Milford Golf Club

Vriendelijke mensen, relatief korte baan maar wel met afwisselende en uitdagende holes. Als je de fairway mist ben je je bal bijna zeker kwijt. Kleedkamers, douches etc. zoals in veel goedkopere Engelse banen gewoon slecht. Prijs-kwaliteit: prima, wij liepen een ronde voor £ 25 pp.

Launched in 1993, Milford golf course has the recognisable feel of an Allis & Clarke creation. Very close to bankruptcy in 1993, the course was saved by American Golf (before the retailer emerged with the same brand name).

Crown golf members speak very highly of Milford so I was really excited to get out there. Everyone I had spoken to had told me how many blind shots there are to play so I decided to play the course blind, leaving my Garmin watch at home. There are a LOT of doglegs so I definitely recommend a yardage book. It also felt like a bit of a time warp, I really struggled guessing distances. It was the year 2000 all over again and I was pacing out distances from the 150 marker.

Straight out of the blocks the opening tee shot is not easy, suggest a power fade with the driver. We tested the greens out on the first and they were a bit jumpy. The second is a reachable par 4 but an easy 6 iron off the tee leaves a nice distance. The third is a beautiful par 5, anything right off the tee is dead and the second shot is blind. The 4th is a doddle but the 5th requires your attention and another

6 is a monster par 3 and 7 requires a right to left shape. You then cross over the road and to be honest 8 and 9 are not much to write home about. 10 is a huge improvement, a really classy dogleg. Crossing back to the other side of the course the stretch from 11 to 14 has some similar up and down holes. Despite this, the quality of the fairways on the entire course is very good and the bunkers are also impressive.

Hole 13 requires a drive over the lake. I got caught out by the second shot, the downhill approach doesn't feed down as you might expect due to the lush approach to the green. 14 is a straightforward par 4, I knocked a 9-iron to two feet so had a putt that even Scott Hoch would have managed. 15 is a beautiful long par 3. If you misjudge the wind like I did then you are faced with a very tough front bunker. 16 is there for the taking but the course certainly doesn't fizzle out - 17 & 18 are two great matchplay holes. 17 is a gem of a par 3 over a lake to a postage stamp green. The last is a gorgeous finishing hole. Dogleg par 5 that can be reached in two with a really tough tee shot.

Although 5890 yards is short, at this time of year the driver is still required on quite a lot of holes. Shooting 4 under my handicap in a strong wind shows that Milford is definitely a confidence booster track. Water only comes into play on 5 holes, in all honesty 17 and 18 are the only water you have to worry about.

The course really isn't that hard to navigate and there are a lot of fun doglegs. The course is clearly very well maintained and is the type of track that although not many memorable holes, there are enough that make you want to come back.