Welcome to UK-GolfGuide's page which contains feedback from site users who have played at Hinksey Heights Golf Course.

Whilst UK-GolfGuide.com attempts to turf out the more unhelpful or just plain daft contributions, some may slip through. If you have played the course or hold a different opinion to those of the contributors, feel free to use the Add your Comments icon to provide a broader spread of views. If you have a gripe with the club then take it up with them directly - please don't use this facility for airing grievances!.

If you have played this course and would like to add your comments then feel free to Add a Report.

Richard Stacey (England) 09/05/07

I have only been playing golf for a couple of years, having been given a present of lessons by my wife as a Christmas present (not sure if she's regretting it now?!) I learnt to play at the Tee2Green Academy at Hinksey Heights and subsequently have played most of my golf there. As a high handicapper I find that the course has a lot to offer, also it is very reasonably priced and well maintained. The staff are friendly and efficient and have certainly made me very welcome. I have played a few other courses around the country in the last year or so and in terms of an overall package (price, difficulty, scenery, maintainence, service etc) I have found little to match it. There are obviously more beautiful courses, more difficult courses, more expensive courses, more exclusive courses and so on but Hinksey Heights feels like a very good mix of positives.

Value for Money	9
Challenge	8
Off Course	7

Kevin B. (England) 27/09/06

Played here midweek September 06 ( £10 using a 2 FORE 1 voucher).

Not my idea of an enjoyable golf course. Very undulating ,open & exposed .It has defined mounding along the fairways .

The good points are that it has good views due to it's elevation , that it's quite peaceful & the presentation was decent. That's it.

The bad points are where do i begin. It's a very hard walking & tiring layout.(near the end you go from one side of the course to the furthest part of the course away from the clubhouse & then back again).As it's so exposed the constant wind also adds to the overall feel that it's a slog. There are only 3 par 3's all of them long & the last of which is the 10th hole. A course like this needs several short par 3's to ease the 'slog' aspect & also to add to the overall lack of variety in the holes.

There was a slightly shabby overall feel(e.g. grass growing in some bunkers). Due to the undulating nature of the course the greens need to be large & fairly level but instead they're small & upturned saucerish. This resulted in some silly pin positions which after a while became comical.

Surprisingly for a new course you could hit over some of the fairway bunkers from the tee & some further strange design positioning on the par 3 10th resulted in 3 bunkers halfway between the tee & green ? Also, on the par 4 17th instead of aiming at the very tight dogleg fairway it was easier to hit straight at the flag across some rough & moundings .Not the way i'm sure the hole was intended to be played.

After the front 9 it was tempting to call it a day & it was hard trying to muster up any enthusiasm to battle on.

Kevin B.

Value for Money	6
Challenge	9
Off Course	0

Phil Knott (England) 23/12/05

As I left the busy A34 Oxford By-Pass on a Saturday morning and turned into the narrow, steeply climbing lane leading to Hinksey Heights it became immediately obvious where the ‘heights’ in the clubs name comes from.

After leaving our cars and heading for the proshop we were greeted by what appeared to be a well-organised and efficient organisation. The process of paying green fees was swift and efficient if a little impersonal.

Once fully paid-up we headed for the first tee, past the Caddy Shack bar and restaurant and into the huge green expanse that is the courses, practice area and driving range.

Finding the first tee was a little challenging as the signage left a little to be desired and with the help of the course guide we got there. The courses were busy but not packed and the tees times appeared to allow enough time to ‘do your thing’ without being hassled (always a pleasant experience).

The first flag could just be seen at the top of a hill that was the first fairway. A big drive from both of us landed a disappointing 3rd of the way towards the flag – or so it looked, this course was going to be no pushover, no bad thing at all. The second maintained the challenge with the option to be safe or adventurous, a theme repeated on many later holes.

Then came the third, proudly described by the club as their signature hole and quite rightly so. A well-elevated tee looks down on what could easily be described as a ‘ravine’ with a wide fairway nestling in the middle with bushes to the left and water (and geese) to the right, the green being carefully tucked away on a dog-leg to the right. A superb hole and nothing like as easy as it might look.

