Hampton Court Palace Golf Club

Fantastic course.

Challenging, great backdrop and really enjoyable.
Would recommend for someone who wants to play something other than the stock-standard "parkland" golf course.

Played this course with a pal today - got a reasonable deal on price and, thought the course looked busy, we had no real delays getting round. Courteous staff in the pro shop - always a nice start. Two putting greens before the first tee, both in good condition.

The course itself is lovely - very linksy in places which makes a nice change from all the parkland courses local to me (Surrey). A lot of the holes are quite similar (especially the par 4s - of which there are a lot), but all of them have something to make you think. Was particularly impressed with the 7th - where you've to hit your approach through two tall trees guarding the green - that was a really nice touch.

Rough wasn't too bad at all - though I could imagine it would be brutal in mid summer if not cut back for a couple of months.

All in all, a very enjoyable experience - I'll definitely be back.

We visited on a cold November morning and found a warm welcome and a course in very reasonable condition after a long dry summer. Autumn grass growth had restored fairways and approaches and the greens were as fast as any I’ve played on this year. In the summer the rough can be penal, but was OK on our day. The layout beside the Thames is essentially flattish, but with lots of swales, ridges, dry ditches, small banks and strategic trademark Willie Park bunkering. Some back nine holes, eg. 13th, 15th are linksy. With the Long Water alongside the 14th they can claim the longest lateral water hazard in the country. The par 3s are all well defended by bunkers and at 199 yards off the yellows, the 12th is long enough for most people.
Add the herds of fallow and roe deer, close encounters with Hampton Court palace and you have a golf course of easy walking, decent shot making and some charm. The park commissioners forbid groundworks so the course has a natural look and feel. Fans of Tom Simpson courses may be bored, but fans of Herbert Fowler won’t be. Look out for their 2for1 offers.
Yellow tees 6208 yds, par 71, SSS 70. Red tees 5529 yds, par71, SSS 72.

I have played numerous crown golf courses such as pine ridge, pyrford and traditions, all of which i have been pleased/impressed withy. However, i played Hampton Court Palace today and it is possibly the worst course i have ever played. The fairways were almost bare mud, and the green were very bouncy. The only things i was pleased with are the tee box condition and the driving range. I lost interest very quickly which annoyed me greatly as i had very high expectations for the course. And at £46 per round it was disgraceful, i think the name of HAMPTON COURT has got to crown golf's heads.

Was very impressed by the course. I live in Kingston but have always opted to play elsewhere because i had the impression that the course would be flat and boring, however it was the the complete opposite. Its very much a links style course with bunkers positioned everywhere if your not straight. Some of the holes are extremely picturesque with the deer wandering across the fairway. Will definitely be playing here more regularly, especially as its 5 mins from my flat!

Played here on a Monday afternoon October 07 (£20 using the Daily Telegraph Open Fairways card).
Well conditioned but ultimately fairly bland course that i wouldn't want to play again.I think this used to be known as "Home Park G.C."
The course is in detached ,pleasant & peaceful surroundings .There are lots of deer wandering around which add to the ambience .
I was quite encouraged early on & quite liked the design & lay out of the front 9 holes .However, as the course went on the holes became tedious.
The greens were excellent & the fairways had good grass coverage although on the day we played there was no edge of fairway definition .The primary rough was extremely heavy & deep, which involved a lot of traipsing around if you went in it.As well , there is a slight linksy feel here (greenside grassy knolls etc.).
The course could do with 1 or 2 more par 3's as it only has 3 (2 of which i'm struggling to remember)& only 1 in the first 11 holes.
Yet again ,we were told that the course wasn't particularly busy when i phoned the pro shop one & a half hours before play only to find that this wasn't actually the case.A steady paced front 9 turned into a waiting on every shot back 9, sometimes with 3 groups on a hole to the extent that we walked in near the end due to poor light.This was on an October Monday afternoon, with no societies or members competitions.
I thought this course was overpriced ,even at the 50% off £20 2 FORE 1 rate.
Kevin B.

Played this course as part of a society on the 18/4/07. I live down the road from the course and was impressed by the size of the course hidden behind the thames. Although the course isn't very long the condition was good and still made for a good round. It is fairly easy to play to h/c here if avoiding the rough but still a great round. I love all the deer on the course that were very tame and don't even move when playing a shot right near them throw in a few great views of Hampton court palace and you have a very pleasant round.

Played this course in between Christmas and New Year for our yearly competition. We thought the overall setting the couse was nice but every hole just seemed to look the same sadly and as the round went on we all became a bit bored of the course. It needed a few holes with some water to make it more interesting and a bit more challenging. The greens were quite quick but very bobbly due the amount of deer on the course that walk all over the greens which made it dificult to putt. We just felt that it could have been a bit more interesting for a Parkland Course. Clubhouse was nice and staff were friendly but would not rush back to play this one.

