Uncanny UTRECHT GC DE PAN: Benelux Tour 2024

[Sean_A]

Elegant, charming, crafty, spirited and many more fine adjectives can be used to describe Utrecht GC de Pan. Yet none can encapsulate the club and course in way which means much without firsthand experience. Much like Eindhoven, sand heather and pines are all the ingredients Colt would need to create his Dutch treasure. One of the oldest clubs in the Netherlands, Utrecht, formerly known as Doorn, upped sticks and moved from Doorn to Driebergen on a new hilly site northeast of Utrecht in area called Panbos…hence the de Pan being incorporated into the club’s name. The area in general is unusual in that starting work in 1928, Colt completed nine holes and a few years later finished the back nine. Whomever chose the sandy site should be counted as a genius. It is near perfect inland golfing terrain with plenty of land movement, but not the sort which is vexing. Yes, there are some funky holes due to the excellent use of the land and these are a welcome addition which is largely lacking in the London heathlands.

Having hosted the Dutch Open five times de Pan is no stranger to hosting big events. Paul Way was the last winner in 1982. This happens to be the only time the Open was a European Tour event. However, my introduction to UGC de Pan was via Shell’s Wonderful World of Golf. There was a 1967 episode featuring Dave Marr (winner of the 1965 PGA) and legendary Peter Thomson. I knew Marr better as a golf analyst for ABC, NBC and BBC. Both of Marr’s experiences with the Ryder Cup were on English courses. As a player in a crushing US victory at Birkdale in 1965 (Marr went 4-2) and another overwhelming romp as the captain in the 1981 matches at Walton Heath. Marr had some of his ashes scattered at each venue as well as Laurel Valley, host to the 1965 PGA. Watching the Shell’s Wonderful World of Golf match over the de Pan prompted me to look further into Netherlands golf…had to be circa 1990ish. It only took me 30 plus years to steer the boat in the right direction.   

Current map of the course.


1947 map of the Course.


A par 5, the opener is a gentle handshake. The 1st tee is directly off the house veranda. Folks gather around the 1st tee hoping to finish their gane before darkness arrives.


The land movement is immediately apparent. 




Another straight hole, the 2nd uses a ridge for the fairway exceeding well. Drives can fall left or right toward sand.






The short 3rd heads back toward the house. Part of de Pan's charm is its walkability. Its a compact site, yet still beautiful. There is a lovely boozer loop of 1-4 & 9 taking golfers to the bar.


More to follow.

Ciao

[Tom_Doak]

Might be the best course on the Continent, at least from my limited experience.


If it was in the USA, might not make GOLF DIGEST's top 100.


Discuss!

[Mike_Clayton]

Frank Nobilo and I played a practice round with Mac O'Grady at the 1982 Dutch Open -where Sam Snead and Tommy Bolt both played.
Mac played the entire season with 8 clubs - 2 woods and odd numbered irons - and finished 42nd on the $ list including 3rd behind Tony Jacklin and Bernhard Langer in the British PGA at Hillside.
Either way, we got to the 3rd tee and I asked him why only 8 clubs?
The green is almost 40 paces long.
He took 3 balls, a 7 iron and with three identical looking swings flew the first one onto the front of the green, the second right to the middle and the final one all the way to the back edge.


"Why do you need 14 clubs?"


And De Pan is a brilliant course. Morfontaine class, makes it one of the best two or three on the continent. And Mac is one of the finest handful of ball strikers and shot makers I've ever seen.

[Mark Kiely]

I fell in love with this course (from afar) when someone here shared a video tour a year or two ago. Can't wait to read more of your experience, Sean, and hopefully play it myself someday.

[Thomas Dai]

Frank Nobilo and I played a practice round with Mac O'Grady at the 1982 Dutch Open -where Sam Snead and Tommy Bolt both played.
Mac played the entire season with 8 clubs - 2 woods and odd numbered irons - and finished 42nd on the $ list including 3rd behind Tony Jacklin and Bernhard Langer in the British PGA at Hillside.
Either way, we got to the 3rd tee and I asked him why only 8 clubs?
The green is almost 40 paces long.
He took 3 balls, a 7 iron and with three identical looking swings flew the first one onto the front of the green, the second right to the middle and the final one all the way to the back edge.
"Why do you need 14 clubs?"
And De Pan is a brilliant course. Morfontaine class, makes it one of the best two or three on the continent. And Mac is one of the finest handful of ball strikers and shot makers I've ever seen.

