Holsworthy Golf Club
Information
Course Name: Holsworthy Golf Club
Location: Killatree, Holsworthy, Devon, EX22 6LP, UK
Date Played: June 2022
Course Type: Parkland
Introduction
Accessed from the A3072 to Bude just outside the town, Holsworthy Golf Club is a pleasant parkland course that is well worth a visit.
It’s a relatively easy walking course so you shouldn’t need to use a buggy although you can hire one if you wish.
It was originally founded in 1937 but was used for growing crops during the Second World War.
Following the end of hostilities, a nine-hole course was reinstated. A new clubhouse was built in 1975 and in 1978 work began on converting the nine holes into 18.
By 1981 the full 18 holes were available for play. In spite of its relative youth, I found it to be an enjoyable round.
Check out the county union website if you want to learn more about golf in Devon.
The Layout
There is a stream in play on four holes and a newish pond on the 5th (well it’s not on the Skycaddie app!). Plenty of Mature trees will get in your way if you stray from the fairway although there’s not a great deal of deep rough.
At 6032 yards from the white tees, distance alone is not going to cause too many problems for the modern player.
Holsworthy Golf Club offers a reasonable amount of undulation so as to make you play from a variety of lies but not so much that you feel like you are performing a mountain hike!
The greens felt a little on the small side and were presented in good condition at a nice speed for club golfers. It was possible to stroke your putts rather than having to hit them. They weren’t so fast you feared you would go miles past even on downhill putts.
My two favorite holes were the par-3 4th and the par-4 12th.
The 4th is a longish (off the back tee anyway) par-3 where you need to carry the stream that runs left-to-right in front of the green. Unusually there is also a small tree on the left side of the green so potentially you could be on the putting surface and still need to negotiate a tree!
The par-4 12th plays downhill to a tree-lined fairway with the aforementioned stream cutting across around a hundred yards from the green. Ideally, you will need to favor the right side of the fairway to give yourself a look at the well-bunkered green. Beware of the false front that will repel any shot not hit hard enough.
Take care on the 5th to avoid a new pond that will come into play for your second shot. Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem to be on the Skycaddie app so it’s a bit of a guess knowing how far you need to hit in order to clear it safely.
As an added bonus any tee shot leaked slightly right on the 6th has a fair chance of ending up in the same pond.
The longest hole is saved to the end with out-of-bounds protecting the left and trees likely to cause you problems to the right of the fairway.
Condition
I can’t comment on anyone else but for me, condition comes down to greens, fairways and tees in that order. Fortunately, at Holsworthy Golf Club the fairways and greens were in pretty good nick.
Greens
Your putts would hold their line and the speed was about right for handicap golfers. Didn’t see too much evidence of unrepaired pitch mark or disease and they felt reasonably firm underfoot.
Bunkers
The bunkers seem to be well looked after.
Fairways
Well-maintained on the whole although starting to look a little brown due to the recent warm weather. Nice turf to hit from in general.
Tees
Undoubtedly the weakest area of the course is in part down to the fact they are relatively small. White tees are reserved for club competitions although given that on many holes the yellow and white tees were only three or four club-lengths (or less) apart probably doesn’t make that much difference.
Challenge
While it’s probably possible to escape from an adjacent fairway on a number of holes you would be best keeping your ball in play from the tee if you want to make a score at Holsworthy Golf Club.
The short par fours give you a chance of picking up some pars so you have something to protect on the longer and more difficult holes.
Compared with a lot of courses in Devon, Holsworthy is a relatively flat course so you don’t have to play from too many sloping lies or worry about blind shots.
Off The Course
There is the obligatory bar and restaurant in the clubhouse with a pro shop and locker rooms.
Holsworthy has a short practice area with three covered bays along with a putting green and chipping area to work on your game.
See my other reviews of local courses in Devon.
Holsworthy Golf Club: Summary
This is the second time that I’ve played the course in the last couple of years and on both occasions it has been in decent nick and offered a reasonably interesting challenge. The tees are probably the weakest link while the greens are pretty good with some having some interesting slopes!
While there aren’t any holes that you would class as jaw-dropping it is a solid members club that’s worth a game should you be in the area.
With membership costing around £13 per week it would be difficult to argue with if you lived in the area. The next closest club would be Bude & North Cornwall which, for me, has too many blind shots.
The full green fee is £40 which seems about the going rate for courses in Devon although there is a twilight rate of £25 or you can get the same fee if you use your county card (for Devon golfers only).
Related:
Check out Holsworthy Golf Clubs’ official website to book a tee time.
