Knighton Heath - Dorset - England
Francis Avenue,
West Howe,
Bournemouth,
Dorset,
BH11 8NX,
England
+44 (0) 1202 572633
3 miles N of Poole
Welcome - handicap cert required
Reunert Bauser
Cecil Wren
Andy Windsor
Inaugurated in 1932, the club was originally known as Northbourne Golf Club, with founding members playing on fairways set out by local professional Cecil Wren across Canford Heath, on land leased from Lord Wimborne. The course officially opened a couple of years after the club was formed, with Percy Alliss and Alf Padgham playing an exhibition match to mark the occasion. The ownership of the club changed hands in 1959, when it was renamed New Northbourne Golf Club, then it was sold on again in 1972. The new owner went bankrupt four years later, allowing members the chance to raise sufficient funds to purchase the club, when it became the Knighton Heath Golf Club that’s now in use. The course is a genuine heathland layout, perched on high ground with pine-flanked fairways. Extending to no more than 90 acres, it’s a very compact track, with numerous doglegged holes, one or two blind tee shots and plenty of heather to trouble those who stray too far away from the mown grass areas. Feature holes include short par fours at the 5th, 6th and 13th. The four par threes offer great variety, with the shortest (the 14th, played uphill to a narrow green) measuring only 111 yards and the longest (the 3rd, played to a sloping hillside green) surveyed at 212 yards from the back tees. |
Reviews for Knighton Heath
Knighton Heath is a pleasant predominantly heathland course. Greens were in good condition, but as with all courses at the moment the parched ground mean't staying on the fairly narrow fairways was very problematic. Approaches to many greens were made very tight with the use of good greenside bunkering.
Holes 1-13 seemed to be more heathland but from hole 14 the course definitely had more of a parkland feel. Enjoyed holes 1-13 very much as they had much variety with elevational change, side slopes, dog-legs, raised tees etc. The 2nd was probably my favourite hole, a dog-leg par 4 with a very tight entrance to the green. The next hole was a good looking par 3 in excess of 200 yards. The course just seemed to run out of steam after the short par 3 at 14 (a short infill par 3) with a few straight holes and a closing par 3. Overall enough enjoyment for me to want to return when the course is less dry to see how it plays, as based on my first round potentially I would place it ahead of Yeovil and possibly Sherborne in the Dorset rankings.
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This course, not really talked about much given the strong local competition from Parkstone and Broadstone particularly, was a pleasant surprise.
Played in very wet wintery conditions, the course stood up very well and provides a good test as well as being an attractive course.
A heathland slash parkland course, it is very much characterised by short, tight par 4s, often with raised tees and greens, which in some cases are very attractive. Requiring disciplined straight tee shots, driver is only really used on a handful of holes, and even the two par 5s are only c.450 yards - a short track but not unpleasant or boring.
The greens rolled well given the time of year and conditions, and the course as a whole was in decent nick.
Clubhouse and other facilities probably bring the club down as a whole, but thoroughly enjoyed the round. One small gripe though is the finish with a boring short par 3 18th - feels stuck on the end after some very strong holes preceding it on the back nine.
Overall, worth a look if you’re in the area and can’t get on Parkstone or Broadstone.
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Added this onto our Dorset trip after being beaten up at Isle of Purbeck. Wasn't overly impressed with "welcome" at pro shop, "we took your booking but we don't operate tee times, put a ball in the chute" ???
Course is interesting layout in reasonable condition.
Bunkers unraked, pitchmarks unrepaired, members dress questionable and pace of play slow with a capital S.
Miles behind Dudsbury in every aspect.
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