- I have always liked Blackmoor and I
have been lucky enough to play the course six or seven
times in the past but only once with tee1up in March
2002, which was the last time, I played there. The club
is located in Bordon in Hampshire and is a little
difficult to find as its not well sign posted and is set
behind a small housing estate at the end of a road. I
can remember the first time I visited when I was invited
to play in a company golf day by an electronics company
I had dealings with. They had used a specialist golf
organizers and had all sorts of things going on
throughout the day including putting competitions and
best of all Pimms at the ninth hole which left my legs
feeling like jelly after downing a pint. I remember
coming away from the club after the event thinking how
stuffy some of the members were towards us but on
reflection we had taken over nearly every aspect of the
club on that day. Our visit in July was far different
the staff and the members were all very friendly towards
us making it very easy for us to enjoy ourselves and the
course was in superb condition.
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- The first hole from an elevated tee
at the back of the clubhouse gives you a fantastic view
of the kind of course you are about to play. You will
notice that each side of the fairway is covered in
heather and gorse and there is a stream/ditch right
across the fairway with a bunker on the right before
your next shot to an elevated green. The second hole is
a fairly shot par four dog leg left it is easy to get
carried away taking a driver would be foolish when a mid
iron is all you need to give you a easy shot in to the
green. The third a dog leg right needs a long drive
across heather on the right to hit a fairly tight
fairway, your next shot to a green with loads of borrows
and humps is blind and difficult to judge. The fourth
tee after a walk through some trees is the hardest hole
on the course the left hand side off the fairway is
covered in heather and closer to the green off the right
is a pond which shouldn’t come into play. The hole
plays very long especially if you don’t hit the
fairway but two straight shots should find the long
green. The fifth is a quirky hole a sharp dog leg right
across a ditch just need to keep as close as you can to
it with a mid iron then you will have a shot to the
green sat protected by mounds on either side. Hole six a
long par four with a green that is elevated and
protected on both sides it plays every bit of it 185
yards club up if you want to get there. The seventh
allows you to open up your shoulders on the face of it
there isn’t much trouble on this hole until you get
the green then you will find if you haven’t placed you
ball close to the pin you will have a roller coaster of
a put to get your par. The eighth takes you back towards
the club house is the first of the two par fives on the
card, your second shot through a fairly narrow gap is
you only concern although there is out of bounds on your
right and at least one of my team players was caught out
by it. The ninth a shot par three up to a tiered green
and the smell of bacon rolls from the hut this hole also
plays a little longer than the yardage. The tenth hole
is probably my favorite hole on the course not that I
played it well on the day, it’s a risk an reward hole
off the tee take on the trees on the right and be long
enough and you will have a chance to reach the green
which elevated above the fairway, watch out for the
large bunker right across the front on the hill anything
short will find it. The eleventh is a nice par four keep
to the right across the heather on this hole the fairway
is undulating and anything on the left gets swallowed up
by the trees and leaves a blind shot if you have one to
the green. Hole twelve is a short par three to an
elevated green with a large bunkers front and right the
green also has a number of contours. You will reach the
thirteenth after a short walk through the trees it’s
the last of the par fives on this course and is fairly
easy hole until you get to the tiered green.
The fourteenth par four dog leg right from the
tee you landing is met by a very tight fairway with a
pond sat down just in view on the right hand side on the
left the fairway is banked up then it opens up to the
green which is very large but protected by bunkers on
the right hand side. After leaving the green you make
your way up the bank at the back to the fifth teen tee
which is elevated at the same level as the green some
189 yards away, the green is protected by bunkers on the
front and the green slope up towards the top, hitting
the green is very difficult as you will need a long
straight tee shot. The sixteen is a short par four with
a narrow fairway there is gorse to your left all the way
up to the green and trees on your right, the green is
big and easy to hit as long as you don’t find trouble
off the tee. Hole seventeen is a short par four at only
154 yards on paper but plays a lot longer bunkers
protect the front and left side. The eighteenth is a
tough finish you will see from the elevated tee that the
hole goes over a valley then up hill to the green
sitting beside the clubhouse. You will need a good
straight drive to give you a medium iron to the green,
which is fairly large but has lots of burrows and humps
to negotiate.
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- Kevin Burnett-Whalley
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