The Finest of Settings, the Widest of Fairways

 

Cumberwell Park, the superb golf and hospitality venue just outside Bath is unusually celebrating thirteen years in business by becoming the first 36 hole golf club in Wiltshire. The new nine hole course, which has been designed by local golf course architect Adrian Stiff, has not only maintained that renowned quality that has always been associated with Cumberwell but has quite literally pushed out the boundaries. It will become known as the Orange course so as to complement the existing Red, Yellow and Blue. The courses, unlike so many established golf clubs, are set in a vast and quite stunning tract of parkland. Four hundred acres to be precise, and when one learns that even the likes of Augusta National are set in a mere 150 acres, it becomes clear that this is golf on the grand scale.

 

The new nine holes are no exception to this philosophy, however there will be some fundamental differences that will give golfers a new perspective on the game. They have always had large fairways at Cumberwell but these are some of the widest in the country. Over eighty yards wide in some places but don’t let that deceive you into thinking it will be some sort of a push over. Far from it, as within those vast expanses are hidden a mass of subtle hazards and hidden dilemmas. It’s not a matter of off line shots being punished but more a cerebral challenge of what side of the fairway should one hit if the green is to be opened up to an attacking approach shot. It really is a return to golf of bygone days when the links naturally provided areas of close cropped turf, nibbled by rabbits and sheep but interspersed with natural hazards such as sandy hollows, ravines, dunes and humps. In fact the new nine has a real links feel to it, although the intention was more to recreate the old downland courses of the area. So despite the width, you really have to keep the wits about if you are to avoid the central hazards on the fairways and tame the radical green complexes that have some of the wildest slopes you will ever encounter.

 

And the setting is stunning as well. The course gently climbs to the highest part of the estate where the views are truly inspiring. The seventh on the new course is a case in point. The driving line is to just skirt the collection of three bunkers on the left side; about at the Roundway Hills in the distance is perfect. The next shot on this par five would be directed at the copse of poplars over the hill whilst the approach in would be lined up on one of the impressive manor houses located in the picturesque village of South Wraxall which forms part of the backdrop. A finer spot would be hard to imagine. In fact it has always been one of the intentions of Cumberwell to provide a golfing venue where should the participant ever manage to come up with all six numbers at the weekend, they would still choose this golf course over some artificial Floridian monstrosity.

 

Which brings us onto some of the other objectives that the team at Cumberwell have set high up on their list of priorities. One of which is to provide a perfect haven for not only the keen golfer but also for all sorts of wildlife. The bird boxes, including barn owl boxes have already been installed on the new course in anticipation of increasing the number of sightings, which are becoming increasingly common. Some forty additional acres of managed long grassland will be established including a few acres sown with a wild flower seed so as to establish a meadow area. These additional habitats are ideal for many small mammals and reptiles, which will later become lunch for the buzzards and owls.

 

So if you are looking for a great golfing experience with a difference that is never too demanding on the bank balance, then give the new Orange course a go and combine it with any of the other nines. This exciting new addition to the South West golf scene is due to open in July of this year.