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Hole 1

Hole Name

From The Tee The hole runs directly west, generally playing into the prevailing wind.

From The Fairway Played along a ridge parallel with Hawksworth Lane with out of bounds on the right, the green is just visible from the tee. Willow Lane crosses the fairway while a bunker on the left may catch any slightly off straight shots.

On The Green

Hole 2

Hole Name

From The Tee Little changed since Fowler’s redesign in 1923, the 2nd is played in the same direction as the 1st.

From The Fairway Again, there is out of bounds all the way down the right, but not particularly close in. The tee sits on a ridge requiring a drive across a valley. From the tee it is essential to keep to the right side of the fairway as everything slopes steeply to the left. A fairway bunker on the left and trees on the right make the drive relatively demanding.

On The Green

Hole 3

Hole Name

From The Tee The first of three short but challenging par-3s the 3rd runs south and requires a tee shot

From The Fairway

On The Green across a dip to a green on the crest of Birkin Hill. Hitting the green poses a real challenge as it’s guarded by two bunkers on each side of the green and towards the front.

Hole 4

Hole Name

From The Tee The 4th hole also runs south with an elevated tee and is a typical Fowler ‘risk and reward’ hole with

From The Fairway the fairway in the player’s favour, sloping downhill toward the hole. A drystone wall on the right, marking the out of bounds boundary of the course,

On The Green runs the full length of the hole and often comes in to play. There is a bunker on the left-hand side of the green hidden from the tee.

Hole 5

Hole Name

From The Tee The 5th is a demanding ‘no-nonsense” challenge even bearing in mind the prevailing wind is with the drive for this slight dog-leg right hole.

From The Fairway Tall trees, rough and a bunker about fifty yards short of the green all on the right-hand side mean the safe line from the tee is to the left side of the fairway.

On The Green This leaves a longer second but opens up the green. There are also trees on the left menacing the tee shot.

Hole 6

Hole Name

From The Tee The 6th hole turns the player back to the west and once more into the prevailing wind.

From The Fairway The red tee is high and to the right of the 5th green while the yellow and white tees are relatively low down and set in trees.

On The Green This hole has a considerable degree of subtlety and the first thing for the player to do on reaching the tee is to check where the flag is on the green as he tee shot needs to be middle to left to open up the green; anything right off the tee brings the greenside bunker into play and as the green slopes right to left makes the second shot that much harder.

Hole 7

Hole Name

From The Tee Running east, this long and challenging dog-leg left hole is favored by the prevailing wind.

From The Fairway On the left are two copses of tall pine trees. the planting of which in the early to mid-1950s changed the whole character of this hole since they were on the line of the tee shot at that time.

On The Green

Hole 8

Hole Name

From The Tee Hole 8 is one of two major changes from Fowler’s original plan for the course.

From The Fairway He envisaged four par three holes, and this was going to be one. The plan originally had the tee quite some distance on from the 7th green.

On The Green However, it seems that things were revised and a par 4 was put in its place, to the same green, but from a tee back and to the right of the 7th green.

Hole 9

Hole Name

From The Tee This is the first of two par 5s and after the Fowler revision in 1922,

From The Fairway a triangular piece of land adjacent to the course was given to the Club to enable the construction of a new back tee. The gift was prO-Bably made in the 1960s and the change had been made by 1973.

On The Green The 9th goes in a westerly direction against the prevailing wind which when it blows can make this a very demanding hole. The yellow and white tees are placed attractively between a stone wall and the trees at the rear of the 8th trees while the red tees are about 140 yards in advance.

Hole 10

Hole Name

From The Tee Hole 10 is the other major change from Fowler’s provisional plan.

From The Fairway He envisaged the tee being to the east of the previous green and saw this hole as a short par 4 to the present green.

On The Green However, at some point the White tee was moved back and right across the previous fairway to create a longer and more demanding par 4 hole, something which was in place by 1935.

Hole 11

Hole Name

From The Tee The elevated 11th tee on the ridge next to the Clubhouse offers beautiful views across the valley to Baildon

From The Fairway . This hole was originally the opening hole in the 1922 layout and is a real birdie opportunity.

On The Green

Hole 12

Hole Name

From The Tee This is a beautifully located short hole with more wonderful views down the valley.

From The Fairway The green is not an easy target despite the relative shortness of the hole. Normally, the wind blows from the right, adding to the difficulty.

On The Green By looking at the flag on the 9th, situated just behind this green, one can see how strong the wind is. The sheltered tee makes club selection difficult, but the hole usually plays shorter than expected.

Hole 13

Hole Name

From The Tee Playing westward against the prevailing wind there is a ditch going across in front of the tees.

From The Fairway The tee shot tends to make the player favour the left side, but this is not the correct strategy. The best line in is from the right, although trees either side of the fairway along with two fairway bunkers punish wayward shots.

On The Green The green is long and slopes down slightly to the left; it’s well-guarded by four greenside bunkers but there is relatively little trouble at the back of the green. What looks initially a penal hole does have an element of strategy.

Hole 14

Hole Name

From The Tee A short but tough par 3, the 14th runs northwards and significantly uphill, playing much longer than you think.

From The Fairway

On The Green A three here is a score to be celebrated. The green is set into the face of Birkin Hill, framed by the slopes behind it topped by a single tree.

Hole 15

Hole Name

From The Tee Running in an eastward direction the 15th is favoured by the prevailing wind.

From The Fairway From the tee complex on Birkin Hill, the highest point on the course, the tee shot plunges downhill into a valley which then flattens out.

On The Green

Hole 16

Hole Name

From The Tee Turning back into the prevailing wind and once again the tee is elevated the 16th is a truly challenging hole.

From The Fairway Some players consider this to be the toughest hole on the Course The narrow fairway is guarded by groups of trees and a daunting bunker complex. The fairway lies along a kind of natural shelf and the ground falls away to the left encouraging play to the right of the fairway.

On The Green

Hole 17

Hole Name

From The Tee The 17th is a sharp dog leg to the right, running in an eastward direction,

From The Fairway so again benefitting from the prevailing wind. The fairway slopes from right to left where the three bunkers at the dog leg wait to catch the unwary.

On The Green

Hole 18

Hole Name

From The Tee The 18th runs north and is uphill all the way. The tee shot is through a narrow neck between two sets of trees.

From The Fairway The left-hand side of the fairway provides the best line to the green especially as there is a large tree on the right blocking that way in.

On The Green