Royal Mougins - South East France - France

Give the French their due: when the subject is food they hold top spot on the leader board. Here in the UK we eat to live: in Europe they live to eat and in La Belle France it is a pastime at which they excel. Formidable!

So an exclusive golf club is also a magnet for gourmets. If they are golfers too they have the best of both worlds at Royal Mougins. Heck, you’d want to be a member simply to enjoy a weekly lunch!

The elevated terrace is a much-used accoutrement of the Provencal-style clubhouse and a focal point for the club's social life in a climate that, for much of the year, is close to perfection. Set on the highest point of the wooded estate, it overlooks rolling emerald fairways glimpsed through treetops and is a natural habitat for al fresco diners.

Royal Mougins, open since 1993, reposes in a secluded valley near the town of Mougins and a short drive from Cannes. It is a serene Provencal landscape dominated by a river, venerable trees and ancient stonewall terracing. The course melts into it in a masterpiece of design and routing.

It was laid out by Robert Von Hagge and like his creations at Golf Nationale, Les Bordes and Seignosse, Royal Mougins was acclaimed the nation's best new course at its opening. To extend the culinary theme, this is a main course par excellence, at once tantalising, robust and fulfilling. But it should carry a health warning and we suggest it is not for those with handicaps in excess of 20. It is too tough, at least at first sighting. It is a par-71 with a card reading from 6,600 yards (SS72) to 4,930 yards (SS69) for the ladies. Most holes have five tees, some have six. So options abound. Royal Mougins is never less than undulating, is hilly in parts with a flatter forest area on the valley floor. You’ll face lots of awkward stances and devilish bunker shots.

So variety is the keynote, topographically and technically, too, with a mix of holes ranging from the demanding to the relatively genteel. Royal Mougins calls for every club in the bag and some shots you may not yet have invented. There are two split-level fairways: the par four 9th, which is index 1, and the 18th, a gorgeous par five. The lower levels, where danger lurks, are for those feeling frisky but they’ll need to nail the tee shot and find the correct spot. This is a general rule of thumb on most good courses and an imperative here.

From the back tees all but the longest hitters should contemplate a lay-up on certain holes. Risk and reward is the name of the game. It’s basic course management and, as always, it adds to the enjoyment of the delightful Royal Mougins where the flag positions on large greens, most of which undulate generously, can accentuate the challenge.

Eight lakes are linked by a river system, with waterfalls and streams to distract, and in a setting of such natural splendour you’d expect a few spectacular holes. You won’t be disappointed. A highlight comes early in the round: the par three 2nd is a wondrous hole played from a vertiginously elevated tee via a sheer drop to a green guarded by a lake and with a waterfall to the left. Depending upon which tee you select, it can measure anything from 140 to 184 yards. The flag position here can be a killer, although the large green offers bale-out options as well as the opportunity to take three putts! The hole is named Angel’s Dive. A few have no doubt invoked the devil but it’s an outstanding one shotter. Take three or better and you’ll be off to a flying start. Big hitters who have breakfasted on red meat will relish a couple of the short par fours. The 12th and the 14th are right-angled doglegs with hidden greens but drivable for those capable of cutting the corner over towering trees.

You’ll gather we had a fun round but even if you play like a goose (and many do on their debut at Royal Mougins) you’ll have a round to remember in a lovely corner of France. It’s a grand way to develop an appetite. But a word of caution: don’t over-indulge at lunch, eh?!

Barry Ward