Le Gouverneur (Le Breuil) - South East France - France

The course is pretty flat, with just a few tee surfaces or greens slightly elevated and contours built along a number of fairways. However, there is a very pleasant variety of holes, with respectable par threes sometimes over land (4th mostly and 11th), sometimes over water (2nd and 16th holes), par fours ranging from the not so benign to challengingly long (5th, 14th, 18th), and par fives which can prove quite lengthy when the wind is blowing in the right direction (15 th, 17th). The layout is generally open, but trees can make the access to the green conditional upon good placement (5th, 10th, 12th holes).

The fairways are usually in very good condition and quite lush; the greens are large, keep a good speed throughout the year and can be tricky as their slopes are not obvious to read. Bunkers are not too deep but some guard the greens quite efficiently while keeping the balls out of the water (9th, 13th). I played this course under trying winter conditions: a cold day with gale force winds. It made me appreciate the layout which varies the orientation of the holes sharply without ever doubling back. If the rough was sometimes very wet and soft, the fairways kept the balls bouncing.

After a few warm-up holes, things get serious on the par four 5th, which is not only long but also proves to be narrower than appears at first as a row of trees halves the width of the fairway just where the ball will come down. If your drive leaves you behind these trees, there is no way to reach the green in regulation. The 6th hole seems straight, but prevailing winds will slow your drive making the second shot at least a mid-iron approach. Then the 9th will remind you sharply that the water hazards are a main feature of the course and you need to be careful if you want to cut this dogleg’s corner.

The 14th hole is the hardest on the score card, and deservedly so as it is a long (393 meters from the tips) and narrow par four, winding around a large lake, with the green protected by trees on one side and the bank of the lake menacingly close on the other. However, the next hole, a 472 meters par five, can feel just as long and lonely with a head-on wind, a big old tree in the middle of the fairway making the landing of the drive a more serious affair and the fairway being then squished between two water hazards for the second and third shots. I also liked the finishing 18th, which needs two really good shots to reach the elevated green with the very friendly yellow walls of the old manor beckoning in the background.

One is glad to reach the bar at the clubhouse after crossing the inner courtyards, while there lingers a general feeling of both accomplishment and pleasantness about the course. I was told that the pros have found Le Breuil lacking great difficulty, but for the leisurely golfer dangers abound without being overwhelming.