Old Fold Manor - Hertfordshire - England

In a County that is noted for its many fine parkland golf courses Old Fold Manor is certainly up there as one of the best and undoubtedly one of the most interesting.

This Hertfordshire gem has its varied and challenging greens to thank for the high interest levels that it creates. Working back from green-to-tee it is the putting surfaces that often dictate the strategy of each hole and in particular the pin location for that day.

Originally open heathland the 18 holes now feature many tree-lined fairways that make the wind direction less predictable. The yardage is 6,451 yards with a par of 71 although it should be noted that the SSS is 72. I imagine that the tricky greens are the reason for this because although the course doesn’t play that long it is essential that you keep your ball under the hole with your approaches.

A couple of modest two-shotters introduce us to Old Fold Manor; two of eight sub-400 yard par fours. The opener is largely forgettable but the second is an excellent hole and the green is our first indication that we’re going to have some fun during the round.

Indeed, there are some truly outstanding green complexes on the course, which held Regional Qualifying for The Open Championship from 2005-2010, but the real beauty is not just the quality but the variety of them too.

Historians may be interested in the fact that the Battle of Barnet (a decisive conflict in the Wars of The Roses) is thought to have been fought on part of the course in 1471. The member I played with advised that there used to be a plaque on the fourth hole to indicate this.

In summary, if you prefer your greens on the flat side and don’t enjoy the test or have the imagination that is required on more contoured greens then Old Fold Manor is not for you. But for me this is what brings the course alive and elevates it above many other venues in the neighbourhood.

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

Old Fold is an oasis of calm located on the border of London and Hertfordshire: only on one section of the course, around hole 8, do you notice that you are so close to busy, noisy London life. Tree-lined but never narrow, with draws and fades needed for different holes, spongy fairways that are lovely to play off, the real challenge here is the greens: fast and true, some obviously severe but others that are trickier to spot but no less devilish like the Par 3 14th. I wouldn't agree with some of the earlier comments about repetitive club selection at the start: if I hit decent drives I would usually be left with 9 iron, wedge, 6 iron, 8 iron, wedge and 7 iron on the first 6 holes. It's true though that the only long par 4s are on the back 9: despite being 432 yards from the tips, the dogleg right hole 11 plays much shorter with a downhill drive and approach, although a lake is on guard to catch anything right off the tee. Hole 12 goes back up the hill and is quite tight which makes for a long, difficult par 4, and then the last 2 holes as commented already are lengthy, hole 18 being a great finish with the moat 20 yards short and right of the putting surface. I loved this place when I lived in the area and can't wait to go back.

Old Fold is set on a relatively small piece of land not far from the centre of Barnet, but truly makes good use of this plot.There’s a welcoming clubhouse but aside from that relatively modest facilities with no convenient place to warm up prior to a round (other than a couple of nets which are a bit of a walk away – there is a practice area but not conveniently situated). The course itself is nicely tree lined, pleasantly undulating, and even has a bit of a heathland feel to it with silver birch and gorse here and there. It starts with a series of relatively short par 4’s but with a misplaced drive all can become tougher. Notable amongst the early holes is the 5th. A lovely tree lined drive is followed by a wedge to severely sloping green where anything past the flag leaves an incredibly slick putt. The 7th is a nice par 3 requiring a very accurate mid iron downhill to a slightly raised green. The 9th is a strong par 5 which can just about be reached with two perfectly executed shots but is probably out of reach for most in two. Even on reaching the green the problems are not over with another severely sloping green awaiting you.He 10th is a relatively short par 3is can cause problems if you go past the flag, but then the course steps up a level in difficulty. The 11th and 12th are longer par 4s, with the 11th particularly being a notable hole. There’s water down the right from the tee and out of bounds left. A decent drive should leave a short/mid-iron down to a green set some way below you, and which is incredibly slick when you get there.The 13th is another lovely par 5 and is followed by a tough par 3 with yet another severe green. These are followed by 2 shorter par 4’s offering birdie chances, before two very tough long par 4’s bring you back to the clubhouse. Overall, the course is a good test ideally requiring you to shape tee shots both ways at times. It will also require a strong wedge game, and that you putt well, with sharply sloping, and usually quick greens. The only disappointment on this visit was that the greens were in relatively poor shape, albeit it was relatively early in the season (late April). Having said that other greens in the area were in much better shape and given that the club has tended to pride itself on its greens this was a shame. However, I’d assume that this will be corrected over coming weeks and Old Fold is worth a visit if in the area.

Played this a couple of times in Autumn 10 when considering joining, ended up opting for somewhere else but this was in no way a reflection on the quality of the course or facilities - just distance from home. its a great course, greens were excellent despite a bout of recent very wet weather. the last x2 holes are as tough as it can get with the necessity to get your drive away on the 18th a must otherwise don't even bother trying to go for the green protected by the 'nature moat' at the front -even if you do get the drive away you're still faced with a 180-200 yrd long iron into a small green with OOB also over the back etc... . its real knee knocker !! some nice holes on the back nine, with quite a gentle first few holes to ease you in ... but don't be fooled, its tough to score here with potential shots to be dropped at every turn.

As a former (Junior) member this course was my first as a member and will always hold strong memories. The 17th and 18th form a tough finish (inthe 70s the 17th used to be a short par 5 and was shortened to a long par 4). Since those days there have been many changes to the course including speeding up the greesns and reducing their size and (re-)introducing bunkering which went through a phase of elimination as a cost cutting measure. There is a gently undulating (not hilly) topography that maintains the interest and offers a fair challenge.

It is nice to see Old Fold Manor appear on the site as a recent GEM addition; the course has got plenty about it to like. I have been checking my own history book and I first played OFM in 1980...thirty years later I re-visited with very faded memories of the holes to be honest. The front nine opens up with six par-4's with five of them around the 340-360 yards, so club selection approaching these holes is a little predictable but in saying that, this front third of the course is very enjoyable - with the 5th my pick of these mainly due to the very tricky green. The front nine ends with one of only two par-5's amongst the whole eighteen and then the back nine starts with my favourite par-3; only about 125 yards and just a flick really but a tricky downhill putt awaits for anything beyond the flag. There are a further six par 4's on the second nine, which makes thirteen in total and that really is my only criticism of the course; with the greens and tees being fairly close it will not be easy to squeeze any extra length - maybe the 17th hole could be lengthened to be a short par-5 at a push? I really like the last hole ... around 440 yards but with water in front of the green; there will only be a few golfers hitting this in two and making a par at the last will probably go to those with a tidy short game. Overall Old Fold Manor competes well against other North London/Hertfordshire border courses with greens well above average and a great clubhouse atmosphere and I would imagine that it is quite nice to be a member here. The course has been used for regional Open qualifying since 2006 which is an endorsement that cannot be ignored either, out of around a 100 players for the 2010 event only seven were under-par, so another small victory for the older shorter courses against the newer tougher beasts that have to be 7500 yards to be noticed - short does not mean easy...