New Zealand GC

Equal parts beautiful and lethal: the par 4 15th, with a fantastic centreline bunker at the green

The 10th - far from an easy par despite being no more than a wedge for most golfers

The second green features a beautiful snaking bunker, the front of which leaves you with a gruelling 30m explosion shot. The running approach is possible, but not evident from the driving zone, which is typical of the bunkering at NZGC

Course name: New Zealand Golf Club

Location: Addlestone, Surrey

Four Word Course Review: Bunkering overcomes flat site

I spent a wonderful afternoon at New Zealand Golf Club, a real haven of old-world charm.

Assistant secretary Richard Pennell greeted me and showed me through the cosy and charming clubhouse and locker rooms - the latter featuring a 100-year-old locker bearing the name of former member Arthur Conan Doyle - before we ventured out onto the course.

There isn't much change in elevation, but Tom Simpson's bunkering and redesign of Mure Ferguson's creation and lifelong love overcomes the site's natural limitations.

Bunkers that seem to be on the greenside reveal themselves to be 30m short as you approach them having been deceived as you weighed up your approach, several greens tilt subtly but sufficiently towards the back that a ball not run on from short of the putting surface will continue through to the trouble waiting beyond, and most holes exist in their own, private corridor - surrounded by pines, heather and the natural flora and fauna (including deer) of the London heathland.

The short par four 8th and equally short 13th each stand out as highlights, as do the collection of one-shotters: the 3rd, 5th, 7th, 10th and 16th, ranging from a 160m carry over heather at the last of them to a wedge to a multi-tiered green surrounded by sand at the 10th.

The only par 5 on the course, the 14th is reachable for many, but a front-to-back sloping green and smart bunkering on the drive and approach, as well as a sea of heather, conspire to make it a worthy stroke index 2.

The course really hits its stride when you cross back to the main paddock and walk onto the 12th tee. I've played very few stronger finishes, and can't recall a more charming golfing experience.