Hever Castle Golf Club

Played the championship 18 today - lovely autumn sun - with a fairly stiff breeze. Played off the white tees for the added challenge. Only cost £20 after 2pm, which is excellent value! The course was fantastic - I've played many of the courses in the area, and this is one of my favourites. So on to the review: The tee boxes were all fairly flat - with a good length of grass. The fairways were in pretty good nick, although more brown than green in many places - and quite undulating too. The greens were quick - even have been spiked within the last week. I though the greens were a bit patchy in places, and didn't quite 'look' their best - though the putts I missed were definitely my fault, not theirs! I did find them quite hard to read. My only gripe with the day was distance markers. The scorecard didn't indicate what the markers represented, and so I was guessing for the first couple of holes before I decided to call the pro-shop for clarification. They only have 150yd markers, and nothing else - which on a course of this length seems a bit lacking. Overall I felt the course was set in wonderful surroundings, and was a stern but fair test of golf for an 11 handicapper like me. I'll definitely be going back.

Love the 9 hole course here, although some of the greens are in a bit of a mess, looks like acorns have fallen on the greens then they have been rolled in?? Nicely challenging and asks some interesting qestions. Friendly atmosphere, and very good value club house too

I've played Hever a couple of times with a friend of mine. I must say, I love this place!! We are both single figure handicaps and off the back tees this place is great. It has three loops of nine holes, the Princess, shotish gentle 9 with some water, but a nice little knock. The Kings, gentle start but some good holes (4/5/6/7/8/9) are great. Then there is the Queens!! Like on the chess board....the Queen is 'the daddy'!! 10 (played as 18 with the kings) is a reachable par 5 that can bite you on the bum, then they have there own 'amen courner'! 11 is a trick par four, down the dip and back up with water left short of the green and comes into play form the tee, postition is key! 12 is as close to playing the 12 at Augusta (without the flight or the cost!) and 13 is a stinker of a par four over water (twice) and all down the left, with large trees on you right and in the fairway!! It's not such a challange from the yellow tess, but from the backs into the wind as we played it it's 'Ouch'! 14 and 15 are nice, 16 and 17 are good holes and 18 is a nice finish. Some lovely tree around the place, good views and the course was in great condition, fast greens but not daft! The clubhouse is fantastic, have a cuppa and a bacon sarni and sit out buy the pond on a nice sunny day (watch for the ducks or you'll have half a sarni!) The prices are a little steep behind the bar but service with a smile and very friendly. Your made to feel welcome in a very special part of kent. If you go after 3pm in the summer it's only £20!!! Bargain!!

I played for £14 with the chance to play off the white tees (6700 yds). It is a good challenge with smaller greens than many similar courses in the area. The greens looked interesting but had been hollow tined making putting and chipping a lottery - I am not complaining as this is a risk of booking via Tee Off Times rather than with the club. The par 3's are excellent particularly 8th to a saucer green and the Augusta like 12th. The par 5's are generally a bit of a slog particularly the absurdly long 17th which has a challenging tee shot and little else. Most of the par 4's are good with 3,11,13,15,16 the best. I don't think I would pay the full green fee of £50 but would consider returning for a reduced fee if the greens were ok.

Played here last Sunday, only ever played the course once before and that was at least 6 or 7 years ago so I couldn't really remember much about it. In what turned out to be quite a breezy day, I found the course to be a tough challenge. We played off the white tees, and a lot of the holes seemed to be playing really long into the wind. The 3rd in particular was a toughie, calling for a Sunday best drive and all uphill and into the wind for your second shot. Needless to say, I didn't make the dance floor! The greens were not too bad, they had obviously been hollow tined a little while ago but were recovering well, quite pacey on the day and I can imagine they will be like greased lightning when they fully recover. As I say, some really tough holes and each one is different. Par 3's are not easy, calling for every shot in the book. Got to "Amen Corner" and although I didn't play the holes particularly well was very pleased to make birdie on the testing par 4 13th. One of the favourite holes for me is the 16th...long par 4 with a massive great redwood tree to the right of the fairway. A beautiful looking hole. 17th was a slog, a good drive is needed up here to make the dogleg and open up the fairway for your second shot. It really does help here if you don't then fat your 3 wood about 100 yards! 18th is a bit non descript for a closing hole but the green has some very nasty borrows on it to make up for it. All in all a very pleasant course and I will come back to play again but preferably without the wind this time. We got on at a reduced green fee (£30.00) because we are playing in the Mens Open on the 2nd May, I felt this was good value but I wouldn't have paid the full £50.00 to be honest. I understand that the club take 2fore1 vouchers during the week and this is when I will visit again.

