As soon as you arrive in the car park at The Centurion Club and someone is standing by your boot, taking your clubs out to carry them over to the clubhouse as you get out of your car, you just know your in for a great day of quality.
Everyone is immediately attentive on your arrival, welcoming you as you walk into the temporary clubhouse where you can relax with a breakfast, bacon sandwich or simply a Danish and a choice of coffee's prior to going out on the course.
I asked about a range or warm up area and was shown and told to follow the path around the back of the 18th green.
On arrival, a row of cut down Srixon bags holding over 100 balls are free to use along with tee's on some excellent matting, although their is a roped grass area in front of those you can use also but the matting is that good quality, you feel your on a fairway.
I had an excellent warm up, preparation is essential (see signature) and I met the rest of our team whilst going through my bag on the range.
We then went down to the 1st tee where their was an excellent 2-tier putting green which had lots of undulations so you could practice almost any kind of shot.
I can't remember all the holes one-by-one so I will generalise but the 1st is an excellent par 5 opening hole, a raised elevated tee looking down into a right to left dogleg, as you walk to your ball on the bend, you are then faced with what could only be described as a cul-de-sac with tall pine tree's either side (Woburn like), bunkers staggered along the fairway to a slightly raised green at the far end with more tree's behind.
You then walk a short distance through the tree's to the 160yd par 3, we were playing off the purple tee's, or, as I was constantly reminded, the Amethyst tee's at 6454yds. Again totally flanked by tall tree's so accuracy off the tee's is premium for the first 6 holes before the course opens up to what I could only then describe as a links feel with no tree's but narrow rolling and undulating fairways with grass either side and mounds along the fairways with lots of bunkers to plot and weave your way through.
There were some tight doglegs in those front 6 holes where your drive had to be good and positioned perfectly to give you a clear approach shot to the greens, too tight to the tree's or short and you'd have to chip forward as shaping a shot was too risky if it didn't come off because if you went into the tree's, you were as good as out of the hole.
I put a decent 19 points on my card which included 3 pars and a blob on the turn and felt good for the back 9.
The 10th was a short par 4 but littered with hazards but it suited my shot shape perfectly, so, what better than to start with a birdie, this was then followed by another of the 5 x par 3's, this one at 179yds, their were a lot of 2-tier greens with very tricky pin positions, I found the green nicely and was disappointed not to birdie it, I judged the downward slope to be faster and just lagged it, more-so I think because of the showers we had just took a little of the pace I was playing to earlier off, but a par will do.
I hit an excellent drive on the 12th which was a left to right dogleg but it held up on an upward slope at the top of a very elevated fairway looking down at the green with a large pond/lake in front at around 176yds. I didn't want to risk a full shot in as I was so high in a facing wind and the ball facing upwards, I thought it wouldn't reach, even with a strong 4 iron so I chipped down to the pond/lake and then found the green, whereas, everyone else was dropping from hitting the far banks of the pond after "going for it", although 1 person managed to chip out of the bank without falling in. An excellent hole.
You then start to work your way back into the woods and the finishing holes are very tough, I picked up back-to-back blobs on 15 & 16 (si1) but then picked up another par on the par3 17th before playing down the 18th which is an excellent finishing hole with water flanking the green.
The greens are excellent, very fast and true and receive the ball superbly. The fairways are also excellent, very undulating at times with good quality bunkers with consistent quality sand in them throughout.
The tee boxes are the most level boxes I have been on ever, the quality of the course overall is outstanding and they haven't finished yet, their still tinkering.
My bag was taken from me as I came in off the 18th and my bar order taken so it was all ready for me as I entered the clubhouse, which is extremely comfortable, especially when you think it's only temporary whilst the main clubhouse is still being built!
I only mustered 15 points on the back 9 with a couple more pars but the test of golf was seriously tougher on the back 9, if your chasing a score, you really have to take no risks on the way in or you are punished harshly.
A very fair but rewarding course which has something for everyone, whether you like the feel of a links or heathland course or a well populated, tight, tree lined parkland course, it has it all with greens that you'll talk about for months to come.
I was chuffed to have won the Member Guest competition with 87 points which I'd like to think I contributed well to with my 34 points and 3 blobs, and I was rewarded not only with a nice quality prize of a Centurion Polo Shirt, but an experience I will never forget.
