Dainton Park Golf Club Played And Rated
Course Information
Course Name: Dainton Park Golf Club
Location: Totnes Rd, Ipplepen, Newton Abbot, Devon, TQ12 5TN, United Kingdom
Date Played: June 2022
Course Type: Parkland
Introduction
I first played the course not too long after it opened in the early 90s. It was designed by Adrian Stiff who also created the Kendleshire and The Players Golf Club near Bristol. To be honest I couldn’t remember anything about the course from my previous visit!
In an effort to offer more than just golf there is also a variety of other facilities available including a gym, physio and even a barber! Don’t think I’ve ever seen that at any other golf facility that I visited.
The staff in the pro shop and other golfers I came into contact with seemed very friendly. If you are in South Devon is this somewhere you should play golf?
The Layout
If you live in Devon or if you’ve read some of my other course reviews from the area you’ll realize that most courses in this neck of the woods can be a bit hilly.
Dainton Park Golf Club will certainly test out your calf muscles with some of the climbs.
Once again I was left without the help of my GPS as my phone was unable to get a signal so bear that in mind if you’re planning on using one.
There are a few water hazards on the course, most notably the 1st, 2nd, 13th and 14th holes.
It would appear that this is still stuck a little in the past with an insistence on playing from the yellow tees which is a bit of a disappointment!
This is made worse by the fact that there are about 700 yards between the whites and yellows so it does make for quite a different course.
The first hole is a pleasant introduction to get you into the round playing downhill around 350 yards or so. You do need to avoid the pond short and left of the green with your approach though it should be a reasonably short shot.
The 2nd is a sharp dogleg around the edge of another penalty area so ideally, you need to be brave and hug the left-hand side to leave the shortest approach. There is more than 90 yards difference between medal tees and daily tees on this hole!
The 3rd plays uphill with the stone wall of a barn to be avoided on the right of the fairway.
The 5th was the first of several holes through the round that played downhill and really gave you the invitation to open your shoulders.
The par 3 8th hole was probably my favorite short hole played from a high tee to a well-bunkered green with some trouble behind.
The back nine starts with a severe dog-leg around an ugly out-of-bounds fence.
The 12th would be a good hole of the back tee with your tee shot partially blind over the hill and down into the dip below with trees on either side before a slight climb up to a bunkered green.
The 13th forces you to carry a penalty area although it shouldn’t be too much of a problem. The next also has a water hazard but at 475 off the back tees even bigger hitters are going to need two reasonably good shots.
The final par-5 gives you one final chance for a heave-ho played from a high tee although this green was out of action when I played.
From some tees you can get lovely views of the Dartmoor National Park and South Hams.
Condition
Overall I thought the condition of the course was acceptable although speaking to some members and looking at the soil would suggest it’s probably not the best course during the winter.
Greens
Unfortunately, almost all the greens had been sanded and one was actually out of play. Despite the sandy nature of the greens they were still relatively quick although in places a little bumpy.
Bunkers
Not the greatest fan of the bunkers to be honest as there didn’t seem to be a lot of sand in the ones I visited and it was extremely easy to make contact with the base of the bunker which was very hard.
Fairways
The fairways were reasonable considering what appeared to be clay soil which is likely going to mean very hard ground in dry spells and very muddy conditions during wet weather.
Tees
Quite a few tees were a little uneven although they didn’t seem to be too badly worn.
Challenge
While probably not long enough to really test a low handicapper for distance there are still plenty of hazards to catch you out if your ball striking is not up to snuff.
The fairway bunkers are only going to cause serious difficulty if you run right to the edge since they tend to be large and fairly flat.
The greens were surprisingly quick considering they had been sanded and you would be advised to keep approaches and chips below the hole wherever possible with the majority of greens sloping from back to front.
There’s not much in the way of long rough so you shouldn’t be spending ages looking for balls.
Off The Course
The usual bar and restaurant are available in the clubhouse and a pleasant patio area for sunny days. The restaurant features some wonderful oak beams. As already mentioned, in addition to golf you have a gym on-site.
Unusually there is also a barbershop along with massage and various beauty treatments available. Physio and rehabilitation treatments are also catered for.
Membership of the golf club is available in a variety of categories or by using flexible points.
Dainton Park Golf Club: Summary
If I’m being honest there aren’t many holes that really stood out for me and I wouldn’t put it down as a great course. At £45 for the peak time green fee I’m not sure I would be in a rush to go back although the twilight rate of £25 is much more acceptable (2023 rates).
My insiders told me in their experience the course tended to be quite busy with four balls so you might want to pick your time carefully if you are a smaller group.
One of my old golfing pals would have probably complained about how many times you had to walk backward to get to the next tee!
Reviews for Dainton Park Golf Club on the internet are almost all very favorable with scores around 4/5.
Tee times can be booked on their website or through GolfNow.
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