Médoc (Châteaux) - South West France - France

I really like my new home courses. Les chateaux is a proper beast, real tournament golf course. It's long and tough. Greens are huge, elevated and very undulated! A real privilege to play here on a regular basis. If tournament style courses aren't your thing, the les vignes course is very good too...

I have played both courses at Golf du Medoc a couple of times, and I have to say that this is one of the best 36 hole venues that I have played at. The Chateaux course is the big "tournament" course and indeed it is a long, tough beast with enormous greens and lots of trouble everywhere. The French Open was staged here once and it is a shame that it has not been back as there is so much room. A wonderful test of golf for the big hitter, with widish fairways and good bunkering. I had read that the course was "linksy" in character but I felt that is resembled more a heath land course, some holes were quite Royal Melbourne like without the advantage of the range in topography. Standout holes being the 5th, a par three over water to a green that has water on three sides and the fourteenth, a really wonderful and tricky par 5. 16, 17 and 18 are a really stern test at the finish. But I cannot understand why the other, Vignes, course is not rated in the rankings? It is a really charming course, not short and with arguably trickier, Donald Ross, saucer type greens. The course meanders through beautiful pine forrest and has a couple of cracking holes around a lake. The first is a wonderful opener with beautiful trees down both sides of the fairway. Crossing the road after the tenth there are a stream of great holes, the par five 11th and 16th being both beautiful and strategically interesting.Both course are excellent and with two practise grounds, excellent short game areas and a wonderful hotel (that I will be staying at when I go back this weekend) it is a destination that all travelling golfers should know about. 20kms from downtown Bordeaux and the airport and with a great range of wines available it is very highly recommended by myself.

Played the Chateaux course a few weeks ago and was thoroughly impressed. What a great mix of holes, long and short. Around the tees it was a bit soggy, but for the time of year, it was in great shape. I would highly recommend playing this course if you're in the region as it is tough to beat.

This is the second time I've visited the Golf du Medoc Resort and was once again very impressed with the hotel and more importantly both 18 hole golf courses. I played Les Chateaux 2 years ago and have not stopped recommending it to people. Blessed with playing the Surrey courses around Ascot/Cobham this course has a mixture of the heather and parkland you experience there with a links feel to it - especially when the wind picks up. A previous review said you don't have to think about your shots too much... I disagree. The fairways on some holes are wide but bunkers are strategically placed and often catch you out if you try to be too clever off the tee. Given the lack of rain already this year the course is playing very well and the greens and most of the key area's on the fairways have been well watered. I'd fail to bore of playing here and enjoying the view from the bar terraced afterwards. One down side here is that pints are very expensive - wine is better value for money.Les Vignes has a slightly different feel to it and only just comes second to Les Chateaux. Plenty of interesting holes although the par 3's on this course are not as interesting or challenging as on Les Chateaux. Still there are trees and bunkers galore and the water comes into play on 2 or 3 holes. Quality of the greens is once again very good. The resort on the hole has very much a members golf course feel too it rather than a hotel/corporate/public course feel. Friendly staff, good food and drink and accommodation make for an entertaining stay. Close proximity to Bordeaux airport also means that there's no need for car hire as taxi's can be used. We travelled with YourGolfTravel.com and the booking system and customer service were excellent.14 Handicap.

big disapointment. drove 2 hours from Dordogne hoping to play a top course, vut found it all very bland. few good par 3's over water. but in general fairways are too wide and didnt have to think much. didnt bother playing Vignes as looked quite similar - played at pessac which in my view was better !

Very good courses, two 18 holes. Very good hotel on site with spa and excellent wines from Medoc.

Medoc has two excellent courses, Les Vignes and Les Chateaux. Les Chateaux is clearly the better of the two and one of the best courses in France, and therefore Europe. Designed by Bill Coore who together with Ben Crenshaw has a reputation as one of the very top course designers in the world. It feels like a heathland course and at times is even links-like. One good hole follows another with continuous changing of direction and style of hole. There is some water but it is not a dominant feature and always looks natural, as it may well be. This is a tough but fair course and worth going out of your way to play. The 150 metre markers are large wooden wine bottles and each hole is named after a local chateaux.