Tadmarton Heath Golf Club

Tadmarton Heath Golf Club, Banbury, South East, England, OX15 5HL

01608737278 | E-mail golf course | Golf course website

9 reviews of Tadmarton Heath Golf Club

This is the second review I have submitted and this time I am going to be a little more sympathetic. Still not a welcoming place - very disappointing. Catering(and Staff)are still 5 star - excellent. Bearing in mind we have had the wettest winter since Peter Allis last single putted, the course condition underfoot was superb - we saw one puddle and came off with clean shoes. The green staff have worked hard pruning all the gorse (trees) so they now look like gorse bushes again, and re-working of several bunkers adds to the visual enjoyment. However, the golf test it provides, ie The Course, is still an enigma. Having accepted that this is not going to be a significant test of your golfing skills, I enjoyed it much more this time, so I am less harsh with an over critical review. I noticed that it would cost £45pp to enter one of their Opens, evidence perhaps of the isolationism they seem to foster. If we have a wet Summer it will be high on my list to re-visit.

Posted by Geoff on 20/02/2014
3
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Overall Rating 3
  • Overall Ratings
  • Green conditions 3
  • Clubhouse 3
  • Course challenge 3
  • Staff service 4
  • Value for money 3
  • Green conditions 3
  • Clubhouse 3
  • Course challenge 3
  • Staff service 4
  • Value for money 3

This course offers some of the most interesting holes I've played, having recently played the Brabazon it was nice to come off after 18 holes feeling you still had at least another 9 holes left in you. As short as this course is the back nine leaves you questionning your ability off the tee, on the 15th there's no semi rough just fairway and gorse!!! There's a good variety of hole and I used most of my clubs during the 18, the 7th is by far the best hole on the course but being tree lined the wind is an enigma so I was told by the club Pro to hit punchy shot, that never worked either. The food is fantastic, everything is freely cooked and I loved the feel of the clubhouse, particulalrly as the staff were welcoming. I'd recommend this course to anybody and if you're nice and straight off the tee you may have a chance!!

Posted by Craig Barrett on 22/10/2009
4
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Overall Rating 4
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  • Clubhouse 4
  • Course challenge 4
  • Value for money 4
  • Clubhouse 4
  • Course challenge 4
  • Value for money 4

This course offers some of the most interesting holes I've played, having recently played the Brabazon it was nice to come off after 18 holes feeling you still had at least another 9 holes left in you. As short as this course is the back nine leaves you questionning your ability off the tee, on the 15th there's no semi rough just fairway and gorse!!! There's a good variety of hole and I used most of my clubs during the 18, the 7th is by far the best hole on the course but being tree lined the wind is an enigma so I was told by the club Pro to hit punchy shot, that never worked either. The food is fantastic, everything is freely cooked and I loved the feel of the clubhouse, particulalrly as the staff were welcoming. I'd recommend this course to anybody and if you're nice and straight off the tee you may have a chance!!

Posted by Craig Barrett on 22/10/2009
4
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Overall Rating 4
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  • Clubhouse 4
  • Course challenge 4
  • Value for money 4
  • Clubhouse 4
  • Course challenge 4
  • Value for money 4

You will either love it or hate it! First of all it is not the easiest course to get on - they do not make it easy for you, and then you have to find it with no signs at all. It makes you think that they do not really welcome visitors, and it shows when you eventually get there. Warm welcome there isn't. The course is an enigma - not really heathland as they claim, but plenty of gorse TREES. Very untesting until you get to the final six holes where you have to be a little more circumspect with the driver. Lovely par three over a trout stream, but when you finish it leaves you wondering "did I really enjoy that?" - probably not, especially at the price they charge for the green fee. The Farmhouse, sorry Clubhouse, is quiant, but here you will find the most pleasant and helpfull catering staff who produce the freshest and best value food I have found anywhere. The strawberry roulade was 5 star. Pity the golfing side do not follow their excellent lead.