Played at Hever yesterday afternoon on a windy day and about 2 minutes of rain. We were a 2 ball and there was another 2 ball in front, apart from that the course was nearly empty. The greens had just been dressed but still proved a good challenge. Back to the wind, though strong it was never behind mainly blowing across the hole making driving quite tough. The holes 11-13 are the standout holes, being some of the prettiest I have seen. Saying that there are no poor holes or ones you think 'they squeezed that one in to make 18 holes'. The clubhouse was busy when we arrived but service was good and when we finished after less than 4 hours it was empty but still nice look out on the course. Its now about the 5th time I have played the course and have enjoyed each time. I always use vouchers or online sites and yesterday was only £20 and cannot think of a better golfing bargain in Kent

Played at Hever yesterday, as a visiting 2 ball teeing off late saturday morning (championship course) Initially I was very impressed, the practice facilities are outstanding. Any staff or club members we met throughout the day were friendly. The greens were still reasonably quick even though it had rained heavily in the days before, there are lots of breaks but they run true. Fairways in good condition but not immaculate by any stretch. The par 3s on this course were awesome - testing and attractive, all at varied lengths. The back 9 is more tricky and the 618 yarder is a real beast. Holes 11 - 13 are a huge trial for amateurs with tough shots over water. This is a difficult course in my opinion, although most that I've played on are local pay and plays. It was a very slow round due to a fourball competition, nearly 5 hours for two young players!!!! We didn't let it ruin the day but I can't help think it cost us some shots on the last few holes. I couldn't see the castle anywhere which didn't seem right - maybe it's in view from the 9 hole course? So all in all an enjoyable experience, £40 each is the most I've ever paid for a round - is it worth it? - I guess so considering pretty poor tracks in kent are still 20/25 on a weekend... If you are an average player like me and seek some new challenges then give it a go - preferably during the week!!!!

Hever has all the ingredients of being really special - great setting, lovely clubhouse, good facilities – without quite fulfilling its potential. The off-course amenities are as good as anything around, while the staff we encountered were all friendly and helpful. Where Hever suffers - and ultimately where all Golf Clubs are judged – is out on the course. While it was in a good condition for the time of year, the greens were of inconsistent pace and too many of the holes were a bit on the bland side. That’s not to say the course is boring, there are some very good holes – 5, 6 and 11-13 all stick out – but there were too many “filler” holes in between to make it really memorable. All things considered, Hever is good because any golf is good golf, but £37 is a bit steep for a Visitor’s winter weekend green fee. Presumably the cost will rise further in summer time, so my recommendation would be to give the course a try if you have the opportunity, but make sure you take advantage of one of the voucher schemes, like 2-fore-1.

Played Hever golf course on the 3rd Feb 07. The first thing that wow's you is the club house. A lovely very grand tudor style clubhouse. After the first few holes, i was a little dissapointed the holes were very average. The course did start to impress more when we reached the 5th and 6th (the first bit of water we had come across) As the course began to improve and real wow factor holes are the 11th 12th 13th very lovely holes. Up there with the best of them. The old guy organising the groups was very nice and manage us to sneek in between a group and on a 2-1 ticket is great value. A must play.

Played this course a couple of months ago. When I saw the price of the round I was expecting something very special but it just wasn’t. The greens were in good condition but I found the fairways a bit patchy in places. The course wasn’t hilly at all which left me a bit disappointed. The holes were a tough challenge in places but others were just put in without any thought in my opinion. Value for money…you can get better elsewhere!

