Cuddington - Surrey - England

As many have said many times, Surrey is the strongest English county for golf courses; the country rankings tell us this every couple of years. A course in the county second tier of Surrey is very likely to be Top 10 ranked anywhere else to be honest. Cuddington fits into this category and is a very strong course from start to finish. Club atmosphere on arrival is friendly with club members keen to pass the time of day. The course has an unusual double par-5 start but this gives chances to have a decent card early on. The long par-4 3rd is a nice driving hole with some extra length gained from a fairway that runs downhill and then the par-3 4th (168 yards) is good looking hole that should give away some birdies. The next two holes are both par-4s (5th is 359 yards and the 6th is 449 yards, both very different in terms of scoring ease) - now I know that stroke indexes are not all about length but these two holes clearly have the SI's the wrong way around. The 5th is 5 and the 6th is 13, it is a small point but needs a mention. The 7th is a tough par-4 (SI-1) with those easy on the eye 'Colt' cross bunkers to negotiate from the tee. The first hole on the back nine splits opinion; a downhill par-4 of just under 400 yards but with a big sloping left to right fairway can punish decent tee shots. One of my favourite holes is the par-3 11th, only 140 yards and a little uphill; a beauty though. In contrast, the par-3 13th in my opinion needs more protection because an averagely hit shot can still find the putting surface. The tee shot on the short par-5 17th is great fun; coming out of a funnel of trees you really cannot start anything with early shape on it. The closing hole can easily sit in the group of toughest par-4's in county - 420 yards but plays a lot more due to the whole hole playing uphill. Mid 20's in the county numbers is about right, but a couple of places improvement would not look out of place too next time.

Cuddingdon is a traditional members club which, after Walton Heath, is one of the best in the area. There are many good things to say about the place: the recently refurbished clubhouse, Colt's strategic bunkering and the truly excellent greens. Perhaps its greatest asset, though, is the free-draining chalk soil on which the course sits. This means that you'll never have to worry about temporary greens or tees and in winter, it is a bone-dry jewel to be savoured amongst South London's often stodgy clay diet. If you're looking to join a club and year-round golf is a priority then you could do a lot worse. Overall, the course itself is solid, with 4 par 5's and 5 par 3's giving good variety. 6 and 7 are amongst the toughest back to back par 4s that you will find anywhere and tough green surrounds mean that you'll struggle to make many pars if your iron play is off centre. It may not set the pulse racing in the same way as some of the classic heathland tracks in this part of the country, but certainly provides a good test. The course would probably benefit from losing a few trees, and I'd also like to see the rough around the greens cut back a bit to give a few more options for recovery. All in all, worth a visit if you are in the area and even if your golf wasn't up to much, you can't help but enjoy the views over London from the clubhouse terrace.