Posted by Geoff Skipper on 16/07/2009
3
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Overall Rating 3
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  • Clubhouse 3
  • Course challenge 3
  • Value for money 2
  • Clubhouse 3
  • Course challenge 3
  • Value for money 2

There's something about this place that's rather odd. It's the golfing equivalent of David Icke (ostensibly rational human being who subsequently lost it and claimed the Royal Family were actually shape-shifting reptilian humanoids from outer space) – or that long-lost relative that no-one's sure quite how or even if they're actually related to the family... To start with, it's located absolutely in the middle of nowhere. The clubhouse buildings also look like a converted farmhouse and belie the fact that this has been a golf club for donkey's years. So far, so intriguing. But then the welcome wasn't exactly the warmest we’ve ever received. In fact, it felt a bit like John Sweeney turning up at a Scientology convention. And then there's the course. About two thirds of it is good but unremarkable parkland fare (to describe it as heathland is stretching it a bit). Most of the rest is absolute bonkers. But that's precisely what makes this place interesting. Top of the list for me is the 10th – a tiny but absolute genius par 3 of 117 yards where all you can see is a sea of gorse up to head height and then a red flag waving above it. If ever there was a time to trust the yardage, this is it… The 15th is another cracker: a short par 4 of 288 yards where the drive has to carry gorse and land in a thin strip of fairway where anything left or right is dead in even more gorse. It may be short but it's SI 8. The 16th is a longer but not quite as good version of the 10th, while the 17th is a cracking par 4 where a tight drive between yet more gorse still leaves a demanding approach. All in all – don't say you haven’t been warned about this enigma… 6.75/10 'Young P'

Posted by 'Young P' on 04/09/2007
3
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Overall Rating 3
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  • Clubhouse 3
  • Course challenge 3
  • Value for money 3
  • Clubhouse 3
  • Course challenge 3
  • Value for money 3

Classy heathland course in a peaceful location. The main feature here is gorse .Several holes are completely gorselined & as well as having to tee off over the top of gorse this makes for a different & interesting challenge .For example,at the 110 yard 10th all you can see is the top half of the flag as gorse runs from tee to green. It wasn't as tight or as short as i was expecting.There's plenty of room off a lot of the tees & about half a dozen par 4's are good drives & medium/long irons in. The opening 2 holes are comparitively weak & don't bear resemblance to the rest of the holes which are of good variety.Putting surfaces on the visit weren't quite up to the overall standard that you'd expect from a course of this quality. If you took a 90 degree panoramic photo from the 13th tee it would look fantastic in a magazine feature.What makes this course worth playing are holes like the short par 4 15th which is completely gorse enclosed & has a 50 yards gorse carry to a hidden fairway.This leaves a short iron in to a small green target with a bunker in front which results in a lot of head scratching. I think the layout would be better if the course started from the 8th hole & finished at the great short par 3 7th next to the clubhouse . A good society venue & anyone who plays here won't come away disappointed. Kevin B.

Posted by Kevin B. on 15/09/2006
3
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Overall Rating 3
  • Overall Ratings
  • Course challenge 4
  • Value for money 4
  • Course challenge 4
  • Value for money 4

For those who enjoy the challenge of playing in adverse conditions, one of the nicest things about 'Taddy' is that it is open virtually the whole time when other courses would be shut. Also on my last visit (Feb 2002), a major refurshishment of the Changing rooms was in progress so I will look forward to some hot water when visiting next year. The catering both before and after play is always excellent and good value.

Posted by Richard Cooke on 31/07/2002

First played a society day here four years ago, and fell in love with the course, and can't wait to return. About 120 years old fairways and greens always excellent. Fairly wide open first fairway lulls you into false sense of security..the 6th green has a welcoming ...almost "roadhole" bunker and 7th(par 3) is one of the prettiest holes you could wish to see..The changing facilities are not the best in the world, but the ambience of the old club house, quality of the scoff, and friendliness of the members,pails the negative to insignificance. To me, a not to be missed course

Posted by dave aldred on 25/05/2001

A really good short course. The front nine are all relatively accesable, however requiring a good selection of shot making. The real shock comes at the turn when the heather arrives. I lost my ball in rough about 3 feet high on the 12th. If you can survive holes 11-16 then you should be set up for a good round. Food is excellent, however the changing rooms are a disgrace and there is rarely enough hot water for a full society to shower

Posted by andy green on 04/09/2000

Course information

Number of holes 18
Year opened -
Designer -
Style heathland

Tee information

TeesYardsParSSS
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Men's591769
Ladies'

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Weekend round£50
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