Swinley Forest Golf Club
4.9
45 reviews
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Price Guide: £££££ | HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
Course Information
Swinley Forest Golf Club, Berkshire is an 18 hole, par 68, 5761 yard, private, heathland golf course designed by Harry Colt.
18 holes | Par 68 | Private | Heathland
View more golf courses in Berkshire
Address: Coronation Road, Ascot, Berkshire, SL5 9LE0 United Kingdom
Tel: 01344 620197
Golf Pro: Stuart Hill
Golf Club Facilities
Midweek Guide: £100.00 per round *
* Any prices shown are guide prices, please confirm with the course prior to booking.
Tee Time Information
Midweek Guide: £100.00 per round *
* Any prices shown are guide prices, please confirm with the course prior to booking.
Review Information
GOLFSHAKE RATING
4.93
AVERAGE RATING 4.7
(based on 45 reviews)
5 star
35
4 star
9
3 star
0
2 star
1
1 star
0
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Reviews for Swinley Forest Golf Club
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The golf courses reviews are the personal opinions of members of Golfshake who completed a review after playing the course. These opinions do not necessarily represent the views of Golfshake.com
Tim G rated 5 out of 5
Reviewed May 28 2014
The place is simply magical !
After a phone call to the Secretary and subsiquent emails enabled us to get on to this notoriously difficult course. The course itself is not notoriously difficult, just the getting on part, we played 36 holes from the yellows in the morning and the whites in the afternnon.
The view from the clubhouse of no.1 and no.18 wets the apetite and lets you know the treat you are in for.
Pine trees, heather and loads of rhododendrons (which were in full bloom) make it easily the prettiest course i have ever played. It is a cliche but everyone is right when they compare it visually to Augusta.
The greens are positioned beautifully and almost every approach has equal appeal as well as danger. The raised greens on many holes make wayward approaches tough up and downs.
Stand out holes are hard to choose as there are so many for different reasons, but the 12th and 13th are probably my pick.
There is a slight downside to the green however, they are very slow. They were longer than expected and to be honest slightly bobbley in places. The Steward informed us of the programme of recovery over the past year and suggested that it would take another year or so for them to return to their past glory.
While on the slight negative, the course is also fairly short by modern standards with only 1 par 5 and 5 par 3s. This is only a personal preferance, but i do prefer more than 1 3 shot hole per round.
These negatives pale into insignificance when you take the experience as a whole. I cannot recommend this place enough, and it is a place rather than just a course.
I love the Surrey/Berkshire heath courses and Swinley is the purest and i would say best that i have ever played.
Luckily we were invited back, so i very much look forward to enjoying it all over again.
After a phone call to the Secretary and subsiquent emails enabled us to get on to this notoriously difficult course. The course itself is not notoriously difficult, just the getting on part, we played 36 holes from the yellows in the morning and the whites in the afternnon.
The view from the clubhouse of no.1 and no.18 wets the apetite and lets you know the treat you are in for.
Pine trees, heather and loads of rhododendrons (which were in full bloom) make it easily the prettiest course i have ever played. It is a cliche but everyone is right when they compare it visually to Augusta.
The greens are positioned beautifully and almost every approach has equal appeal as well as danger. The raised greens on many holes make wayward approaches tough up and downs.
Stand out holes are hard to choose as there are so many for different reasons, but the 12th and 13th are probably my pick.
There is a slight downside to the green however, they are very slow. They were longer than expected and to be honest slightly bobbley in places. The Steward informed us of the programme of recovery over the past year and suggested that it would take another year or so for them to return to their past glory.
While on the slight negative, the course is also fairly short by modern standards with only 1 par 5 and 5 par 3s. This is only a personal preferance, but i do prefer more than 1 3 shot hole per round.
These negatives pale into insignificance when you take the experience as a whole. I cannot recommend this place enough, and it is a place rather than just a course.
I love the Surrey/Berkshire heath courses and Swinley is the purest and i would say best that i have ever played.
Luckily we were invited back, so i very much look forward to enjoying it all over again.
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Kevin L rated 5 out of 5
Reviewed Aug 23 2014
Greens in great shape, bunkers in great shape, fairways tidy and all in all a lovely mornings golf was spent on a near empty course.
(Round played: Aug 2014 - Score: 88 Handicap: 15.1)
(Round played: Aug 2014 - Score: 88 Handicap: 15.1)
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Sean H rated 5 out of 5
Reviewed Jul 2 2014
A fantastic place to play golf. Every hole is a different challenge. Well worth the green fee.
(Round played: Jul 2014 - Score: 96 Handicap: 20)
(Round played: Jul 2014 - Score: 96 Handicap: 20)
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James T rated 5 out of 5
Reviewed Jan 20 2014
Put simply - what a course! Myself and my playing partner were lucky enough to play Swinley Forest as part of the Amateur Matchplay competition. Regardless of our performance and the fact that we lost it on the 18th, we had a truly brilliant day at a fantastic golf club. This is definitely a thinking man's golf course. Each hole can be approached in a number of ways and there are a few risk and reward decisions to make throughout the round. Considering the awful winter weather we've had, the course was in a very good condition although I imagine it will be on an entirely different level come summer. Considering the fact that Swinley Forest is known for its exclusivity, the staff there were extremely welcoming and we never felt out of place. The only criticism I have of Swinley Forest is that I probably won't get to play it again. We were offered courtesy of the course which made this feasible, but in my opinion no course is worth a £160 green fee. Still, great course, great staff and a great day had.
