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Too
often, an otherwise lovely golf resort squeezes an
afterthought of a pitch-and-putt into whatever acreage
remains, in an attempt to appease the novice guest.
Conditions are sub-par, the design is shoddy, and the
facility becomes destined to be maligned by the golf
purists and the aesthetically aware. At Celtic Manor,
no such oversights exist. In fact, Coldra Woods, built
in 1996 as a venue for guests to polish their short
game and iron play, is a miniature gem, a
distinguished layout that stands on its own merits
rather than those of its larger counterparts.
Continuing
the Jones family tradition, Robert Trent Jones Sr.
designed the course, with some of his most adventurous
greens anywhere. The course gets of to painless start,
with two short par threes, but changes gears at the
third hole. A short par four – measuring 317 yards
– that offers a few options, mainly as a result of
the lone tree in the fairway and tough green complex.
The layup shot needs to be played downhill to the
right side, leaving an uphill pitch to a green guarded
by a couple bunkers. Golfers will surely wish they had
a few shots to find the best route to the hole, but
restraint is usually the best method to approach the
hole for the first time.
To
give some sense of the difficultly that is found on
the course, the golfer can look at the fourth hole,
which measures 201 yards from the back tees. The hole,
which requires the tee shot to carry a ravine is
littered with five bunkers and a shallow green.
Although even the scratch golfer can find this hole
difficult, true to nature the shorter tees offer and
affordable chance at par.
The
omnipresent scenery at Celtic Manor is on display at
Coldra Woods as well. The 163-yard par three 13th hole
offers a gorgeous view across the valley that bisects
the course. Much of the course and the opening and
closing holes of Wentwood Hills are visible from the
tee. However, the scenery can distract from the task
at hand, which requires a smart shot to a narrow,
well-protected green.
The
course closes with one of the five par fours, which is
perhaps the most imaginative hole on the course. Both
shots need to navigate through the series of bunkers
and play to a green set above the fairway. The green
has two tiers and given its shallowness, finding the
proper level is a must.
With
13 par threes and five par fours, a couple of which
are reachable, guests can likely leave their driver in
the room, but the course is a perfect place for an
evening stroll with the family or the chance to work
on the kinks in one's game that were exposed at
Wentwood Hills or Roman Road.
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