Review by Kevin McGimpsey
Inevitably Wallasey Golf Club, founded in 1891, is often compared and contrasted with its prestigious ‘neighbour’, Royal Liverpool.
Ok the houses surrounding Wallasey aren’t in the same class as those at Hoylake, but I find Wallasey with its hills and dunes, a much more interesting place to play golf.
From the 1st tee at Wallasey, on this Par 72 measuring 6572 
yards from the back tee, the panorama is mouth watering. With kempt, tight fairways hemmed in by thick rough often reinforced with large clumps of wild rose and the odd gorse bush; the senses are further stimulated by stunning views of the Irish Sea and music supplied by an abundance of skylarks.
The par 4, 2nd hole, named ‘Stapleford’ after the Wallasey member who ‘invented’ this popular format of scoring, is a stiff challenge especially into the wind…a gentle dogleg to the right and at 441 yards, it played as a par 5. Two facts emerged…all, if not, the vast majority of holes with dog legs were all dog legs to the right and of the four par 5 holes, three of them were Stroke Index 1,2 and 3!
The 3rd (Valley 360 yards) reminded me of the 2nd at Portstewart G.C. In Northern Ireland. The landing area from a good tee shot was quite small and with either side of the fairway bounded by sand dunes it all makes for a very intimidating shot.
One of my favorite holes, played of course in calm conditions, is the 10th hole with its sharp dogleg right. A 4 iron off the tee is the sensible shot leaving a steep uphill pitch of 100 yards to a small green where only the top of the flag can be seen for a guideline. With deep grassy ravines over the back, it must be a nightmare to try and keep the ball on the green in windy conditions!
The signature hole must be is the 4th (Seaway), a beautiful par 5 measuring 512 yards. Looking down on the hole from the high tee, with the Irish Sea on the right it resembles a Graeme Baxter painting with its fairway so well defined by mowed lines. The 4th fairway is separated from the 17th fairway by a 180 yard long 7 foot high grass dyke and the good drive is aimed at the Leasowe lighthouse far in the distance’; but that grassy ridge rather like a Siren, draws any badly hit balls into it.
A nice feature on the scorecard is a ‘Pace of Play’ with 15 minutes being allocated to each hole to ensure a 4-hour round.
The Club House is well appointed and the catering is very good. In the summer visitors can wear tailored shorts but white socks are mandatory, as the author found out wearing his “Max Faulkner” pink knee length socks!
For further details visit : www.wallaseygolfclub.com
Wallasey Golf Club, Bayswater Road, Wallasey, Wirral, CH45 8LA – MAP – Phone: 0151 691 1024