Tydd St. Giles Golf and Leisure Club

played this course for 2 years running as a guest at an organised event. the way our day was hosted was very good, and the facilities and course are excellent. The bar is homely and next to a very good driving range where you can warm up your swing. the hire buggies were welcome on my second visit as the course is quite long, but there are a good mix of par 3,4 and 5s. the greens are big and well maintained. the clubhouse has an olde worlde feel, and the course is well established and quite pretty in places; but it is a challenge and some of the pot bunkers are very dangerous.

I am fortunate to play Tydd golf course on a fairly regular basis and it is one of the best standard golf courses in the £20 for a round selection. They recently abolished separate tickets for the day and for the round and now you pay a couple of pound more and every ticket is for the day. Combine this with a 2-4-1 voucher and you can play 36 holes of golf for £10 with a friend. The course has not been there for long and was originally a nine hole layout. The original nine holes are still the best but have been incorporated cleverly so it is difficult to tell them apart. The course is fairly short and a par 70 so there are some good scores to be had. I recently went round in 83 which is a least 10 shots better than i would expect on the other courses i play in the area. There are two plans of attack on this course depending entirely on how you are driving the ball off the tee. Four of the holes are reachable at 280 to 300 yards and with massive greens a feature at the course putting for eagle is possible, all be it from the front of the green. i tend to play easy 3 and 5 woods and then controlled wedges and 9 irons into the heart of the green which can really build a good score. The par 4 si 1 5th hole is the signature hole. A daunting drive over a big lake requiring a carry of 170 made even more difficult by the island in the middle being directly in the line of the shot and becoming noticably more overgrown, increasing the obstruction. The next shot is played back over the lake depending on your distance off the tee, and into a dangerously sloping green which sends most balls rolling back towards the water. the course is playable all year round with no winter tees and only one winter green, and this should not be in play this year after the recent changes to the problem green. The clubhouse facilities are friendly and simple with good food at a good price being the norm. The driving range is both contained and outside with two chipping and putting greens. The course is becoming more used and it is advisable to book a tee time which can be done up to a week in advance. I sugeest checking to see if there are and societies playing or if it is seniors day as this can slow play badly on some days. This is the only critisim i would have of the course, they only allow a few minute between tee times which can cause some hold ups in play, so i always try and find a tee time without bookings either side. Well worth a try for the day.

I've played this course a few times, in varying conditions, and can say that it stands out as one of those courses that shows what can be done with flat land. The course is interesting through most of it, with bunker placement and heavy rough making up for a lack in length on some holes. I've played it in both winter and the baking summer heat and the course on those two occasions was in very good condition. The clubhouse lacks flare and the rest of the facilities are nothing to write home about but I don't know about you but I Visit a course to play golf not sit and have a beer so in that respect Tydd fits the bill. By the way, if you get your club selection right (first time) on the 4th i'll give you a tenner myself.