Are things about to change dramatically at Cowdray Park and the outstanding home of polo in Sussex become better known as an exceptional golf venue instead?
It’s entirely possible, as over £1m has recently been spent improving the 18-hole golf course and creating a brand new five-hole par 3 course.
Around for over 100 years, there is nothing unusual about golf being played on this glorious corner of the county just up the road from Petworth and about a dozen miles north of Chichester. What has changed, however, is the course itself.
In need of a bit of a makeover, it has been dramatically improved by a series of alterations that have seen: the bunkers reconstructed, reshaped and integrated into the landscape; the restoration of the former double green shared by the 7th and 14th; the introduction of more native grasses; the removal of non-British trees and their replacement with native species and the installation of pathways made from recycled rubber.
Together with the spectacular views over the Sussex Downs, the improvements are dramatic and considerably enhance the pleasure playing this wonderful old course. The members certainly approve and were supportive throughout.
Part of what makes it so special are the undulations and elevation changes that are such a distinctive feature. Together they ensure players rarely have a completely flat lie and are always having to factor in an allowance for the changes in height. The elevated tees also enhance the visual appeal by affording golfers exceptional views over the adjacent 16,000-acre estate and beyond.
Although it’s only been open a short while, the five-hole Academy Course has already witnessed a remarkable clutch of five holes-in-one. Built, not so much to create opportunities for aces so much as to give beginners the opportunity to take up golf, the Academy Course is very much the younger brother to the main course and mirrors many of its features.
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Not content with what they have achieved so far, the management team at Cowdray Park have more plans to further improve the golfing experience. Watch out polo, you have been warned.
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