Vale of Llangollen

Ever since 1947, Llangollen has been widely known as the venue for the International Eisteddfod, where singing groups, dancers and the like come from many different countries to share their national folk traditions in one of the world's great arts festivals.

Welsh golfers, however, know Llangollen as a beautiful setting for a course where the members of Vale of Llangollen Golf Club have played their golf since 1908. The original 9-hole layout was doubled in size to a full 18-hole course at the end of the 1960s and the many young trees planted then have, over time, transformed the former farming terrain into a magnificent, modern day parkland course.

The lush fairways at Llangollen are laid out on the banks of the river Dee, overlooked by the imposing Castell Dinas Bran and the course has been a favoured venue for many professional and amateur competitions in recent years. It is also a challenging track to play to your handicap, as a Standard Scratch Score of 73 against a par of 72 will testify.

The signature hole is the par four 9th which plays to a length of 439 yards from the medal tees. The river runs along the right hand side of the fairway but with the hole doglegging left, the tee shot must flirt with the water to stand any chance of getting close to the green in two shots – little wonder many consider “The River” hole to be one of the best in North Wales.