Course looks very impressive.
Love this story. Find it difficult to disagree with MO’G’s approach.
Atb

[Mark Pearce]

I had a couple of games there when BUDA went to Holland.   The first of which with the added bonus of playing with Frank Pont, a member but who had also done some recent work on the course.  Absolutely loved it.  And not just a great course but a great club.  Happy memories of a long post round lunch with Conrad, Whitty and Wardo.


Interested to hear more from the experts why they have it so clearly ahead of Royal Hague?

[MKrohn]

Pictures are compelling, makes a Paris to Amsterdam golf trip look very appealing rather than the well trodden paths in GB & I

[Niall C]

I'm looking forward to this tour. Meanwhile I have a question; does anyone know whether the land was heavily wooded when Colt looked at it or have the trees been allowed to grow in the interim ? Just thinking that the Surrey heathland courses were largely open heath and over time through planting and benign neglect they became wooded, was it the same here ?


Niall

[Adam Lawrence]

It’s a glorious place. I have Haagsche ahead of it, but that might just be links bias. The tenth is, in my experience, a unique hole. Genius.

[Sean_A]

Clayts

Thanks for the stories.

Niall

I believe the area was a forest before the course was built.

de Pan tour cont

One of my favourite holes, the 4th legs right just as the fairway crests a ridge. The tee shot is semi blind, but we get the sense to stay left.


The green is Simpson-like; it sits beyond a large hollow and behind a bunker. If one is long enough off the tee it is possible to take advantage of  half pipe shaping which feeds to the middle of the green. Below is a look at the creative green from well beyond the drive zone. The 8th green is in the background.


There is plenty of short grass to play with. I suspect Pont restored this space as part of the renovations.


Three greens are not original to Colt. To my knowledge nobody knows the exact type of greens that were lost. Frank Pont has been restoring de Pan since 2005 and built a new 7th green. I am uncertain if the 11th green has been addressed, but the current green is set back further than the original which adds yardage to the par 5. The 5th is currently being rebuilt to the right of the old green. The new green is set to right of the centre bunker and behind the sandy waste area.




More to follow.

Ciao

[Robert Mercer Deruntz]

I played there in early June, and was absolutely impressed with the great ground movement throughout the property.  The greens are magnificently contoured.  It is a truly great golf course!

[Sean_A]

de Pan tour cont

The 6th is justly famous, although it is not without issues. Whatever it takes to position one behind or just right of the large heathery mound guarding the left side of the fairway will do.  Too far right leaves trees blocking access to at least the right side of the green. I can't understand why these trees are there...the approach is blind and tough without having to cope with trees in front of the green.   

Yes, this is a bell hole.


The club seems to have resisted the temptation to over maintain the course such as is the case at many English heathland venues.


Terrain such as this simply doesn't exist at the London heathland courses.


Looking back to the tee from atop the mound.


Looking twoard the green atop the mound. The offending trees mentioned earlier are on the right.




The mounding down the right is plenty of protection for the approach...no need for trees.


More to follow.

Ciao

[Sean_A]

Utrecht tour cont

We play out of the rambunctious terrain on the 7th with a drive over broken ground. Trees are on high ground to the right and low ground to the left. Whatever it takes to hit this highly prescribed tee shot...do it. Below is the approach. One can see a person searching the trees on the right....this must be a common occurrence.


Much like the 6th, the right bunker and mound are designed deterrent for missing right off the tee. I don't believe the trees are necessary. 


I don't read much commentary about the short 8th. More is the pity because this is an excellent hole highlighted by a string of diagonal bunkers somewhat disguised in the rough. 


A closer look.


The right bunker is set deceptively back from the green.


More to follow.

Ciao

[Sean_A]

de Pan tour cont

A straight two-shotter, the 9th takes us back to the house. The drive is a bit awkward in that seeing the line is difficult. A prominent bunker is well short of the diagonal green. Behind the green.


The back nine starts off well, but first we must pay attention to folks heading to the parking lot or practice range. A sneaky path cuts in front of the tee, hence there is a warning.


