Isle of Purbeck Golf Club

Beautiful course, cosy welcoming club house/pro shop and great views. Thoroughly enjoyed it as the wind wasn't blowing. God knows how badly I would've scored if it was. I'm a mid 20s handicap and I think it was too tough for me, anything off line was severly punished in the gorse and thistle. Stay straight then! Greens could've been faster but they were true and well looked after.

With the obscene amount of rain that has lashed the UK over the festive period we were half expecting to receive a call in the morning to say the course was closed. However, when we arrived we were informed that although 3 holes were to temp greens, the course was open and that we were the only players that today. After a warm greeting from the American owner, we ordered a delicious full breakfast that we all struggled to finish such as its size. The views from the restaurant are excellent The clubhouse was designed and built in the 1960s and it shows, but everything inside was in good working order and clean. 
The course, designed by the legendary Harry Colt, IOP contains many quite frankly brilliant holes, it goes without saying the par 4 5th is the jewel in the crown. Starting from a raised tee, you are presented with magnificent views of the Poole Harbour, Sandbanks and surrounding Hartland Moor National Nature Reserve. From there you need to decide how much of the dog leg you wish to take on before pitching to a raised green with the English Channel as a backdrop.

The Par 3’s are also brilliant and are classic Harry Holt. Playing in Winter the rough was down but almost all the holes are surrounded by bracken and gorse, so any wayward shots are going to be punished.

Extensive tree reduction has recently taken place which I assume to open up more of the breathtaking views.

The Isle of Purbeck is an outstanding course, with plenty of history and great views to boot and I highly recommend it.

Twilight golf @ £30 was tremendous value. The course was coping very well considering dry warm weather. First time playing the course and found it both challenging and fun. Beautiful views of the bay. The greens were very slow but likely to have been kept fairly long due to weather. Very welcoming club for visitors.

I finally returned to play Isle of Purbeck after a disappointing visit 18 months ago in terms of course condition to play some twilight golf.

From speaking with the Head Pro, it was clear that significant investment had gone into purchasing new equipment and employing a new ‘Master’ Greenkeeper - only 60(ish) in the world - in a bid to improve the course condition.

Despite the recent drought conditions, you can certainly see that the course was improving. As you would expect, the fairways were brown, hard and very fast. The greens were left slightly longer to try and protect them but putted reasonably well.

The views on the course across the bay are incredible. If you haven’t played the course, it’s definitely one to add to your list, but it is a tough one.

Situated on a high plateau nature reserve brimming with heather and gorse, Isle of Purbeck GC isn’t in fact on an island. The area is a peninsula in the County of Dorset with Swanage being the largest town south of Poole Harbour. Very nearby is Corfe Castle which looms over the village of the same name. At one time, Enid Blyton, the famous children’s author who created The Famous Five among many classic literary series, owned the course and it wasn’t unusual to see her walking its fairways. Later, Harry Randolph of Wilkinson Sword fame owned the course, Studland and Corfe Castle; all which were eventually donated to the National Trust. It was during this time the course took its current shape with 5,6 and 10-16 being built after 1966. It is thought HJ Stutt and club member P Denness completed the changes. While the club has long enjoyed an excellent reputation for its beauty, course conditions have not kept pace. The 27 hole club is now leased by an American couple who have been improving the reputation of the courses by slowly improving conditions.

There is a lot to like about Purbeck. The site is alluringly rustic and there is the All-England 5th. The par threes are very good and well varied, although the 11th could do with a good tree removal. A large percentage of the remaining holes are good, solid design without being distinctive. For me, it adds up to a keeper and I hope to return someday.