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Harry W rated 5 out of 5
Reviewed Oct 29 2012
On arrival i got a great buzz about the place before we had even pulled up to the big delighful looking electric gate. Then when driving through the gates the sights just hit you. I knew i had arrived. This was golf. The closet thing to Augsta National. Being greated by friendly staff after walking in to the club house. The practice facilites are in wonderful conditon however lacking. As theres only a chipping area, Iron range and putting and chipping green. When finally on the course after savouring the once in a life time postion i was in, my day just got better. The fairways emcaulate for winter time, gaing more roll and run than i do at some clubs in the summer. The green so reactive and icrediblely fast. I would love to go back in the spring but some how i just dont see that happening as its impossible to get in the club and was a pure once in a life time experiance. Should you be offered the chance to play here, jump at it.
(Round played: Oct 2012 - Score: 86 Handicap: 8.8)
(Round played: Oct 2012 - Score: 86 Handicap: 8.8)
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Charles L rated 5 out of 5
Reviewed Jul 1 2012
What a Course! if you get the chance to play go ahead and play.
(Round played: May 2012 - Score: 86 Handicap: 0)
(Round played: May 2012 - Score: 86 Handicap: 0)
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Kevin H rated 5 out of 5
Reviewed Jul 27 2020
Majestic heathland experience
As you drive through a relatively innocuous side road, it's hard to believe you're about to play a course which features in both UK and World top 100s, but as the electronic gates open, you are immediately hit with a ?wow? moment - to the left you are met with an amazing vista of the 1st and 18th hole set amongst towering pines, and to the right one of the prettiest club houses you could imagine - what an introduction to one of the best golf courses in the country!After a tasty breakfast bap on the patio and a few warm up putts you're teeing off on a track which its architect, Harry Colt described as his ?least bad course?. The heathland course, first opened in 1909, isn't long by modern standards (we played the white tee option at 5900 yards) but it is also only a par 69. Additionally, due to elevation changes the reality is that a number of the holes play a lot longer, and will provide the opportunity to use every club in your bag, with the green complexes providing additional teeth with subtle slopes and borrows.
My highlight on the front was the stretch from 3-5, with picture postcard holes covering a short par 4 framed by firs and heather, a mid-length par 3 into an elevated green, and a fun, reachable par 5 which sweeps down through bunkers towards a severe back-to-front sloping green.
The highlights on the back nine would be the 12th, a tough par 4 with a green full of humps and hollows, the 13th which is a stunning short par 3 with danger lurking everywhere, and the 18th, which sweeps back up towards the clubhouse.
Overall, the quality of the design meant that every hole was a joy to play and offered a consistent challenge (especially the 5 exceptional par 3s), and the condition of the course and greens were impeccable (although a little slower than they looked). It is also highly likely that it will feel like you've got the course to yourself, so pace of play should not be a concern as you wander your way through this expansive golfing paradise.
As is typical with a Colt design, it is also accessible to players of all standards - the more adept golfer will enjoy the challenge of taking on the bunkers and doglegs, whilst the average golfer will still enjoy the challenge of plotting their way round and trying to keep out the ball consuming heather and deep fairway and greenside bunkers. All things considered, I can only recommend that people take the chance to cross Swinley Forest off their golfing bucket list as soon as possible. Whilst it obviously comes with a relatively steep greenfee, it really is a course which delights at every turn, and one you wish you could play time and again, and is further complemented by the charming Clubhouse offering high quality food and views to die for.
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Gary B rated 5 out of 5
Reviewed Sep 26 2016
As always, a great course and a great lunch
(Round played: Sep 2016 - Score: 74 Handicap: 13.9)
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Jonathan D rated 5 out of 5
Reviewed Sep 4 2015
great place to play, very traditional, beautifully underplayed course. Millionaires golf.
(Round played: Sep 2015 - Score: 97 Handicap: 20.7)
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Andy K rated 4 out of 5
Reviewed Jan 29 2014
what a great course to play - a bucket list for any serious golfer
(Round played: Aug 2013 - Score: 89 Handicap: 18.7)
(Round played: Aug 2013 - Score: 89 Handicap: 18.7)
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Dean S rated 5 out of 5
Reviewed Apr 25 2013
Incredible views, amazing course but greens just done so below normal standard. Truly lives up to its reputation.
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Paul M rated 5 out of 5
Reviewed Apr 5 2012
a golf club that time forgot, this is the place to play golf!!!
(Round played: Mar 2012 - Score: 85 Handicap: 0)
(Round played: Mar 2012 - Score: 85 Handicap: 0)
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Nigel B rated 4 out of 5
Reviewed Apr 27 2010
fantastic gem of a course
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David G rated 5 out of 5
Reviewed Jul 11 2008
Beautiful course. Undulating fairways and greens all kept imaculately. Avoid the Heather on either side of the fairway which is throughout the course - this makes it much more difficult. The course plays long.
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A Golfer rated 5 out of 5
Reviewed Feb 14 2023
The surroundings were incredibly peaceful and calming, making the entire experience incredibly enjoyable. The course itself was interesting and challenging, but also in great condition which added to the value. The layout was fantastic and the condition of the course was immaculate.
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The golf courses reviews are the personal opinions of members of Golfshake who completed a review after playing the course. These opinions do not necessarily represent the views of Golfshake.com
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