Hinksey Heights has a good mixture of holes that will test all standards of golfer, is well maintained and thoroughly enjoyable experience. Good use has been made of the natural terrain without gimmicks or ‘sillies’ and in places it is reminiscent of a links course. There are pleasant views across Oxford from a number of spots on the course however I would say for me, the views were not as ‘spectacular’ as I was led to believe – bit I was there for the golf, not the views anyway.

The club has an air of being a fairly ‘young’ club with the majority of players when we played (Saturday afternoon) being quite young, something that is good to see.

Whilst the course was slightly too hilly for me in places due to suffering with my back it was nevertheless a great days golf and comes highly recommended. I would be tempted (against my better judgement) to consider the use of an electric trolley next time (or even a buggy???) but one thing is for sure there WILL be a next time. At £23 for a round on Saturday it is good value too compared to other courses in the area.

Overall a great little find that comes highly recommended.

Value for Money	8
Challenge	8
Off Course	8

Alistair How (England) 02/12/05

Played late November. Inital entrance is not for those expecting the five star set up - more like a chicken farm. Very easy to get to off the A34 and clearly maturing. A warm welcome and reasonable rate £18. Booked on line, but this was not as smooth as it could have been. Changing and range facilities very basic and spartan.

Out on the course was very pleasurable. Off winter tees, but course not reduced as a result. Agree with the comment on the third - it must need a mammoth strike from the regular tees. Course was undulating but not excessively. Greens were very quick and difficult to read - lots of tiers and tricky slopes. Bunkers fairly easy and nicely maintained.

They are clearly investing and remodeling some of the holes - to clear up the confusion at the rear of the course where there is a lot of cross over - signage is good. A new nine hole course is also on the cards.

Overall a very good value pay and play, and one which I would like to return to over the summer when the views of the city would be spectacular. Only blight was the second nine when a group of four in buggies didn't appear to understand the etiquet of calling through a single player who took half as many strokes as them - why are there theses sorts of people playing?

Value for Money	10
Challenge	6
Off Course	2

John Brown (England) 17/10/05

Played the Course on 15th October 2005 with an early tee-off time

(before 8am) on a Saturday morning. Weather dull but dry with little wind.

The first nine although the shorter of the two proved to be the more difficult despite being slightly shorter. The highlight was Hole 3 the Stroke Index 1 - what a hole !!. Playing 430 yards off the yellow tees it requires two hefty strikes to reach the green in two but because of the lay of the land it is unlikely that all bar the very good golfers will be in position after the tee shot to go for the green in two. None of out group managed to par this spectacular hole which is quite clearly the signature hole of the Course.

Many of the par 4 holes were doglegs or blind tee shots which added to the difficulty and interest of the Course and the three par 3's were quite tricky.

The second 9 seemed easier though I had taken so many shots on the front 9 that I was probably warmed up by then.

Again some very nice holes with the 18th being an excellent finishing hole. Managed to play the second 9 in 6 over par off 20 Handicap which isn't too bad.

Generally the Course was in excellent condition with the greens running fast and full of very tricky undulations and difficult to read correctly.

The Course is a very good challenge for both low and high handicap golfers and I would imagine very very difficult if the wind is blowing.

The Clubhouse, though not grand in any way, has friendly staff and provided us with a good Golfers Meal after the Round.

Will definitely visit Hinksey Heights again in the near future and I am even considering taking up their unusual but excellent "Points for Golf" Membership offer.

Regards

John Brown

Value for Money	10
Challenge	7
Off Course	5

Graham Thorpe (England) 28/08/05

Regarding earlier commnents. There are in fact 3 tees , yellow, white, blue and it is only blue that is 7000 yds. True the course is undulating but it is not hilly and is relativel easy to play for a higher handicapper. There is no long rough making it easier to play a shot even if you stray off fairway. The greens are very very good and very fast. Holes are largely similar apart fom 3rd . The 17th has a huge tree to block a perfect tee shot. THe par 3s are all long. Good course for higher handicappers and I enjoyed the day out.

Value for Money	6
Challenge	4
Off Course	4