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Westward Ho! Golf Club, Devon
by Kevin McGimpsey
for www.Golfer-Today.co.uk
Westward Ho! Golf Course (The Royal North Devon Golf Club) will celebrate
its 150th anniversary in 2014; it is also the oldest Golf Club in England still
to be playing on its original course.
At first glance of Westward Ho! Golf Course, maybe not much  has changed over
the years in this sleepy part of Devon near Bideford. By that I mean it has retained
many of its original features and charm; some bunkers are lined with ancient
looking wooden slats; there are white painted stones to warn the player that
they have been placed near to a bunker or  other hazard; the mammoth Cape Bunker
on the 4th that is both deep and wide and is constructed from railway sleepers
and sand. Roaming horses and the course’s natural green-keepers, sheep,
kept off the greens by discreet ropes, keep the rough at a most pleasant height.
 The natural habitat adds to the course with the impressive ‘Himalayas’,
a range of sand dunes that protect the low lying links from a surfers’ paradise.
Several tee shots are played over vast clumps of spiny Great Sea Rushes, many
of which are intertwined with bunches of wild roses. Although the carry from
the Yellow Tees is generally only 150 yards, these often vast swathes of thick
vegetation can be daunting for the nervous driver who is prone to lift his head
in anticipation.
 There are however generous landing areas on most fairways, the magnificent
greens are large and many have exciting slopes and hollows. My signature hole
would be the 6th (The Alp), 400 yards, a good drive and a fairway wood second
uphill to a small green with the dunes as a backdrop. And my favourite hole is
the 4th (Cape), 344 yards with a drive over the Cape Bunker.
When you visit Westward Ho! Do try and make time to view the Club’s wonderful
golf memorabilia collection that includes a mashie iron owned and used by 5 times
Open Champion, J.H. Taylor, when he won his first Championship at Sandwich in
1894.
Royal North Devon Golf Club - MAP www.royalnorthdevongolfclub.co.uk
Royal North Devon Golf Club, Golf Links Road, Westward Ho! Bideford, Devon
EX39 1HD
Sandra Symons Assistant Secretary - Society/Reservation enquiries here - Tel:
01237 473817
Iain Parker Head Professional - Tel: 01237 477598
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