I play golf all around SE and SW London and Surrey and have recently discovered this gem. It has quickly become my favourite course, always providing a stern but fair challenge. After a fairly ordinary par 5 10th, the back nine is particularly enjoyable, although hazardous if you are not hitting the ball straight! The 11th-13th corner is the finest stretch of holes I have played, each requiring accurate ball striking. The standard of food and service at the bar/restaurant is also consistently good, with prices no worse than any other golf club in the area. The full weekend green fee of £45 a round would be a bit steep for me, but they are happy to accept 2-fore-1 vouchers which reduces the green fee to £30. This is a bargain in my view given the tranquility of the surroundings and the quality of the course.

Played all 27 holes on a corporate day last week. Princes is indeed the lessor of the three courses and is best used as a warm-up for the main 18. Kings & Queens are pucker. At 6,500 yards off the yellows, this 18 is longer than an average course, with Queens being the longer 9. Queens is also by far the tougher of the two course, with a quite a bit of water. Although I didn't play particularly well, I did have a four-foot putt for par on the 618-yard par 5, which would have made my day. Sadly, I missed it!

Played the Princes nine on a Saturday morning before a wedding at the same venue. I can only presume that this is the lesser of the three nines here as I felt somewhat disspaointed after reading some of the praise posted here. The third and the sixth are very picturesque, the carry off the whites being very tricky on the sixth. The seventh is a par four from the yellows and par five from the whites, the drive from the white tee is almost inpossible with a huge tree blocking your drive. The second whole is very non-descript. I hope to return to play the other two nines which receive much praise. My advise for anyone playing the princes is to play off the yellow tees, unless you are extremely confident, as the drive on the seventh from the whites is likely to ruin your round.

Played all 27 holes recently on company golf day. Princes course is a nice way to ease yourself into the day. Relatively short but still able to make you think about what club to use. How you play the 7th off the whites on this course is anyones guess! A nice wide fairway greets you on the first of the Kings course, as you wind your way into the countryside the course tightens up ready to swallow up any wayward shots. The back 9 (Queens course) is the better still. The 13th being definitely the nicest and maybe the toughest of the 27 holes. There are quite a few card wreckers on this course, lots of water and the 644 yard 17th which almost needs to be played as a par 6. Good facilities, well maintained and friendly staff. Worth a visit.

Excellent days golfing. The greens are in fantastic condition considering we are having a heat wave. The course is challenging and the 17th on the Queens course is not for the small hitters !! I recommend a look. Mick

Yes the bar restaurant waiting times are a bit tedious, but hey you go there to play golf not get drunk. A touch expensive when you coff up your hard earned dollars, but once your're out there you can see why. Excellent challenge for mid 'cappers. A must if your ontop of your game, if not wait to go there. An excellent mix of holes, lots of water and amen corner will definitely get the blood rushing I'm told it's rated as one off the hardest course in Kent. Is this true?

In mid-summer on a warm day, this is one of the best, most difficult, challenging, and picturesque courses in the south east. However if there is any fog, or frost the course is closed until lunchtime. The service in the bar area is so awful, you may find it better to go to some of the local pubs after your round, rather than wait for the slow unhelpful staff.

Delightful course. One of the best tests of golf in the South East. Fast greens, fantastic vistas and its own version of Amen corner. Definitely worth a try.

Three 9's, Kings, Queens & (relatively new)Princes. All extremely playable, Queens 12th/13th good testing "Augusta" par three 128 yds (off yellows) target golf. Followed by intimidating but playable 13th water all down left hand side and open wooded area to right, calls for confident tee shot! Good test of golf but all will enjoy the hospitality of the club and the well maintained course. Greens very good, according to the 19th all year round! I have no reason to disbelieve them. Well worth a days play.This is quite a good course and very enjoyable to play because the greens and turf are good, its very peaceful and the scenery is world-class.

Good setup, interesting back 9 overshadows the front nine a little but overall is a very playable 18 holes