London Golf Club

Last updated

The London Golf Club
Club information
Location Ash, Kent, England
Established1993 [1]
TypeSemi-Private Members Club
Owned by Bendinat Group [2] [3]
Total holes36
Events hosted European Open
Volvo World Match Play Championship
PGA Seniors Championship
Cazoo Classic
Website www.londongolf.co.uk
The Heritage Course
Designed by Jack Nicklaus
Par 72
Length7,208
Course record63 Ross Fisher (2008)
The International Course
Designed by Ron Kirby
Par 72
Length7,005
Course record63 Colin Montgomerie (2018)
63 Philip Golding (2018)
63 Peter Scott (2018)

The London Golf Club is a privately owned [2] golf course located in the village of Ash, Kent, approximately 20 miles southeast of London. [4]

Contents

History

The golf club was originally developed by the Japanese businessman Masao Nagahara, [5] in response to a perceived need for a world class golf course in the vicinity of London [1] and purportedly at the behest of Margaret Thatcher. [5] Although the club was originally opened in September 1993 by Sir Denis Thatcher, [1] the official course opening was in July 1994 and was accompanied by a charity skins match between Jack Nicklaus, Seve Ballesteros and Tony Jacklin. [1] After the original owners experienced financial difficulties, [6] the course was purchased in 2003 by the Bendinat group (who also own the Royal Bendinat Golf Club in Mallorca [2] ) for an undisclosed sum. [2] [3] Since the purchase, the club has hosted numerous tournaments on both the European Senior Tour and the European Tour, including the 2014 Volvo World Match Play Championship and the 2018 and 2019 PGA Seniors Championship.

Courses

The Heritage Course

The Heritage Course was designed by Jack Nicklaus [7] one of only three courses in England under his name. [8]

The Heritage Course
Tee Rating/Slope 123456789Out101112131415161718InTotal
Blue74 / 113398412194384541454187563448358142620853133844354846522544336277208
White72 / 113382387170361516422159536421335440817550231142452344021042434176771
Yellow70 / 113360364149338491402141503401314938015746828040849640619139831846333
Par443454354364354454343672
Ladies'74 / 113328323127299477357132470359287233213845424935847237715235528875759
ParLadies'443454354364354454343672

The International Course

The International Course was designed by Ron Kirby under the banner of Nicklaus Design. [9] He has been quoted as describing the 13th hole as "the best par 5 hole I have ever created". [9]

The International Course
Tee Rating/Slope 123456789Out101112131415161718InTotal
Blue74 / 113568373449197406592367201463361637355219053219836840522954233897005
White71 / 113547349430197378555345186440342735752717750117334037620750931676594
Yellow69 / 113524326399177346518325173409319733349516147515530935018448229446141
Par544345434364535344353672
Ladies'73 / 113453283359148320492292159367287329744613642313227332715942826215494
ParLadies'544345434364535344353672

Tournaments

European Open

The European Open was held over the Heritage course in 2008 and 2009. [10]

YearWinnerCountryScoreTo parMargin
of victory
Runner(s)-up
2009 Christian Cévaër Flag of France.svg  France 281−71 stroke Flag of Scotland.svg Gary Orr
Flag of Spain.svg Álvaro Quirós
Flag of England.svg Steve Webster
2008 Ross Fisher Flag of England.svg  England 268−207 strokes Flag of Spain.svg Sergio García

Volvo World Matchplay Championship

The Volvo World Match Play Championship was held on the International course in 2014. [10]

YearWinnerCountryScoreRunner-up
2014 Mikko Ilonen Flag of Finland.svg  Finland 3 & 1 Flag of Sweden.svg Henrik Stenson

PGA Seniors Championship

The PGA Seniors Championship, now under the name of the Staysure PGA Seniors Championship was held over the International Course in both 2018 and 2019. [10]

YearWinnerCountryScoreMargin
of victory
Runner(s)-up
2019 Phillip Price Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg  Wales 271 (−17)2 strokes Flag of New Zealand.svg Michael Campbell
Flag of South Africa.svg James Kingston
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Peter Lonard
2018 Philip Golding Flag of England.svg  England 270 (−18)2 strokes Flag of Sweden.svg Magnus Persson Atlevi

London Seniors Masters

The London Seniors Masters was held over the Heritage Course in 1995 and 2005-2007 [10]

YearWinnerCountryScoreMargin
of victory
Runner(s)-up
2007 Sam Torrance (2)Flag of Scotland.svg  Scotland 206(-10)1 stroke Flag of Spain.svg José Rivero
2006 Giuseppe Calì Flag of Italy.svg  Italy 210(−6)Playoff Flag of Jamaica.svg Delroy Cambridge
2005 Sam Torrance Flag of Scotland.svg  Scotland 201(-15)3 strokes Flag of England.svg David J. Russell
1995 John Bland Flag of England.svg  England 210(-6)4 strokes Flag of England.svg Tony Grubb
Flag of South Africa.svg Hugh Inggs
Flag of England.svg John Morgan
Flag of South Africa.svg Bobby Verwey

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "London Golf Club - Kent Golf - The History". www.londongolf.co.uk.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Bendinat buys London". GolfBusinessNews.com.
  3. 1 2 "London Golf Club - Bendinat". www.londongolf.co.uk.
  4. "Play Golf". www.golfinkent.co.uk.
  5. 1 2 "Golf: Golden Bear finds new cave in Garden of England: Jack Nicklaus". The Independent. 15 May 1993.
  6. Reece, Damian (2 February 2003). "Japanese seeking buyer for the London Golf Club" via www.telegraph.co.uk.
  7. "The London Golf Club - The Heritage". Nicklaus Design.
  8. "Courses". Nicklaus Design.
  9. 1 2 "London Golf Club (International) - Kent - Best In County Golf Course". www.top100golfcourses.com.
  10. 1 2 3 4 "London Golf Club - Tournaments". www.londongolf.co.uk.

51°20′46″N0°17′19″E / 51.3460°N 0.2886°E / 51.3460; 0.2886