From a time dating back to the days when shepherds in the British Isles wiled away days striking pebbles into gopher holes, golf in Wales, and indeed all of the United Kingdom, has been headlined by the stunning links courses that pock the coastline. Between the warm embrace of the game's quintessence and the stunning scenery of the hillocks along the sea, coastal links golf has always held a place of superior esteem among golf aficionados. Increasingly, though, golf has moved inland from the sea, and parkland courses taking advantage of the hinterland are gaining more and more attention. In Ireland, country estates at Mount Juliet and Carton House are being mentioned in the same breath as Ballybunion and Royal Portrush, and in Wales, the name lingering on the tongues of visitors is Wentwood Hills, the Trent Jones Jr. design at Celtic Manor.

The foothills of Southeastern Wales will become familiar to millions in the coming years, as Europe and America's best players will converge on the layout in the fall of 2010 for the Ryder Cup. In a lot of ways, the pride of golf in Wales, once resigned to the shoulders of Masters champion Ian Woosnam, is now endowed in a facility that stands as a peer to some of the continent's best golf destinations. As is indicative of most great golf courses, it is not an individual hole but the marriage of each to the course's flow that makes this layout such a brilliant one. The opening and closing holes sit atop a plateau, and act as bridges in and out of the valley holes that comprise the middle of the round. The achievement of this delicate task, and the larger assignment to put Welsh golf on the map, fell to Trent Jones Jr., who exploited the sharp changes in elevation to form dramatic shot frames and, in turn, some of the more spectacular moments in golf. Two is such an occasion, where the Welsh river valley countryside is on its finest display. From the tee to the green some 600 yards away, the route swerves and tumbles through the landscape, at last finding a kidney-shaped green guarded by a pair of bunkers at its front and rear flanks. Miles of rich green fields stretch out in the background, rendering golf merely an afterthought, and the instance is not an isolated one. Wentwood Hills is very much an entry into the Welsh countryside for the uninitiated, a superb challenge of golf and a cultural tour guide all at once. At 7,403 yards, its character and strength lies in much more than the landscape, and as host of the Welsh Open each June, it is clear that one of the game's great courses has been cut into this hearty soil.

Running downward from the second tee, the introduction to the Usk Valley is a gentle and pronounced one. The third spills down overland toward a small lake, while the fourth runs along a crest of the incline. Five, a 565-yard par five that demands a heroic drive over the corner of the lake, constitutes the valley basin. The hole hugs the lake, which runs the length of the right side, and is further flanked on the right by two bunkers as the golfer nears the green. With the green sloping toward the water, the prudent play is to the right-centre of the green, to avoid any chance at a penalty stroke and a big number.

Six and seven follow the same serpentine course, weaving between the small lakes, and upon reaching the eighth hole one finds Wentwood Hills' greatest challenge yet. The cape-style hole wraps around the water, seemingly daring the golfer to hug the right hazard line. Should the player be brave enough to do just that, the hole becomes shorter and affords the best angle of approach. However, two fairway bunkers on the left and another pair short left of the green, mean the little rest for the weary. Although the hole only measures 416 yards from the back tees, the hole can give the golfer fits.

As dramatic as the arrival to the valley floor was, the departure is equally impressive. The 11th hole is another brute of a par five, measuring 621 yards and fitting its way around the bank of the river. The green, some half a mile from the tee, is perched perilously close to the bank's edge, meaning that two great shots will still leave a difficult iron approach. The golfer must tack their way into position to avoid the imposing greenside bunkers right. As the golfer climbs to the 12th tee, a glance back at the nine valley holes offers one of the best views in all of Wales.

Emerging from the valley, the route is overland back in the direction of the clubhouse. The splendid short 13th, the first of the highland holes on the back side, appears to have blossomed straight out of the kingdom's lands. A brook is the elevated green's defense, curdling by beneath its front fringe. Shots short will almost certainly trickle back down the slope into the water, so playing for the back fringe is a wise decision. Many deceptively uphill approaches actually define the finishing holes, including the par-three 14th and the gorgeous 456-yard 15th. At the latter, a two-shot test that easily ranks as the most difficult on the course, both shots play up a broad slope and around through two natural hedges to a two-tiered green on the crest of the hill. Good shots that catch the green's ridge will be deflected away, so making par, either with two great putts or a lay-up and deft pitch, is something worth toasting to. The European Tour's best struggle admirably here - 15 is one of the toughest holes on the EPGA.

Having returned to higher ground, the golfer still faces a climb on the 554-yard par-five closing hole. The elevation is not a problem, though, and the hole generally offers a solid chance at a closing birdie. Groupings of bunkers continually offset each other, creating the challenge for the golfer to find the fairway and set up the approach to a heavily sloping green. Sure to evoke drama in future competition, the hole offers a respite at the end of the round, but should the hazards be found, the course continues to bite back.

After the visually stunning 17th hole, the golfer arrives at the challenging closing hole. Playing slightly uphill, the golfer must find the driving area while avoiding the bunkers that guard its right side. Although the right side leaves a better view of the pin, it also leaves a longer approach. Despite being blocked out by the steep left to right slope, the left side of the fairway is the ideal place to play the approach from. Bunkers guard the lower right side of the green and gobble up shots left short, which kick in from the slope. Aiming left is essential and even if the golfer cannot muster the full approach, the downhill left-to-right slope will help run the ball in. The strategy of this fine closing hole is better revealed to the golfer on subsequent trips around the course, which seems to generally hide its secrets well. It is a combination of this unfolding mystery and spectacular setting that gives the golfer reason to be drawn back, time after time. Surely Abercromby’s legacy lives on in the Old Course, and the expert touch of Sirs Mackenzie and Steel deserve full credit for its preservation.