Puttenham Golf Club Course Review

Puttenham Golf Club Course Review
GF Round: £40-£70wd
Par 71, 6,220 yards
Slope 131
GM Verdict In a county packed with premium golf, this is a very pretty and thoroughly entertaining alternative
Favourite Hole The testing par-4 13th, stroke index one and running right to left through magnificent trees to a well-protected green

Puttenham was founded in 1894 and as at so many other clubs began its life with a 9-hole course. This was extended to a full 18 just before World War II, and some 50 years later the club acquired a further 44 acres and hired Donald Steel to create five new holes in conjunction with an upgrade elsewhere.

The course opens with a risk-reward short par 4 played up over the club’s emblematic oak tree and then another par 4 alongside the neighbouring cricket ground.

The 3rd is the easiest hole on the course, a downhill, bunkerless, driveable par 4. A much tougher now follows with an uphill par 4, a testing short hole that is 211 yards from the whites, and a long par 4 to the furthest point on the course. The front nine finishes with the first of the two par 5s and another pair of drive-and-pitch par 4s. If all this sounds a little straightforward, it’s not! There are trees everywhere and placement from the tee and accurate short-iron play are both essential.

The first of Steel’s newer five holes comes at the 10th, and it is a real beauty that calls for a solid, straight drive down the slope to have any chance of getting home in two.

The next is the longest hole on the course - 526 yards from the whites - and the 13th is a superb par 4 that eases its way gently round to the left to a beautifully-framed green.

With only three par 3s, two of them come in the last four holes, and the 17th has an unusual approach because it is partially obscured by a tall hedge of gorse.

Surrey is packed with Top 100 and Next 100 designs which sometimes means that very worthy courses are overlooked. An article on the best golf courses in Surrey could fill a book, so it’s important to remember that clubs and courses such as Puttenham often offer a very appealing, not to mention more affordable, alternative. This is an interesting and engaging place for golf that would be way up the list in many other counties. If you are after a strong course at a friendly club with scenery, variety, and challenge and fun in equal measure, then look no further.