Richmond Park Golf Club

I joined as a beginner because the course was nearby and I was excited to play whenever I could. But I wouldn’t recommend it even to other beginners, and I won’t renew unless pigs fly. There were scuffed tees and beer bottles scattered around from the start. The course got worse hole by hole: part of one fairway was marked shut, then practically all of the third fairway was sectioned off for “poor quality,” which felt like an understatement. This was in late January after six days had passed since the colder weather, yet the bunkers were still frozen solid and the greens were practically unusable and seemed rarely maintained. The driving range was a wooden shack with no tees on the grass mats. Broken signs kept falling down, so you couldn’t tell how far you were hitting. When we complained, an employee or owner replied quite rudely, saying the course was among the “more well maintained courses within the area.” That seems completely false. Other courses within a 40 minute drive would be appalled to see fairways or bunkers in that state, with bottles and cans everywhere. For £100 total for a year and two months, I expected a pleasant experience and a maintained course.

The narrow fairways, lined with mature trees, make accuracy off the tee important, and the water hazards get in your head too. It’s an interesting course, and we’ll be back. The greens and bunkers could use improvement, but it is what it is.

The layout has real potential, with streams and ponds making some holes interesting. A bit of care could make it a very good course. The bunkers were full of grass and weeds, and still had rakes in them despite COVID recommendations. My main disappointment was the rubbish on many tee boxes, including empty cans, bottles, and plastic shot glasses.

I enjoyed my round, and the staff and members were all friendly. I think I paid £23, which is great value. The bunkers could have had more sand, but they were still playable. I’d recommend playing a round and deciding for yourself. I’d seen some less favourable reviews, but that wasn’t my experience.