Golf fans will go bats for the Belfry
WHEN you pitch up at The Belfry, the size of one of British golf’s signature venues immediately strikes you.
The 500-acre hotel and spa resort is a four-time Ryder Cup host and the courses are truly magnificent.
But it offers more than just golf. My first stop after checking in was the Brabazon Bar, named after its world-renowned course. The site also boasts two more wonderful 18-hole challenges – the PGA National and the Derby.
The bar offers a luxurious setting to plan your stay, with live jazz and blues and a pleasant atmosphere.
While there are a number of options for dinner, including Rocca’s Pizza Pasta and Sam’s Club House (more of which later), the a la carte Ryder Grill is the popular choice. I can highly recommend the XXXXXX xxxxxx Chateaubriand, beautifully
Xxxx complemented with the house red. Scallops to start and the chai tea panna cotta bookended the steak.
The comfort continues in your room with blackout blinds, comfy beds and quiet surroundings to ensure a great night’s sleep to set you up for the next day, kicked off by a full English breakfast.
While the fearsome Brabazon beckoned, first there was a spot of mini golf. If you want to shed any first tee nerves, head to the driving range.
And so to The Brabazon. Seve Ballesteros’s audacious 1985 tee shot on the par three 10th is one of the greatest Ryder Cup memories. The course is both alluring and intimidating to the average golfer.
You are privileged to follow in the footsteps of greats such as Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy, whose silhouetted portraits grace the walls of the hotel, near Sutton Coldfield in the Midlands.
Even in winter, the course is still beautifully manicured, with the greens playing like a snooker baize.
The Brabazon is tricky and fiendish, punishing even the slightest misjudgment. But the reward and memory of neatly negotiating one of the holes makes for an unforgettable experience.
At the 19th hole – Sam’s Club House, named after Ryder Cup hero Sam Torrance – there’s a decent selection of drinks and sports bar-style food.
The action carries on into the small hours, too, at the resort’s Bel Air Nightclub, although perhaps not if you have a 7.30am tee time.
If you didn’t hire a golf buggy, the chances are you will be drained after your Brabazon round and appreciate the spa.
The hi-tech gym and swimming pool are excellent. But the highlight of the spa for me was the invigorating Fire & Ice Experience. It features 12 bio-thermal rooms and an ice bucket, which rewards anybody brave enough to experience it.
Rejuvenated and refreshed, I left The Belfry with no golfing demons from the Brabazon beast.
I played a Stableford on The Brabazon and scored 28 points.
Not great, but considering how tricky it was, I was pleased.