Hayling Golf Course

The only true links on the South Coast of England is a truly magnificent course that has everything from blind tee shots and approaches to deep pot bunkers and undulating greens to test any regular ‘inland’ golfer. Play on a beautiful summers day and the wind still makes you think, play when the wind and rain are lashing at you from the solent, then surely this is a different test completely. Proved when we met a member on the first tee who suggested he had used every club in his bag from 8 iron to driver for the 180 yard par 3…!

Cantalouper’s highlights…

• Beware the practice net….Murph put down a brand new TaylorMade TP5x to have a few swings and duly thinned it under the net and the back and into the uninviting bushes and lake behind!
• Beware the practice green…Murph (again) losing a game of HORSE on the putting surface (in the shortest possible time).
• (However!) Beware a wounded Murph on the first…(after losing a ball, HORSE and dreadfully the day before) who was the only one to put a ball through the headwind into the heart of the green and picked up the first par of the day!
• Beware Lambo on an unseen course…Is that in danger? Where are we going? Where shall I aim? Do I like golf anymore?! were some of the many questions that Anne Robinson relentlessly asked throughout the round! The latter continued well into the evening…
• Beware of the Edwards rage…Lambo being the only one of us brave enough to question his score as we walked between the 9th and 10th…7 for the record!
• Beware the poser…Nic deciding he wanted a picture taken in a deep bunker despite the fact he had no ball in there – however, not the only time this week that he didn’t get a ball out of the bunker!
• Beware the distant flags on an unknown links course…regrettably we didn’t let Mark hit his second shot on the Crater hole to a far flag at a right angle from the tee (he still maintains this would be a great golf hole!)
• Beware the links golfer that is Lambo (rarely seen but magnificent when its rears its head)… His approach down the signature 13th (named The Widow) was straight out of the Tom Watson playbook, taking out any wind element, knocking it knee height, landing it 50 yards short, taking in every undulation and ending up 6ft from the flag – I’ll let him tell you whether he made the bird!
• Beware the shandy with your nan before hand…Lambo being the only one of us not to have a shocking 9 hole (including the 15 club challenge) warm up at Furzeley in the morning due to taking his nan to pub at 11am!

Cantalouper Results

Nic…Winning with a quite stunning 40 pointer that included 8 pars and a birdie and an outrageous drive attempt at the Crater hole… (questions around handicap surprisingly unanswered)

Murph…a solid 36 points on his home turf that included the best up and down in recent history from a plugged lie up against a 6ft vertical bunker wall!

Mark…32 points that uncharacteristically included 3 blobs – his excuse was he was too busy enjoying the course and his first taste of links golf..

Lambo…Chalk and cheese took a first place from Day 1 to a bottom spot on day 2 with 25 points – however his shot on the 13th was a highlight of the day!

Best Holes…

The Widow – An exceptional hole, where the golfer needs to clear 200 yards of rough to make the start of the fairway and then play a blind approach down the hill into the green tucked away amongst the harbour. Exceptional views across to the Isle of Wight, over to the imposing Spinnaker Tower in Portsmouth and inland towards Portsdown Hill across Langstone Harbour give it a special setting.

The Narrows – an easy SI 17 most think – think again – the appropriately named hole has a green that is only 12 yards wide with steep run offs each side. Some fun, creative shots need to be played to make your up and down!

The Sailor’s Grave – Considering how much water surrounds the course via the sea, harbour and lake, it rarely comes into play. Yet at the 17th a long tee shot is required due its length and so pulling the driver out perilously brings the lake on the left and the rough on the right into play. Trust yourself! A great golfing hole on the homeward stretch…