Another memorable visit to Tewkesbury Park Golf Club
Visiting Tewkesbury Park golf resort for the second time in 18 months was definitely an added bonus as this is a place for discerning golfers to spend a couple of pleasant days playing golf and taking in the surrounding stunning scenery of distant Chiltern and Malvern hills. Only this time I had been asked to invite a non-playing ‘plus one’ to accompany me and someone keen to make use the hotel’s Spa facilities. .
With that in mind I invited Fanny, one of my girlfriends to join and who lives not too far away in sunny Sandbanks. The idea was that while I played golf, Fanny, could enjoy the delights of the hotel’s spa facilities which also included a full body massage, something I would have quite liked to have done myself but didn’t have the time to fit it in.
We decided to drive from Sandbanks in Fanny’s car and left with what we felt was plenty of time for my pre-arranged 1 pm tee time. Unfortunately we didn’t take into account the many road works encountered en route which meant I had only a few minutes spare on arrival at Tewkesbury Park before my pre-arranged tee time. While I rushed off to the clubhouse to arrange for a buggy to strap my clubs on to, Fanny dealt with the checking-in formalities and arranged for our luggage to be delivered to our comfortable Duke of Marlborough suit. At least she had plenty of time to mosey around the recently refurbished Tewesbury Hotel, a former 18th century Manor house before her 2.30 massage. Meanwhile I arrived in the nick of time on the first par 4 hole and quickly introduced myself to my two awaiting playing companions, both members who’s familiarity with the course came in very useful on some of the more challenging holes.
The weather was warm and sunny and perfect for golf and found this fairly flat course a joy to play. Most of the long fairways are quite wide but there are a couple of tricky par threes, one with a small stream running across the fairway just below the green which I somehow managed to par with a drive that landed on the green. The ninth hole returns to the club house and where I dashed off to find a loo ironically bumping into Fanny happily ensconced in the clubhouse enjoying a cup coffee after her massage and about to go for a cooling swim in the hotel’s swimming pool…. lucky thing.
That day was also the final day’s play of the Solheim Cup which looked like a clear win for the US team. Throughout our round we were constantly updated of the tense goings from the Solheim Cup ap on my mobile. By the time we arrived back the bar was packed with golfers watching the last remaining holes of the competition on the enormous TV screen in the clubhouse with Europe hanging on by a slender chance to win which all boiled down to a final putt from Susanne Pettersen. As we watched her ball nonchalantly roll into the hole, the entire crowd watching all leapt up for joy, it was a occasion I will never forget, a memory I will always associate with Tewkesbury Park. .
That evening over a delicious gourmet three course dinner, we ordered champagne to celebrate Europe’s historic Solheim Cup win against a far stronger US team. .
www.tewkesburypark.co.uk