Temple

Two par 3's measure 230+ yards whilst a third is played uphill at 213 yards. To offset this there are a handful of par fours that due to the fast running nature of this course can be either driven or neared by many.

All three par fives are not long either at around 500 yards. All in all, this creates exciting golf where several birdie chances can easily be created; either taken or missed.

Be warned there is also a more ruthless side to the course though with holes like the second, third, 11th, 15th and 17th providing a stern but fair challenge and stretching the course to a maximum yardage of 6,210.

Save for two short par 3's there is ample opportunity to run the ball onto the greens thanks mainly to the use of good quality fescue and bent grasses.

Simply by looking out of the clubhouse at Temple you can tell the course is very undulating, however, you do not get that feeling whilst walking the holes and individually they do not feel to play steeply uphill nor downhill with the obvious exception of the eighth which provides a thrilling tee-shot. It's also laid out mostly over chalk-based terrain so I can imagine this is a good course to play all 12 months of the year.

The greens have plenty of borrows which, for a course of this length, felt just about right. There were some potentially wicked pin positions where being on the correct side of the hole would be paramount. Some of the breaks were more subtle and not noticeable until you had putted... and missed. The green at the 10th is worthy of special mention too as it sits in a deep bowl that can gather your ball and improve a slightly wayward shot. The tee-shot on this par 3 is blind, bland and un-inspiring but the green complex certainly makes amends.

The tight nature of the turf on the fairways and green surrounds requires confident chipping and pitching. If you miss some of the greens on the wrong side you will often find yourself chipping to avoid double-bogey as opposed to chipping to save par. At times the course comes close to playing as a links.

Temple is clearly a course in good hands and one that can be enjoyed by all standards of golfer. Here it undoubtedly succeeds.