Visitors
VISITORS ARE MOST WELCOME AT NOTTS (HOLLINWELL) THROUGHOUT THE WEEK AND ON LIMITED TIMES ON SUNDAYS IN THE SUMMER MONTHS.
AT NOTTS GOLF CLUB (HOLLINWELL), WE OFFER SUPERB GOLF AND AIM TO PROVIDE THE SAME QUALITY OFF THE COURSE TO ENSURE EVERY GOLFER LEAVES WITH A DESIRE TO RETURN AGAIN IN THE FUTURE.
The following is an extract of Notts Golf Club taken from the "Fine Golf" collection....
The Notts Golf Club (Hollinwell) was formed in 1887 and moved to Hollinwell in 1900, when the twice Open champion, Willie Park junior was invited to lay out a new 18-hole course.
The Park routing makes this one of the greatest inland courses.
In the same way that he maximised the use of height in the ground at Sunningdale Old, here he used the natural contours of the Valley of Kirkby Forest, creating a course of just short of 6000 yards which was long in those days using gutta percha balls and hickory clubs. The strength of challenge continues today exemplified by a Par of 72 and SSS 76 from the Championship tees!!
Put alongside the flat Woodhall Spa, this course vies to be the finest golf challenge in the Midlands. When Ganton is added, only a little further north, we have the finest trio of inland courses in the British Isles, certainly competing with, if not fully putting into the shade, the wonderful heathland courses on the Surrey and Berkshire sand belt.
The Club was lucky to boast Tom Williamson, their favourite son, and Harry Vardon’s foursomes partner, as a servant. He created a double world record here by being the professional for 54 years from 1896 and playing in every Open championship for 50 years. Did being a Methodist, a tee-totaller and a non-smoker help Tom to his golfing successes?!
Tom was also the Club’s head greenkeeper for 50 years and a golf course architect to some 60 other courses.
The course has hosted many top amateur and professional championships over the years and Brian Waites, the successful tournament pro, was also the Club’s professional. More recently discussions have take place with the R&A to bring the Walker Cup here and perhaps if the Club can develop its ‘fine’ profile, we might see the course on television in 2019.
There are only three short holes (the thirteenth is a picture, always playing longer than it looks and will stay in the memory for many years), which helps explain why the yellow tee yardage is 6,619 and the backs are over 7,200. Nevertheless, with also only three par fives and four short par fours, there are still plenty of long par fours to stretch the expert.
The Course Layout
An iron could be a sensible play off the first tee to keep out of trouble on this straight opener, as the rough, in the form of pink wavy grass (Deschampsia), abundant at Hollinwell, looks frightening from a distance, though when close-up the ball usually shows itself.
The drive bunker on the dogleg second is strategically placed on the scratch player’s line, as is the green bunker. It is a fine hole and there are many ways of playing it for different classes of player, while Robin Hood looks down on you from ‘his chair’ behind the green.
The par five third is reachable in two when this naturally dry course is running fast, if you can keep your drive on the hump-backed fairway, while the testing 450 yard
fourth, on rising ground with devilish cross bunkers, also gives advantage to the long hitter.
The fifth is the first of the par threes, a green surrounded by bunkers. The long sixth and the seventh with its green in a wooded setting, have interesting undulations in the ground which makes judging the distance difficult.
The Hollinwell hole, the eighth, 360 yards from the yellows, is a dogleg by playing from the whites over a pond into which the Hollinwell spring flows, and from which a cool drink can be taken. Do not be short in your approach to this green and be advised to come in from the left that will often give a ‘members’ bounce’
After refreshment at the halfway house, we enter the more famous second nine that uses the ridge to the north, to such stunning effect.
The tenth, where latter day architect Pennink recommended the green be extended to the rear, and the sixteenth with its side shelf green, are both only 350 yard, right-hand doglegs, tempting the long hitter but members know to be conservative off the tee!
The eleventh plays longer than its 360 yards up a narrow, winding valley with a green nestled in one of the defiles of the high ridge and similar in green contour to the fifteenth where it is also advised to not be above the hole for your putt.
The twelfth, with two blind shots along the top of the ridge, and the thirteenth, where we descend to the valley floor ‘at one fell swoop’ are both into the prevailing wind and give magnificent views across this heathland countryside. The thirteenth is simply one of the best par threes in the land!
The fourteenth is another panoramic hole played from an elevated teeing ground as is the short par four sixteenth, a great short hole with a very testing small green.
The fifteenth, is on rising ground and your long shot to the green, through a narrow valley entrance, is better played from the flat ground than from a hanging lie a little further on. This is one of those great 440 yard holes (like Foxy and Achinchanter at Royal Dornoch) where one is satisfied with a bogey five!
The round finishes with two fine long holes both hittable in two strokes on a good, still day and where two fours are likely to bring one victory over most competition.
Jim Arthur was the consultant agronomist here 20 years ago and it is good news that Gordon Irvine, who has been nicknamed “Jim’s heir”, is advising on the greens. Gordon ( after his good work at Deal) is helping to build up an understanding among the membership and bring them behind the initiative to encourage the final pieces of the jigsaw that will return this great course to one of heathland, fine grass and fine golf, thereby further enhancing the ‘joy to be alive’ feeling it gives.
Review by Lorne Smith, 2010
