Dating back to the early 14th century, there’s a real sense of history in the air as we wind our way up the tree hemmed driveway through the Mottram estate. The current hall is a shade over three centuries old, and provides a magnificent backdrop to our arrival. Just outside Prestbury, the Cheshire chocolate box village that many Premier League stars call home, Mottram Hall has served as the home of wealthy landowners for most of its existence.
However, in 1940 it was converted into a hotel, and more recently was bought by luxury spa brand Champneys in 2018, who relaunched it 2 years later following a £15m revamp. 10% of that investment was seemingly allocated to a refurbishment of the golf course, which has only helped further cement Mottram’s reputation as one of the finest courses in the region.
What Champneys have also brought, along with the enrobed WAGs and slebs, includes a partnership with luxury car retailer Stratstone, adding further glamour and prestige to first impressions, with golf karts wrapped in Ferrari, Porsche and Aston Martin livery, and a quarter of a million pound Ferrari 296 among the colourful formal gardens, casually greeting visitors on arrival to this 270 acre estate.
The positive experience continues through the pre-round warm-up, with plentiful practice facilities, clear guidance on the pin positions for the day, and a starters hut… always a strong indicator of a special course. It‘s surprisingly quiet for a sunny August afternoon, and the front 9 pass by pleasantly but unremarkably, through the flat lush parkland, wonderfully maintained, with the odd rather firm bunker the only slight niggle.
Onto the back 9, rumoured to be the toughest in the North West, and a par 38 (of 75) off the red tees! Sure enough, any lingering hopes of a vintage score are soon extinguished, but it’s a trade-off for a spectacular series of holes we’re more than happy to make. It’s like we’ve been teleported to an entirely different course, with hills (and resulting breeze) to contend with, snaking through woodland to the crest, with amazing far-reaching views.
The closing 5 holes are as fantastic a sequence as any we’ve played; beautifully designed into the natural and rustic landscape, undulating through the trees, around the marshland and over brook via a pretty stone bridge. En-route, the par 3 16th, a full 230 yards off the whites, offers up a fun downhill challenge, that for some of us requires a driver!
As we stride down the 18th, in the shadows of the majestic hall, for the final of the par 5s, that bookend both front and back 9, we can see why Mottram Hall was chosen to host the PGA European Seniors a decade ago, and having hosted early DP World Tour rounds in 2022, we look forward to hopefully seeing the pros back there again soon, to show us mortals how to conquer this tremendous course!
Key Info
Holes: 18
Par: White / Yellow: 72. Red: 75
Yards: 7,006
Slope: White: 131. Yellow: 136. Red: 139
Visitor Green Fees: 32-36 on GolfNow
Website: http://www.champneys.com/hotels/mottram-hall/golf/
Location
Prices correct at time of writing (August 2023).
Find out where this course ranks in the list of toughest courses in Cheshire here, and see our overview of Golfing in Cheshire here.
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