Bromsgrove Golf Centre Review

Highly Recommended and one of the most popularly reviewed venues on Golfshake, Bromsgrove Golf Centre is regarded as being one of the finest golfing facilities in Worcestershire.

Featuring an 18-hole golf course that was designed by acclaimed architects Hawtree & Son, this is an innovative, thrilling and rewarding layout for golfers of all abilities. 

Golfshake Ambassador Mel Davies recently grasped the opportunity to experience this fabulous place for himself.

It's a location packed with history, but opened in 1996, the current 18-hole layout consists of a unique series of well-defined adventurous holes, some with panoramic views, while a bustling driving range, the Bromsgrove Golf Academy, and short game practice area all add prestige to the destination.

Introduction

Bromsgrove's current Golfshake ranking is 4.31 from over 300 reviews which goes to show how well it stands up. 

Upon arriving I was immediately impressed as you could see there was plenty on offer and also how well-kept things already looked. 

We went into the clubhouse and checked into reception where we were greeted by a very friendly lady who told us what was what and where things were. We then headed to one of the best stocked shops I’ve seen. Lots of different brands for clubs, balls, shoes, clothing, etc, all make this a shop worth taking a look at. Then we headed out to look at the driving range with Trackman and numerous bays. The range has different targets and yardages set out so it was once more an enjoyable experience.

As we headed towards the course we came across one of the biggest putting greens I’ve seen with every putt imaginable. A great way to ready yourself for what lies ahead.

By the first tee is a great starter's hut with all the information needed before you start out.

The Golf Course

The first hole is a great opener with out of bounds left, fairway bunkers left and right. The hole doglegs to the left and the green sits above you with another bunker short left, the green itself like all the greens here is quite big with plenty of undulations. Par or better here is a great start.

Next up is a longer par 4 once more sweeping to the left with bunkers down the right and also short and right of the green. One thing I found early on is you need to be hitting the fairways if you want to score well otherwise trees and bunkers are ready to gobble up anything off-line.

The first of two par 3s is next up and the common theme already is to avoid the greenside bunkers as they really are like all the fairway bunkers well positioned. The other par 3 on the front is very similar in length but has a shallower green making club selection important as bunkers lie in wait again. 

Holes 4, 6 and 9 are all short par 4s that can be birdie holes with good tee shots but otherwise you can soon run up a high number with all the danger of fairway and greenside bunkers. I must say the bunkers are all of the highest standard and the majority of fairway ones can be quite penal. The other holes on the front, 5 and 8, are longer par 4s and the aim here is to find the fairway avoiding the bunkers and get on or around the green and hope to come off with a par or bogey at worse as these are two tough holes.

The back 9 commences with a par 4 similar in design to the first but quite a bit longer. Again two well struck and well positioned shots are needed to find a tricky green (as are they all to be honest) and walk away with a par. 

11 is the first of three par 3s on the back and like the final par 3, the 17th, a well struck mid iron to hybrid is needed to find a decent sized green. All the par 3s are well designed with trouble in the form of bunkers and little run offs for anything slightly off-line. 12 and 15, like 10, are longer par 4s. Both sweep across to the right so getting the ball off the tee in the right place is a must otherwise the chance to hit the green can be taken away. Fairway bunkers on 12 and trees at driving distance on 15 make the tee shot all the more important. 

13 and 14 are shorter par 4s where an aggressive play off the tee can easily set up a birdie chance. Fairway bunkers again are well placed off the tee and the greens are also well shielded by bunkers and run offs. Two really great par 4s in my eyes.

The par 3 16th is probably the signature hole here. Water down the length of the hole to the left, a bunker short right and some little hollows also to the right make it a really great looking hole. A couple of nice fountains also add the the spectacle here. Just a mid-iron but yet again a really well designed and enjoyable hole to play.

The round finishes with the only par 5 on the course. Not the longest at around 450 yards off the yellows so reaching in two is easily achievable. Yet again though big trouble is left and yet another fairway bunker is right. Avoid all that and the chance of a birdie or even better eagle may lie ahead. Another great hole that’s well designed and presented that concludes a thoroughly enjoyable game of golf. 

Verdict

Once the clubs were away, we headed into the clubhouse and sampled a nice soft drink and some food. There were plenty of options for both food and drink, all seemed relatively well priced. We then sat outside enjoying the sun on the patio/sun terrace area suitably named "the bunker". The food was top quality and you could see how well the club was doing from the amount of people eating and drinking that hadn’t even played golf. Inside where it was very busy was a lovely room, well-presented and lit offering a great venue to have a meal out or post round.

Going back to the course it has a really nice flow to it with hardly any big walks between holes. Pace of play should be good round there and the course itself looked like it would be playable all year round. The actual design shows that a course doesn’t have to be long to be good and challenging yet at the same time playable for all levels of golfer. The bunkers are some of the best I’ve ever seen which is great given that quite a few courses seem to struggle with their bunkers. Very well-presented green complexes with well-paced surfaces make this a venue that all golfers can enjoy.

With all the facilities on offer, Bromsgrove is a great venue for golf days and societies. 

Overall Rating - 9

Course (Conditions) - 8

Course (Hole Variety/Layout) - 9

Course (Green Condition) - 9

Course (Challenge/Difficulty) - 9

Club Facilities & Clubhouse - 10

Practice Facilities - 10

Friendliness/Hospitality - 10

Value For Money - 10

Pace of Play - 9