite a trek despite not looking that long on the scorecard - the phone box by the 9th tee to place an order for food is a good idea before you tackle the hill

Yes, the course is very much on the side of the hill, but despite this I didn't find it too bad with regards to the ball running off the fairway when you hit the middle. There were a couple holes where this could happen but you could usually tell from the tee if you needed to hit a particular side of the fairway to avoid that happening

Other than that, everything was pretty well kept when we were there so just enjoy the views and depending on which tees you play from, have a walk to the back tees on the 13th (par 4 back down the hill) and see how different the hole looks from there

 

[Lord Tyrion]

Thanks for the advice. We are hiring buggies, the round is free so being aware of the terrrain we decided to treat ourselves and take the effort out of the round.

It sounds as though rescue club off the tee may be the smart move quite often. I played Stocksfield earlier in the year and never pulled my driver out until the 10th or 11th. I will put some practice in on that front prior to playing.

Now to hope that the weather is kind to us.......

 

[Beezerk]

Went to the seniors event there a few months ago, I would be laying up on the 2 holes with ponds in front of them (9 and 18 I think)

 

[TheDoctor]

Position off the tee is definitely the key to playing well on that course. I can't say for definite but I may have only pulled my driver on 1 hole, the par 4 downhill 13th....and promptly put it into the thick stuff and ended up 3 off the tee. The second drive on that hole was an absolute cracker, clearing the bunkers on the left leaving me with around 60yds to the green which I subsequently put to around 8ft or so. Unfortunately I just missed the bogey putt and walked off with a double

Went to the seniors event there a few months ago, I would be laying up on the 2 holes with ponds in front of them (9 and 18 I think)

The 9th is a par 3 so no laying up there, but yes it does have water that protects the left side of the green and cuts in front

If you want to miss the green, right is the side to miss on - I pulled my shot left but I was on the edge of the stream that runs down to the water, so even though I was in the hazard, I was able to play a shot and chipped it close for a par

Not only does the 18th have water, there is also a wall that runs across in front of the green, but you will see this when you are stood on the first tee. It is a fairly narrow target with trees and the wall left and water right

 

[lobthewedge]

Thanks for the advice. We are hiring buggies, the round is free so being aware of the terrrain we decided to treat ourselves and take the effort out of the round.

It sounds as though rescue club off the tee may be the smart move quite often. I played Stocksfield earlier in the year and never pulled my driver out until the 10th or 11th. I will put some practice in on that front prior to playing.

Now to hope that the weather is kind to us.......

I played it last month and it was in great nick. You defo need to stay out the long stuff, but plenty of holes you'll be able to pull the driver depending on what tees you play from, yellows may not be a bad idea.

I found the greens really tricky, especially if you end up on the wrong side of the hole. I hit 14 greens when I played it and walked off without a single birdie. Be prepared to hole plenty of 6 footers on the way back.

The buggies all have touch screen guides and start each hole with a flyover, really helpful if you havent played it before. Although they do have a tendency to cut out if you stray too far from the path which was quite annoying.

Hope you get the weather as I am sure you will enjoy your day. Its a really impressive set up, and one that is odds on to host a future British Masters (see my post in the British Masters thread).

 

[moogie]

Bb

Thanks for the advice. We are hiring buggies, the round is free so being aware of the terrrain we decided to treat ourselves and take the effort out of the round.

It sounds as though rescue club off the tee may be the smart move quite often. I played Stocksfield earlier in the year and never pulled my driver out until the 10th or 11th. I will put some practice in on that front prior to playing.

Now to hope that the weather is kind to us.......

I'd say the opposite
You can hit driver on most holes
When we played, I guess I'd hit driver at least 12 times
Depending how far you hit the ball, ( and tees you play ) , I'd say the only tee shots you might consider something different would be maybe........8, 11, 15, 16, 18
Just my opinion obviously
Yes the rough can be penal, but not to the extent where you'd leave the headcover on the driver all day

 

[Lord Tyrion]

Judgement call then. Driver for some people, not for others. No need to decide now but interesting to hear people's thoughts and suggestions.

 

[Lord Tyrion]

Played the Colt yesterday. Very enjoyable. A course you need to plot around, not a blasters course. My driver behaved itself so I used it on pretty much all par 4's and 5's except one hole where I went rescue for safety and promptly hooked my tee shot OOB. Hey ho. I agree with other comments in that it is not a course for those who spray it around, accuracy off the tee is paramount. Any balls in the rough were simply lost, no chance of finding them, as I discovered. The rough was so bad that I didn't even find anyone else's ball, not a single one.

I found the greens on the Filly to be much better although to be fair they were quite heavily sanded yesterday making distance judgement very difficult and that could well have clouded my judgement.

Good shout for buggies or hire electric trollies as it is quite a hilly course and that takes the slog out of it. Bar is expensive, hotel prices, but then you kind of expect that.

All in all, highly recommended. Very good course, cracking experience.