East Sussex National (West) - Sussex - England

I have just returned from a weekend away staying and playing at East Sussex National. Its a good venue for a society meet up and stay away which exactly what we did.

We played the West yesterday and I have to say we were a little disappointed. Its a good course but the condition of the greens was quite poor. Some better than others but the general consenses from all parties coming in was the same. Course layout was good, some interesting holes and I felt a bit more of a challenge than the East which was my favourite by far.

Facilities are great and value for money for a stay and play make it a really great venue for a weekend golf break.

East Sussex National is a big hotel, spa and golf complex near Uckfield in, er... well as you might be able to guess.... East Sussex. The resort boasts two golf courses; the East and West both designed by Robert E Cupp, an American course architect and opened for play in 1990.

Neither tend to rank particularly highly in any of the magazine lists and whilst modern, championship style golf courses are not really my thing I believe they are perhaps treated a little harshly when looking at some of the competition they currently lag behind.

The West is a more intimate and scenic affair - if you can call a 7,100-yard layout intimate - and has a much more interesting routing and prettier surroundings as we depart the clubhouse at the first and don't see it again until we finish. It is the better of the two courses but thanks to the impressive back-nine on the East there is not a great deal in it. The stand out holes mostly come on the back nine here too with the 10th and 12th both tough cookies to crack. The latter was an extremely difficult par-five when I visited as it played into a strong head wind.

Other holes of note were the 1st which uses a tree quite well to manufacture a dog-leg, the dramatic par-three 13th and the two-shot 14th with danger lurking down the right side of the green making it a really risking shot into the green. The 18th is also a nice looking hole which descends down a tree-lined fairway and closes in front of the hotel and clubhouse.

Ed is the founder of Golf Empire – click the link to read his full review.

As my recent review of the East Course would suggest I felt the West course at the East Sussex National golf resort was a little less good than the East. I say this not because the routing was worse, but rather because the conditioning, especially on the greens, was just a bit less good. Thus the leatherjackets which seem to have troubled many Sussex courses had attracted the crows whose attempts to hollow time the greens were still noticeable.

What you get is a muscular course, plenty of walking and plenty of water. Wide fairways encourage the use of the driver, length control is more important than direction control. I played the back nine in a series of heavy showers; appreciating a golf course can be hard when standing under an umbrella. Indeed four days later a number of holes are less then clear to me.

But I’d certainly go back, especially as there are good deal to be had; I just hope the weather is a bit nicer and the previous month’s weather a bit drier so that the course could be played with a bit of run.

East Sussex National is set out in a vast expanse of land in the Sussex countryside. Equipped with two courses, a hotel, restaurant and Spa, ESN is set up for golfing retreats or corporate getaways.

The West Course is generally seen as the Premier of the two Parkland courses and I would agree with this sentiment.

It’s a very well designed course, with a great mix of holes and it’s a lot of fun to play. There are plenty of holes that really make you think and different strategies come into play right throughout. Finding the right part of the fairway is key and also the correct part of the green as they are often tiered and undulating.

The course reminds me a little of The Grove, but for one key element, the conditioning. The West Course needs some investment to bring it back to former glories. Fairways were patchy, there are a fair few bunkers under repair and a couple of the greens need some treatment. This is not the case throughout the course, but often enough to notice.

The course has all the necessaries in its design and variance and is really not far off being a very good course, but a bit of TLC is needed.

Favourite holes for me we the cleverly bunkers Par 5 2nd, the cracking dog leg right Par 4 10th with an approach over water to a tiered green and the excellent Par 5 12th with a creek running through the fairway and up the right hand side requiring three very good shots for a GIR. There’s a lot of good stuff here, it’ll be interesting to see what the future holds on whether it wants to be a elite course, or a corporate venue.

The West Course at East Sussex National is a brutal test of golf. From the tee, it’s extremely tight and narrow, so make sure you have plenty of balls. This claustrophobia means the player is left with no options but to hit the shot required from the tee.

From the start the course dictates to you how you must play it, the opener is a sharp dog leg left where the player must position themselves perfect to even have a shot into the green.

The greens are tough, and at times (such as the long well bunkered par 5 2nd), are extremely small even with a lot of trouble from tee to green. This is not true of the short par 3 16th postage stamp style hole, which is a lot of fun to try and hold a small green with only a wedge in hand. There are also bigger greens throughout the 18 holes.

A personal favourite here is the 10th hole, a dog leg to the right, with water guarding the green. Even without the water, the green is narrow, and so distance control is crucial, and the two-tiered green means some interesting putts. The par 5 12th has two brooks, which does give the player the option of some risk/reward golf, and the green is hard to hit with even just a wedge left in hand.

Overall, this isn’t my favourite style of golf- a hard slog which is narrow off the tee, but when the conditioning is good I can imagine the greens would offer some interest.

I was very impressed with both courses at East Sussex National And find it hard to split them.

As for the West, the conditioning was great, the course was fun, interesting and played across beautiful undulating countryside. Yes, it’s not an old-fashioned design - it’s pure modern parkland and the turf isn’t as sandy as some of the best in the region - but this is still a place with a lot of charm.

