Willow Valley Golf

Amazing! My first experience golfing with a friend and it couldn’t have gone any better. The location is absolutely perfect with lots of well looked after fields and very friendly golfers. Everything is well spaced out and the practice facilities are clean and to the point. Ample car parking and great atmosphere. Highly recommended!

Really like this golf course, played it a couple of times now and lots of challenges to be had.

Lovely place, fantastic views, and great people.

At Willow Valley Golf Club there are 3 golf courses, a driving range, a moderately sized practice putting area and a short game area. The driving range isn't the smartest ive seen but it is functional and is a welcome practice and/or warm up facility. The other practice facilities are great and well maintained. There are also teaching professionals who offer both individual and (very reasonably priced) group tuition. I have had some coaching from Joe at WVGC and I can highly recommend his services. I have played all three courses many times and they offer a good variety of challenge. 1) Fountain Ridge: This is the 9 hole course. It comprises of 6 Par 3 holes and 3 par 4s. All of the holes are relatively short but there is a nice bit of variety for such a small course (2 dogleg holes - one left and one right, some slight elevation changes and a few well placed bunkers). The course is very beginner friendly but is also good fun for golfers of all abilities; I sometimes play the 9 hole course if I'm short on time but still want to have a knock around. Be aware; it is a popular course and being so beginner friendly means you may well encounter players of a poorer standard or very young players etc. However everyone has to start somewhere (and this is a great place to do just that) so as long as you accept that on busy days you might be waiting a little, there should be no issue. 2) Pine Valley: The first of two 18 hole courses. This I would say is a good step up from the fountain ridge course, providing longer holes and more of a "full" golfing experience, but is still beginner friendly. With a slope rating of 97 this course is very forgiving. Most greens are open on approach and not heavily guarded by bunkers etc. The bunkers there are though, are well placed in areas, and at distances that are fitting for the beginner - intermediate golfer. Better golfers will not find a great challenge here but will still find a fun and enjoyable round of golf. I like to play Pine when I just want a relaxing round. I will say that the Pine course is very popular and can start to suffer from heavy use as the season goes on; tee boxes can be particularly worn at times, though it would be tough to keep up with so much traffic. My only real issue with Pine is that there are a lot of casual golfers who either don't know or don't care about the rules and etiquette of golf, meaning on occasion you can be stuck being groups who ignore much faster groups (or individual players) and insist on hacking their way slowly around the course as you stand on the tee tearing your hair out. I appreciate everyone is playing as well as they are able, it's just that there are rules in place specifically to tackle this issue. Failure to repair pitchmarks also seems to be a popular characteristic of some of the less golf-savvy clientele. 3) Willow Valley: the "Championship Course". This full 18 hole course provides a good challenge for any player. With a slope rating of between 129 and 137 (depending on tee box) it is a great test. There is a lot of water on this course, some tight fairways and an interesting variety of holes in terms of shape, elevation, length and hazards. Simply hitting driver on every hole is likely to get you into trouble and thinking your way around the course is advisable. I have been reliably informed the club actually removed a number of bunkers from the course a few years ago as it was felt to be too challenging! During the season this course is well maintained, the greens are typically quick and roll beautifully and I would recommend a round here to anyone who is serious about their game. I will add that, out of season, all three of the courses can get VERY wet and boggy in places - I have lost balls in the centre of the fairways at times due to balls plugging so deeply. However, there is a refund policy clearly displayed and the course is regularly inspected and will be closed if conditions get too bad. All in all Willow Valley Golf is a great club with a wide range of facilities and options for all abilities.