Its an ok course and pretty open. Nice views of Hampton Court and plenty of deer on fairway give it a pleasant feel. Rough is testing but in September was ok to find. Greeens good and consistent and pleasant clubhouse / pro shop. Paid £41.50 midweek, not the best value.

A great course, very challenging if you stray off the beaten path though with punishing rough and a host of well placed bunkers. One point to note though, some of the members don't seem at all pleased to see visitors. The charming gent behind us asked us to play faster even though we weren't holding them up (us a fourball in front of their three), complained to the marshall, and then when we were waiting for the group in front, teed off as one of us was playing...not a nice experience at £62 a round!!!

I am a member at Hampton Court and therefore a regular purchaser of golf balls. The course plays very tough May to July when the rough is severe. The greens this year were poor until mid april, however, have since improved dramatically and the course is in great nick at the moment. The bunkers are what you'd expect on a links style course often deep, (especially on the par 3's) and slightly unkept (You get a free drop out of deer hoof prints). Best time to play is Thursday afternoons, staff, bar and changing facilities are excellent. All welcome just bring your clubs that hit the straightest.

We played 36 holes at Hampton yesterday, and I'm pleased to say we thoroghly enjoyed it.
The course could have been in better condition but the pro was apologetic before we paid as they had been doing essential spring work on the greens. In fairness, it wasn't nearly as bad as we expected.
It's a lovely course.. very challenging, and the rough does punish you. In 36 holes, I didn't lose a single ball and believe me, I founf the rough often!!
The deer are an unusual hazzard and unbelievably timid. The staff and the members were all very friendly, and they did us a deal on the cost so it was excellent value for money. Would love to play this course again, and i expect we'll be back in the summer

played this course in a society match today, after a long drive from the main road to the clubhouse you could see that the course is kept well and the place is clean and prensentable, the day was very windy (although u cant help this) and i didnt play great - i thought the greens were 6/10 and the course was ok although £30 a bit steep if you wasnt playing in a societ and could be a bit boring once you have played here more than 3 times,
the facilities were excellent and the food was really nice and we were made to feel welcome,

Myself and my playing partner Drew Peacock thoroughly enjoyed our days golf and the fabulous greeting from Mr Deane made the trip worth while

What a super course. Do listen to the previous comments though, the rough is rough! This I guess is because it's a stipulation of playing in a royal park that areas not normally required for golf are left natural - for the deer to graze!
I was doing ok until I stuck one in the many copses of trees and another in the dreaded rough.
Most holes have well placed fairway and greenside bunkers and there's a big dry ditch on a few holes on the back 9. Index 1 is very tight with trees around the green.
If you can keep it relatively straight, you will enjoy. I'm off 17 h/c and managed to play right on my h/c despite two blobs, so it is a fair course.
The tees, greens, fairways (and bunkers -sadly)are all in excellent condition.
I'll definitely be going back there.

This is a lovely course set in the grounds of Hampton Court Palace. Has a real links feel to it and the rough can be very punishing. As mentioned below, arriving at the tee to find thirty or so deer sitting on it was a novel experience but they soon let us play through! Played it on a very hot day and I can imagine that in the winter it really would be a lot more difficult. At fifty quid a round I thought it was a tad expensive but I would still recommend it as it really is a superb test of golf in a wonderful location.

The course was in good condition, hard but playable. The members however were rude and unwelcoming.

Played this course in May. Very good condition with fairways well groomed and very few old divot marks. Would agree with comments about the rough. Does not look too difficult but when you're in there take my advice and just aim to get it back on the fairway. Closing five or six holes are the best, but a very scenic course.

Great course very scenic although gave some of the Deer with the big horns a wide berth.
Looks fairly straight forward at first however the first trip into the rough changes that you have to accurate from tee to green.
Would recomend to anyone who hits the ball straight.
Great deal early on Sunday mornings arrive about 7am and play first come first serve and pay after playing 8th hole

Very Scenic and the Deer are fantastic!! However the course should only be played by very accurate golfers, 16 and below handicap as the greens are tight and the rough is inpossible to play. Big drives that slightly fade or draw can end up lost or unplayable - very frustrating. A good test of golf but not for the casual golfer who is better to spend the green fees on more playable courses.
Good luck if you have a crack at this one.

Very scenic setting. Challenging considering the fairly straighforward layout. Greens well kept. Only criticism is the long grass in the rough, but to be fair this is a requirement to have a course in the grounds of Hampton Court and it is idyllic playing in a deer park. Take plenty of balls unless your driving is very straight.