Longcliffe Golf Club Course Review

Longcliffe Golf Club Course Review

GF Round: £55wd, £65 Sun; Day £65wd; Twilight: £25
Par 72, 6,612 yards
Slope 138
GM Verdict – A mature heathland/woodland layout on the edge of Charnwood Forest with some splendid far-reaching views from certain holes.
Favourite Hole – The mid-length par-3 15th where the proximity of the water on the left may well see you tangling with the bunker or tree on the right.

Some counties fare better than others when it comes to lists of the very best courses in the land, but all counties have some very good golf courses whether or not they earn a wider reputation. While the best golf courses in Nottinghamshire, for example, would include both Hollinwell and Sherwood Forest from the Golf Monthly UK&I Top 100, Leicestershire, directly to the south, has no courses generally regarded to be in those very upper echelons 

All of which means that courses like Longcliffe near Loughborough fly considerably under the radar and aren't widely known outside the local area, despite ranking highly on any list of the best golf courses in Leicestershire and being regarded as one of the best in the East Midlands.

This fine heathland/woodland course dating back to 1906 cuts its way through the edges of Charnwood Forest, serving up some superb views in places, perhaps at their finest as you gaze down the almost arrow-straight par-5 8th, the course’s longest test at 565 yards, though mercifully it is downhill.

Longcliffe is not without its particular challenges either. The tough par 4s at 7 and 12 will certainly catch your eye, weighing in at 461 and 481 yards respectively off the whites, with quite a sharp dogleg to negotiate too on the latter. But easier tests lie in wait too, right to the end in fact, with the 338-yard 18th ranked the easiest hole on the course according to its Stroke Index. CONGU may raise an eyebrow, but what’s not to like about a relatively unintimidating finishing hole, albeit one with several bunkers to avoid?

The signature hole is probably the 15th, one of just three par 3s, none of which exceeds 179 yards even off the tips – a welcome rarity in this day and age. The green here features quite a narrow entrance with water tight left and a big bunker and tall tree on the right should you bail out well away from the pond. Erring long to the broadest part of the green is probably the sensible play here.