If you get an opportunity to play at The Centurion Club, take it.
Thank you Rick for the invite :thup:
Everyone is immediately attentive on your arrival, welcoming you as you walk into the temporary clubhouse where you can relax with a breakfast, bacon sandwich or simply a Danish and a choice of coffee's prior to going out on the course.
I asked about a range or warm up area and was shown and told to follow the path around the back of the 18th green.
On arrival, a row of cut down Srixon bags holding over 100 balls are free to use along with tee's on some excellent matting, although their is a roped grass area in front of those you can use also but the matting is that good quality, you feel your on a fairway.
I had an excellent warm up, preparation is essential (see signature) and I met the rest of our team whilst going through my bag on the range.
We then went down to the 1st tee where their was an excellent 2-tier putting green which had lots of undulations so you could practice almost any kind of shot.
I can't remember all the holes one-by-one so I will generalise but the 1st is an excellent par 5 opening hole, a raised elevated tee looking down into a right to left dogleg, as you walk to your ball on the bend, you are then faced with what could only be described as a cul-de-sac with tall pine tree's either side (Woburn like), bunkers staggered along the fairway to a slightly raised green at the far end with more tree's behind.
You then walk a short distance through the tree's to the 160yd par 3, we were playing off the purple tee's, or, as I was constantly reminded, the Amethyst tee's at 6454yds. Again totally flanked by tall tree's so accuracy off the tee's is premium for the first 6 holes before the course opens up to what I could only then describe as a links feel with no tree's but narrow rolling and undulating fairways with grass either side and mounds along the fairways with lots of bunkers to plot and weave your way through.
There were some tight doglegs in those front 6 holes where your drive had to be good and positioned perfectly to give you a clear approach shot to the greens, too tight to the tree's or short and you'd have to chip forward as shaping a shot was too risky if it didn't come off because if you went into the tree's, you were as good as out of the hole.
I put a decent 19 points on my card which included 3 pars and a blob on the turn and felt good for the back 9.
The 10th was a short par 4 but littered with hazards but it suited my shot shape perfectly, so, what better than to start with a birdie, this was then followed by another of the 5 x par 3's, this one at 179yds, their were a lot of 2-tier greens with very tricky pin positions, I found the green nicely and was disappointed not to birdie it, I judged the downward slope to be faster and just lagged it, more-so I think because of the showers we had just took a little of the pace I was playing to earlier off, but a par will do.
I hit an excellent drive on the 12th which was a left to right dogleg but it held up on an upward slope at the top of a very elevated fairway looking down at the green with a large pond/lake in front at around 176yds. I didn't want to risk a full shot in as I was so high in a facing wind and the ball facing upwards, I thought it wouldn't reach, even with a strong 4 iron so I chipped down to the pond/lake and then found the green, whereas, everyone else was dropping from hitting the far banks of the pond after "going for it", although 1 person managed to chip out of the bank without falling in. An excellent hole.
You then start to work your way back into the woods and the finishing holes are very tough, I picked up back-to-back blobs on 15 & 16 (si1) but then picked up another par on the par3 17th before playing down the 18th which is an excellent finishing hole with water flanking the green.
The greens are excellent, very fast and true and receive the ball superbly. The fairways are also excellent, very undulating at times with good quality bunkers with consistent quality sand in them throughout.
The tee boxes are the most level boxes I have been on ever, the quality of the course overall is outstanding and they haven't finished yet, their still tinkering.
My bag was taken from me as I came in off the 18th and my bar order taken so it was all ready for me as I entered the clubhouse, which is extremely comfortable, especially when you think it's only temporary whilst the main clubhouse is still being built!
I only mustered 15 points on the back 9 with a couple more pars but the test of golf was seriously tougher on the back 9, if your chasing a score, you really have to take no risks on the way in or you are punished harshly.
A very fair but rewarding course which has something for everyone, whether you like the feel of a links or heathland course or a well populated, tight, tree lined parkland course, it has it all with greens that you'll talk about for months to come.
I was chuffed to have won the Member Guest competition with 87 points which I'd like to think I contributed well to with my 34 points and 3 blobs, and I was rewarded not only with a nice quality prize of a Centurion Polo Shirt, but an experience I will never forget.
If you get an opportunity to play at The Centurion Club, take it.
Thank you Rick for the invite :thup:
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