Celebrating National Golf Month
To celebrate National Golf Month we share with some of the best courses you can play when you stay at the Trefeddian
The first golf course on the list has to be Aberdovey. It is just on our doorstep and the Trefeddian sits up high with amazing views over the 18-hole championship links course, down towards the sand dunes and the sparkling sea of Cardigan Bay. Like many links courses created around the turn of the twentieth century, Aberdovey is very much an out and back loop, and is affected distinctly by the elements.
The wind coming off the bay can range from a gentle breeze to a howling gale, transforming the character of the course in turn. New tees have lengthened the existing James Braid layout to attract more tournament golf to the links; having previously hosted a number of national amateur events, Aberdovey is a well-established championship venue.
Nefyn golf course is set on the spectacular northern coastline of the Llyn Peninsula. The course consists of an 18 hole championship course which not only offers golfers a rich variety of views and scenery, but also a constantly changing set of challenges which require the golfers full attention.
In addition, you can also choose to play the world famous ‘Point’ which offers 9 holes of breathtaking golf along the thin stretch of land that encroaches out into the Irish Sea. The ‘Point’ can only be played as an extra 9 holes when paired with the 18 hole Championship Course as part of a 27 hole package.
This course claims to be one of the finest settings for golf in the world and nothing short of beautiful and romantic. The Harlech links of today follows much the same routing and design as when it was first laid out in 1894. Harlech has always been noted for its large greens, punishing rough, and a spectacular homecoming through some of the most imposing dunescape in Britain, with some drives (and some carries) to match. It is a course with numerous, very challenging ‘half-par’ holes that can be either a three or a four, or a four or a five (or worse) depending on the weather.
Unlike many links courses, Harlech is not an ‘out and back’ design but rather an intricate routing that constantly exposes the golfer to different wind directions, requiring mastery of every club in the bag. The course also offers from every hole, some fabulous views both of Harlech castle and of the Snowdonia mountain range, although the growth down the years of the enveloping sand dunes means that you will have to visit the back tee at the 16th actually to see the sea!
The course is situated in Morfa Bychan, three miles away from the harbour town of Porthmadog and was established in 1905 by James Braid, the genius course designer of his day. It is a traditional links course, friendly, challenging and not to be missed. The front nine is predominantly heathland and the back nine links, offer stunning views of the Cardigan Bay coastline and Snowdonia mountain range.
