Reddish Vale

An Alister MacKenzie course that was designed in 1912, Reddish Vale Golf Club is a very pleasant moorland track laid out on the banks of the River Tame, close to the M60 on the outskirts of Manchester. The river meanders, largely unseen, alongside several of the holes on the layout without ever impinging on play and this body of water adds charm to the setting.

The location is so suited to golf that the master architect had stated in his original site report that, “I was very much impressed with the possibilities of the ground available for the Reddish Vale Golf Club. Taking into consideration the excellence of the turf and the natural surroundings, the course will be an exceptionally accessible one.”

Playing to a par of 69, the course is configured in a somewhat unconventional manner with four of the five par threes on the scorecard played during the front nine. Another quirky, century-old feature that has been retained is the criss-crossing of fairways at holes 16 and 17, a case of routing the holes to best fit the land available.

The toughest hole at Reddish Vale is the long par four 13th, named “Copse,” and it’s considered to be one of the best in the county of Cheshire. Measuring all of 456 yards from the back tees, the slightly left doglegged fairway narrows considerably to a punchbowl green that’s surrounded by trees.