Architects: Tom Dunn, Harry Colt & CDP
BIG site!
The start of a small golf break with colleagues. Criteria: further than an hour drive away and well within the Top 100. Broadstone fit the bill.
There is real disparity at Broadstone – but it is precisely this that magnifies the spellbinding moments. The start and finish at Broadstone is muted, and I think this is a fair evaluation – I am absolutely not saying that I disliked those holes, but it is just the sheer theatre of that midsection that will clinch my return.
The elevation changes ensure absolute engagement with your game and the property. The bunkering highlights the most dramatic aspects of the topography and the topography is indeed breathtaking. For me, heather is always a welcome sight – the purple hue softening the horizon and embellishing this magnificent exhibition.
What captivated me most was that there was evidently a multitude of ways each hole could be played. This presented a number dynamic scenarios which, mixed with the natural contours, encouraged imagination and an assortment of shot-making. There aren’t many courses that have lead me to stop and exclaim a ‘Wow!’. The use of land at Broadstone is unparalleled.
The course asks some big questions of its opponents, us. Drive to the right spot, or be damned. Hit the green, or be damned. The land is such, that a ball landing on the wrong side of the fairway is doomed to never return. No hole encapsulates this more, than the SI-1 7th hole. Aim at the marker pole some 250 yards down the fairway – if you sway even yards offline then your second shot is near impossible, but the reward for accuracy is a second shot to beat all second shots. You look out over this inconceivable valley, a chasm, and what stops you in your tracks is this beautiful scar-like bunker that extends the width of the hole, goading you into the hero carry. This is just one of the holes at Broadstone that leaves you feeling either like a champion or a fool.
The course is the perfect example of what a successful restoration project can do. The rejuvenation of the bunkers on the 14th hole, a wonderous par-4, by Frank Pont has elevated the aesthetic and allows the player a privileged view back in time to behold the sights that graced Mr Colt. I do hope that those muted holes receive the same love and respect and spring into life, once CDP have completed the job.
Don’t let Broadstone slip through the net. A real architectural asset to this country’s golfing landscape.
The Surrey Golfer 