Difficult to disagree with Detroit Golfer.
Twas my idea to visit so any blame is on my shoulders!
St Idloes is a so near and yet so far course although one never going to be a hilltop classic like say Kington or Llandrindod or Welshpool etc as some of the holes are on the bland side.
First a couple of positive things ….
The conditioning of the course and surrounds is excellent, even more so given that the club only has 1 greenkeeper.
And
The location is delightful. Quiet and tranquil with a friendly vibe.
But ….. the trees ……. arghhhhhhhh ….. they ruin the place!
Such a shame.
Being a hilltop in Mid-Wales the views over the surrounding countryside ought to be gorgeous, there are in a couple of places where if you search hard enough you can see them, but 99% of the time all you can see is a damn tree or rather thousands of the damn things.
Corridors of them tightly line almost every hole and surround the course on three sides too hence no gorgeous scenic off-course views.
And they’ve planted more in the last few years!
Yes, more! Arghhhh!
It would appear that the course was once open aspect, there are several places where for example indigenous heather is growing. Yet it would seem that someone, some committee, decided circa 60 years ago to plant trees, and copious amounts of them.
Worse still, based on the multitude of staked trees around the course, someone else, or some other more recent committee, decided to do the same thing about 3 yrs ago as well and thus more have been planted.
Such a shame. Although the course is never going to be an amazing must-visit rural and rustic gem, it could be significantly better.
Am I glad I played the course? Yes, despite its tree induced short comings I enjoyed it. Would I go back if in the area? Probably yes, it’s only a few quid (£) into an honesty box, and clubs like it with only 170 or so members need a bit of visitor cash, but it wouldn’t form the core course on a tour or a target must-play despite the presence of the brilliant alignment pole behind the 6th green with a red dragon atop it (!).
I’m sure the members love the place however. It did look very well looked after, very spic-n-span, very tidy, not just on the course but around the clubhouse, carpark, driving range etc. Yes, it’s got a driving range, just a few covered bays with an uncovered area too.
But the trees …………
Atb