Founded in 1913, Hazel Grove Golf Club is a well-regarded Cheshire parkland course, 4 miles south east of Stockport. It’s another club that claims to be a ‘hidden gem’, though in fairness the first part is easy to attest to, being tucked away down a track, with only an innocuous sign a clue to its presence from the busy A6.
The village of Hazel Grove was called ‘Bullock Smithy’, we learn, until a rebrand in 1835 following the term becoming used as slang for a simpleton. These days, it’s home to Adidas’ UK HQ, Stepping Hill hospital, but sadly no longer to the Bamboo nightclub, that provided so much of the hospital’s custom – be it minor injury or childbirth – for close to six centuries.
It’s a course that’s been on our wish list for years, and we’re finally lured in by winter rates, on a dry day just into the new season. We’re promised a ‘challenging round of golf in a beautiful, relaxing setting’ and ‘excellent greens and fairways’… what a tantalising prospect!
The practice green soon gives a flavour of the quality that’s in store, with their ‘USGA’ specification seemingly meaning a carefully layered design that drain well. Pre-round putting also carries the additional feature, of the quirky backdrop of a trio of cottages.
The course is an Alister MacKenzie design, the 7th of his prolific career that culminated in his most famous design, Augusta, some 20 years later. The Yorkshireman has been honoured and immortalised by the club, with a 6-foot chainsaw carving by renowned local artist Tim Burgess (no, not that one), celebrating the club’s centenary in 2013, greeting visitors on arrival.
Less welcome, was being met with the news of the dreaded enforced fairway mats… though perhaps only confirming it’s elite course status.
Teeing off our round, and we find a narrow, tree-lined course… fairly flat, but with hidden dips that – as we soon discover to our peril – house pesky brooks, or even a large greenside pond. Those visiting for the first time, without a member, would be wise to pay close attention to the diagrams on tee boxes or scorecard, if they hope to score well.
With the option of playing from the first cut instead of mats, it was perhaps then always inevitable, to be a rare day where we seem to find the centre of every fairway!
Naturally, on a gloomy day in late autumn, we’re not expecting to see the course at its best, and a 50% reduction in green fees seems a fair reflection. But there’s clearly a concerted effort being made to stay on top of the thousands of fallen leaves that must be falling each day, and the placement of the winter tees at least mean the course plays even shorter than its standard distance of almost 6,000 yards off the yellows.
The greens really are superb though, and a pleasure to put on… there is something a little odd about their hue of green, which doesn’t seem to be of the same pallet as the rest of the landscape. Now, we’re not ones to cast aspersions, but can’t help wonder whether the pale green cups might be a clue to them having a little help… ‘Just for Greens’, or ‘Greencian 2000’ perhaps?!
It’s a fairly flat walk, less taxing than the plethora of hilly courses a dozen miles to the east, and makes for a consistently pleasant, rather than breath-taking experience, and will presumably suit many of more advanced years all the better. Whilst each hole has its merit, it’s perhaps the 15th and 17th that – for us at least – captivate the most. Both are short par 4s, the first requiring careful navigation of the abundant greenside water to the left, and the second traversing not one but two significant ditches!
Key Info
Holes: 18
Par: White / Yellow / Red: 71
Yards: White: 6,234. Yellow: 5,933. Red: 5,239
Slope: White: 127. Yellow: 126. Red: 125
Visitor Green Fees: £50 in summer / £25 in winter
Website: https://www.hazelgrovegolfclub.co.uk/
Location
Prices correct at time of writing (December 2024).
Find out where this course ranks in the list of toughest courses in Cheshire here, and see our overview of Golfing in Cheshire here.
Golf Cheshire 