The first hole requires good strategy - a simple enough drive but it needs to be placed perfectly to have a good view of the green (which is at a 90 degree angle to the fairway, nestled at the bottom of the hill amongst the trees).

2 is a long but interesting par 5 and 3 is a lovely short par 3 with a pond short and right.

4-6 are all quite similar, interesting enough holes played on the slightly more open ground before you cross under the road.

7 is a long par 3 and the start of a great stretch of holes all the way to 14. 8 is an interesting par 4 played severely downhill To a large green that is hard to hold in the Summer months. 9 is a tough uphill par 4 that sweeps around to the left beautifully and 10 is a great par 4 with the second shot needing to carry a lake to a tiered green.

11 plays downhill from an elevated tee (a great driving hole) and 12 is a brilliant par 5 (extremely tight with a stream running all the way along the hole and the green sloping Menacingly towards it. 13 - another good par 3 played from an elevated tee and 14 is a great hole with Trouble all the way down the right and a tough approach into an elevated green.

The final few holes are strong. 16 is incredibly short and gets a bad review from some below but I really enjoyed it. It was playing about 100 yards for us and was Downwind. The greens were rock solid and to hold this narrow green with a wedge was a great challenge.

17 is a pretty par 5 with the trees coming into play on the right hand side, as well as some mature trees In the middle of the fairway - requiring a lot of strategy.

18 is a tough final hole with mature trees on either side of the tight fairway. The approach is uphill to a tricky green.

This is a delightful little gem and Definitely worth playing alongside the East.

Upon opening ESN The West course was billed as the members course. Like its counterpart the conditioning was excellent and the routing through old oak trees, brooks and ponds gave the course a special feel. The West is less demanding than the East but still has some standout holes. I quite like the 1st a dogleg from right to left although if you do not hit your tee shot far enough a couple of large trees will block your approach. Hole 10 is a dog leg left to right par 4…the right side of the fairway is the area to place your tee shot as this shortens the approach to this two tiered green. The 12th is a cracking par 5 with a brook that splits the fairway and pond that protects the approach to the green. Hole 16 is an interesting short par 3 with a raised green….this hole is devilishly difficult when windy. I prefer the East course at ESN although both courses are worth a visit.

I remember making the trip to play here when the courses first opened in 1990 to great fanfare. The much anticipated opening was big news back then. Billed as England's Augusta, no expense was spared in laying out the course and by implementing fastidious maintenance, they kept it beyond immaculate. It was built at a time when the propensity for building new courses to satiate demand from an oversubscribed golf market was at gold rush fever pitch. Established clubs at the time had waiting lists in years and I for one remember waiting patiently in the car park in a numbered bay for a tee time at the local municipal in Southampton from 4 A.M. for a midday tee time the same day. So it looked like a good Idea, until we had the ERM, Norman Lament and a not inconsiderable recession. The original credit crunch was the full fat, pips squeaking variety that turned sure things into folly overnight.Since then many courses have happily come along, Some as extravagant in concept as East Sussex National, Some even more so. Some not. East Sussex has subsequently changed ownership a few times and some lesser tracks like Botley Park in Hampshire are sadly going to disappear under a new housing estate very soon, not 25 years since they were laid down. I digress. I was keen to see if the initial awe I experienced here, when my Balata balls, spanked with persimmon clubs (I Know, late adopter) only just reached the fairways from the back tees. Would that view still resonate in the new titanium century? Back then it seemed outrageously long and a real privilege to play. How times have changed. We arrived on a bargain Golf break. It really is unbeatable. On arrival the gilded gates remain but are now perceptibly burnished and since the huge expense at the beginning you get the feeling that there has been an understandably more pragmatic approach to the commercial elements put in place. The West is my pick of the courses, still a majestic layout on clay. I prefer the routing through the mature Oaks and the variety of the holes. They moved a lot of Earth here to create the courses but they were also aided by some excellent parkland that they worked with and not against. Condition is not what it was back then, it could not possibly last commercially at that level. It is perfectly acceptable however. It is still very good. You will enjoy these courses.I feel now that this complex has survived its difficult birth and precocious adolescence, the difficult and impecunious early twenties might soon yield to an era when perhaps new money will elevate these courses with a few tweaks. The off course facilities lack soul but are first class none the less. The bones are there. All courses must evolve, I hope this one does. It deserves it.

Big American style course with a lot of space for most, but not all, drives. Fun to play, it invites you to go for shots. Greens in good condition, though I found them difficult to read. I thought the Par 3s were good, especially 13th. The 16th is a bit quirky being so short, but that adds a bit more variety. A superb run of holes from 10 to 14. The front nine less memorable, with some of them - 6,8,9 - seeming quite similar. The long rough has been left to grow very thick which looks good but I would guess slows up play when its busy. Locally, Chart Hills is similar; to me East Sussex is a bit more varied, but greens not quite so good.

Sussex isn't blessed with an abundance of great courses unlike neighbouring Surrey, so it was a pleasure to play this one. I'm sure it gets a fair amount of corporate traffic in the week, but on a Saturday in August it was pretty, tranquil and not too busy. I agree the 16th was a little lacklustre, but 17 & 18 more than compensated. Loads of variety here - good fast greens, excellent service, great practice facilities, good value I thought. Can't wait to go back and see if the East is as much fun.