The course is in many ways ideal for the holiday golfer. It is laid out over gently sloping, open moorland, with plenty of room on at least one side from every tee. The ball sits well on the fairways, and the greens are normally in excellent condition, despite the fact that water is never plentiful enough in Scilly to permit sprinkling. The visitor may well find himself being refreshed by the changingviews through the clean air, as well as by the mild sea breezes.
The course starts with a short reasonably easy par 4 (271 yards), and the 10th tee is situated at a slight draw (259 yards) making for a birdie chance for most golfers. The 2nd is a testing par 3 (208 yards), but the 11th from a back tee par 4 (268 yards) should yield a good birdie chance.
The 3rd, (417 yards) is stroke 1 par 4 because for all but the longest hitters the second shot is blind to a green backed by wild rough and a greenside pot bunker to the left catching any pulled shots. Par is a respectable score but the views compare with any hole in Britain. On the back 9 this is a par 5 (444 yards) demanding a good drive to reach the narrow sloping fairway then par is within reach.
There can be few short holes anywhere to match the 4th and 13th (112 yards), for immediate appeal and sustained interest in all weathers and wind directions. The tee is perched on a rocky promontory some seventy feet above the sea. In front of the tee is a wilderness of gorse and bracken. The green is a small basin set in a slope falling steeply to the right. Any shot that misses the green may end in distaster, and on the other hand any shot that gains access to the basin may finish close to the hole. Indeed, the 4th/13th claims at least its share of holes in one, including on one occasion two aces in the same fourball.
The 5th and 14th are longish par 4s (400 yards) with blind tee shots, to a sloping green with some remarkable pin positions which in the dry summer months 3 or more putts can leave golfers embarressed.
The 6th hole is a par 4 (471 yards), which runs over the newer part of the course, once cultivated, where the grass is lusher and greener. Long hitters hoping to get home in two, face a herioc second shot, downhill to a green with out- of- bounds fences on three sides. On the back nine the hole is played from a forward tee making a par 4 (398 yards), with a dogleg drive to avoid the out-of-bounds to the left, par here is very respectable.
The 7th (309 yards),16th (287 yards), 8th (336 yards) and 17th (324 yards), all par 4`s are good two shotters running in opposite directions, so that in most winds one of them will hold out a glimmer of hope of a birdie, in fact with a tail wind to drive the green is always possible for the big hitters.
The 9th and 18th are classic finishing holes par 5 (509, and 479 yards) respectively. They dogleg sharply to the left, and are so designed that, by risking a carry of 200 yards or more over a bulbfield, one may be rewarded by being able to reach the green with a long iron second
