Master touch to gem of a course

Apr 1 2008 by Our Correspondent, Liverpool Daily Post

DESIGNED by Alister Mackenzie, who was responsible for, among many others, the Augusta National, home of the US Masters, Reddish Vale has long been considered one of Cheshire’s hidden gems.

When Henry Cotton, Open champion in 1934, ’37 and ’48, played Reddish Vale just after the war on a charity trawl round various golf courses to raise money for the Red Cross, he said of the 16th: “It’s a wonderful hole, there should be a hole like this on every course”.

Although relatively short at 322 yards it follows the river round a right-hand bend and the more adventurous you are the more length you can cut off the hole. But an errant tee shot and you’re in the drink.

The fairway narrows as it approaches the long thin green, which is surrounded by the river as it swings back on itself. But only a very wayward second would find a watery grave on the hole, which is appropriately called Cottons.

Truthfully the Cheshire course near Stockport – at 6,086 yards with a par of 69 – doesn’t look like a polished gem when you start from the first tee at the back of a row of suburban houses, but when you reach your drive on the 421-yard hole, one of the deep gullies that feature on the first five holes comes into view making the second shot to the large green on the other side a bit of a tester.

The second, one of four short holes on the front nine, is back over the gully to another large green 179 yards away.

The third, the 390 yard Road Hole, again features a gully which must be carried with the second shot, with bunkers left and right at the front of the green.

Number four is called Hillside, and that is what you do, play along the side of the hill to the long narrow green 166 yards away, which has a bunker with a steep bank and bushes above it on the right and two more bunkers on the left.

The fifth, Cottage, brings you back near the clubhouse. At just 306 yards long, a good drive over the gulley will give you a short iron to the green, which has three bunkers around it.

A shot straying left on this hole will send you plunging down a wooded slope that falls away very steeply, making it difficult to even recover your ball, let alone play it.

A stroll through the woods past the clubhouse and suddenly the vale unfolds as you reach the sixth tee.

A long short hole at 240 yards from the back tee, the tree-lined River Tame first comes into view down the left hand side of the fairway, which drops well over 100ft to the valley floor below.

Called Needles Eye because you need to thread your tee shot accurately to find the green, which has five bunkers at the front and sides to snap up the shots that don’t quite make the putting surface.

My needle threading has never been too good and I managed to carve two balls left into the river on the way to a six over par nine – card ruined at one fell swoop.

The seventh, called the Longest because at 538 yards it does what it says on the packet, is reached through a small copse and over a substantial bridge across the beautiful meandering Tame.

The river runs alongside the seventh all the way, but it swings well to the left and with the wide fairway is never really in play. Two trusty blows and a good wedge put me on the green and a 20ft putt brought an all too rare birdie, which was of course sod’s law after making a complete mess of the previous hole.

The eighth, called The Barn, is a 393 yard par four deemed the second most difficult hole on the course. The green sits on a small plateau, so requires an accurate second to find it, which is no doubt the reason for it being stroke index two.

The ninth, Summit, is the fourth and final short hole on the front nine and from the highest point on the course provides great views over the vale back towards Stockport.

Played up a steep hill to a smallish well-bunkered green – not that any Reddish Vale greens are particularly small – it needs the right club selection to make it over the two bunkers at the front, with anything short likely to trundle back down the hill.

There is out of bounds all the way down the 10th, where there used to be a railway after which the hole is named. A slight dog-leg to the left, at 343 yards it is one of the easier par fours.

The 11th, Target, measures 460 yards and is also slightly dog-leg left. A long second shot in to the smallest green on the course with a bunker left and right, is why it gets its name, and it is fully deserving of stroke index three.

The short 12th, the 188-yard Shoulder, runs along the length of the slope, but with a long green and just one bunker, a straight tee shot should realise a par.

The 13th is the most difficult hole on the course. Although not the longest par four at 456 yards, the 11th is slightly longer, it needs a good drive down the right to have any chance of a shot to the green, which is in a little dell tucked out of sight down in the left-hand corner.

A tall marker post at the back of the green indicates where it is, as it’s impossible to see the flag when playing your second shot. But the marker doesn’t tell you about the dangers lurking right, where a deep gully is hidden by the trees from which the hole gets its name The Copse.

On the 14th, River View, the tee on the 340-yard hole is high above the Tame, which flows down the left-hand side of the fairway There is plenty of room to the right, but a couple of cannily placed bunkers on the slight right-hand dog-leg are there to catch a wayward drive.

A well-placed drive and it is no more than an eight-iron to a well bunkered green, with the river having sneakily meandered round the back of it.

The 15th, Topside, at 477 yards is the only par five on the back nine. A blind drive up over the crest of the hill and there’s a good chance of reaching the green in two, although there are five bunkers around your target.

After playing Cottons you walk back along the edge of the 16th fairway to the tee for the 377 yard 17th, named Bridge, probably because you re-cross the Tame on the bridge which earlier took you from the sixth green to the seventh tee.

The narrow fairway has the river down the left and a ridge down the right so needs accuracy off the tee, then a mid-iron to another long narrow green with a stream 60 yards short to catch the mis-hit shot and a couple of bunkers either side.

The 18th, menacingly called Hill, is known as cardiac hill to the members as it’s one heck of a pull back up the 100ft climb from the bottom of the vale.

At 353 yards a decent three-wood into the wide fairway, which is shared with the sixth, will get you to the bottom of the steep slope, then it’s difficult to judge what to take for the next shot especially on a first visit, although the members have no doubt got it off to a tee.

Having a brew after our round and looking down the 18th from the refurbished Reddish Vale clubhouse we discovered that the fabulous view had only manifested itself thanks to a winter storm early last year.

A large cedar tree that had stood behind the 18th green since before the club was founded in 1912, was severely split during the storm and after consultation with several experts is was decided that it was now too dangerous and would have to come down.

It must have been a difficult decision but in these health and safety conscious times the old cedar was doomed, so the decision was made and down it came, but by way of compensation a glorious panoramic view now unfolds across the vale giving first-time visitors a taste of the delights to come.

DIRECTIONS: One mile north east of Stockport. Turn right off M60 (J27), along Teviot Way. At roundabout take last exit onto Sandy Lane which runs into Reddish Road, then right again onto Southcliffe Road with signpost for golf course.

Room with a view benefits from £75,000 refurbishment

REDDISH VALE has spent £75,000 refurbishing the clubhouse and coupled with the enhanced view down into the vale, the dining room is a lovely spot to take refreshment.

Money has also been spent on improving paths to accommodate the small fleet of buggies which have been introduced, on what is physically quite a demanding course for the older player.

Membership is available in all categories at Reddish Vale, where the entrance fee has been suspended in a bid to attract new members.

Details are available from the club’s secretary on 0161 480 2359.

The club has a thriving junior section and former England internationals Barry Baker and Adam Stott learned their golf at the club.