Avis de Rogers de Koksijde Golf ter Hille.

The club delivers 27 holes,18 on the Championship course and 9 on the Hazebeek course, purpose built for beginners but far removed from a pitch and putt par three affair. So how good is the Championship course? Brilliant. Nasty. Enjoyable. Ruthless. I could go on. The Langeleed Course as it’s known measures 6384 off the back tees and has a course rating of 75,5. The entire project was orchestrated by golf architect Jeremy Perm and took nearly 14 years to complete. Every hole has been manufactured to create a series of amphitheatres for spectators they are anticipating in the coming years. The flat, uninteresting landscape which dominates the north west corner of Europe has been caressed and manipulated to create understate swales and run offs on the fairways and around the greens. They also decided that some water hazards might not go amiss and when I play it I certainly didn’t miss the water. There are a total of 11 water hazards on the Championship course meaning that there only 5 holes where you have a chance at keeping your ball dry. The hazard range in size from duck pond to a large Scottish loch. They are also craftily set into the fairways with little invisible tongues ready to lick up balls you might rightly thinks are sitting safely on the first cut of grass. I loved the way the course gently draws you in, whether you start on the 1st or 10th. The front nine grows in intensity, commencing with a long and leisurely par 5 and a short par 3. The third is a short and very tight 337 meter par 4 with water either side of the fairway. The 4th is a long dogleg left around one of the Scottish lochs which dares you to take it on. I did, it won. The par 5 5th epitomizes the design of the course with its broad fairway sandwiched by another loch down the right and a couple of lakes down the left. The width offered on the fairways are for the benefit of high handicap players and low handicap player should have no reason to fear the water, unless you are greedy or foolish. Standing at 210 meters, the par 8th is a tough hole for any handicap but with water down the right running from tee to green then wrapping around the back it’s nothing less than a monster. The walk back to the club house is a comfortable par 5 that gives you ample time to decide how many balls you’ll have to buy to play the back nine. The answer is a lot, the 11th and 16th are the only holes without water in play. When you get to the 13th you might be feeling as comfortable as you did walking off the 3rd and a glance at the score card will have you positively tranquil stroll to a par 4 less than 300 meters. How many balls have you got in your bag? The 13th has more water than grass; it’s got more sand than grass! The 18th is far more demanding than the 9th with water in play off the tee and for your second if you choose to lay up. The green runs from front to back so you might think your approach has found the bunkers behind the green as it disappears from view. If you’re as lucky as me you’ll find it 2 foot from the pin for tap in bogie. The club house has a charming and casual bistro feel about it and can be enjoyed as a standalone eatery or bar even if golf is not on your agenda. On a cold and wet day in March I tucked into a delightful homemade tomato soup which was the perfect antidote to my exhausted and soggy disposition. Several other patrons were tucking in to an ample buffet with great gusto. Some 14 years and €20 Million later the residents of Koksijde have a golf course, a public golf course which welcomes anyone with open arms. Dress codes, who needs them? Handicap, we don’t care, we’ll teach you how to play and if you’re a local resident under the age of 18 membership is free. While the initial intention was to attract golf tourism the entire ethos has been structure around the community and getting more people involved in golf, another avenue for fitness and leisure. To emphasis this a program exists which allows every student in the final years of primary/first school 2 hours of tuition free of charge. This is a great club with a great story. I implore you to make at least one visit to celebrate what I hope is a new movement on the golfing landscape, the elimination of elitism and snobbery, and the reintroduction of golf for all.