The shelter behind the tee is quite robust!


One must decide on the tee if caution or aggression is the play. I mjust admit that I believe the course to be a bit crowded with trees.


The fairway snakes through a canyon of mounds in a style very similar to the 6th.




Looking back to the tee.


A strong dogleg right, the par 5 eleventh uses the large mound on the left well. Below is the approach from a near perfect location adjacent to the mound. 


As can be seen, going for the green in two is tight.


More to follow.

Ciao

[Robin_Hiseman]

That 11th green and approach is one of mine. Designed it in 1995, whilst with Hawtree.

[Sean_A]

That 11th green and approach is one of mine. Designed it in 1995, whilst with Hawtree.

Doc

Yer joking? What other holes did Hawtree work on?

de Pan tour cont.

A nasty short hole, the 12th must give loads of players fits. The green for a ~175 yard hole isn't at all receptive and some hole locations can be quite tucked away.


Just left of the green...play is from the right.


Another bruiser two-shotter, the 13th swings considerably left in what is somewhat a pattern for doglegs at de Pan, namely the use of low dunes/mounds as a framing device.




The centreline bunkers don't look completely convincing, but they are well placed for a golfer of my ability.


Another green draped naturally over the terrain.


More to follow.

Ciao

[Robin_Hiseman]

Not joking.


That was the only hole I worked on. I have the plans and work photos on file.

[Sean_A]

Not joking.

That was the only hole I worked on. I have the plans and work photos on file.

Doc

I would like to hear details of this project at some point.

Utrecht tour cont

A straightforward hole, the 14th is one of several short to modest length two shotters on the back nine.


The final short hole is a cracker. It’s about 160 yards uphill to an unforgiving target. It isn't clear to me why trees are permitted to be this tight left of the 15th green. Too often the impact of critical shaping is compromised by trees at Utecht. I can't help but be reminded of some greens at the Eden Course.


More to follow.

Ciao

[Tony_Muldoon]

Might be the best course on the Continent, at least from my limited experience.


If it was in the USA, might not make GOLF DIGEST's top 100.


Discuss!

As a European who's never heald a copy of Golf Digest, do I understand correctly that this is a comment on the inadequacy of their rating system and not about the quality of the course?

[Charlie Goerges]

Might be the best course on the Continent, at least from my limited experience.


If it was in the USA, might not make GOLF DIGEST's top 100.


Discuss!

As a European who's never heald a copy of Golf Digest, do I understand correctly that this is a comment on the inadequacy of their rating system and not about the quality of the course?

I'm pretty sure it's a yes on the inadequacy of the rating system.


For a long time (not sure it's still the case) there was a prominent element of the Golf Digest rating system labeled something like "Resistance to Scoring" or in other words difficulty. So the harder a course was, the higher it could score. Again, I'm not sure if they've softened that over time.

[Sean_A]

de Pan tour cont.

The course opens up dramatically and to good effect on 16 & 17. Both are solid enough holes. The 16th reminds me somewhat of Alwoodley. The 17th tee is on the high ground on the right. Its another case of trees marring a set scene.


A pleasing hole, the 17th is more open in nature.


The raised green adds some bite for this very short two-shotter.


The finisher is not a hole to dwell over, but lets not that dampen what is without question an admirable course. Utrecht’s use of sensational terrain is its ace up the sleeve. No other heathland course of which I am aware can match Utrecht in this regard. I don't know Netherlands golf well, but I have to believe that 15, 10, 8, 6 and 4 are in the conversation as among the best holes in the country. I think my favourite hole of the bunch is the 4th...what a green. There is no question that de Pan is the best course I have seen in continental Europe to date. however, unlike the opinions of many others, I do think the trees are an issue which effect the quality of the course. Regardless of trees, Utrecht earns a 2* and goes into my NIfty 50.  2024

Many thanks to our host PK. He is yet another keen Netherlander who loves architecture.

Previous stops on the Benelux Tour.

Eindhoven
https://www.golfclubatlas.com/forum/index.php/topic,73230.0.html

Domburg
https://www.golfclubatlas.com/forum/index.php/topic,73225.0.html

Future stops on the Tour.

Hilversum
Kennemer
Royal Ostend

Ciao