Oulton Hall – The Calverley Course

Oulton Hall not only offers 27 holes of inviting parkland golf, it also boasts Yorkshire’s only five-star hotel. The courses have benefited from a recent, highly-expensive upgrade. The Calverley course certainly finishes in grand style, starting from the short par-4 15th where you’ll do well to hit a tiny green which sits down in a hidden copse. The longer, straighter par-4 following hole – severely tree-lined all the way down – is pretty special too. The practice facilities are top class and include a Golf Academy and Nike custom-fitting centre. The Calverley is well supported by the nine-hole Hall loop, which runs round and infront of the luxury hotel and spa.

Click here to find out where Oulton Hall ranks in Golf World's Top 100 Resorts UK & Ireland

Oulton Hall Golf Club's Park Course is set in 400 acres of beautiful Yorkshire countryside close to Leeds. 

The Dave Thomas-designed, 27-hole championship complex overlooks a beautiful landscape of hills and dales. With meandering fairways, strategic placed bunkers and subtle undulating greens both The Calverley 18-hole and The Hall 9-hole golf courses are a demanding test for all abilities.

• Course has: Bar
• Course has: Buggy Hire
• Course has: Driving Range
• Course does not have: Practice Green
• Course has: Pro Shop
• Course has: Restaurant
• Course has: Trolley Hire
• Course has: Dress Code
• Course has: Club Hire
• Course does not have: Handicap

• 5 out of 5 My review 19 June 2015

  By Gibby

  Very nice woodland course,hard for the high handicapper because of the long grass off the fairways , but will defo go back and try again. Greens are very good.

• 4 out of 5 Too busy weekends 19 June 2014

  By Me

  Points system works well for me as I couldn't get full benefit from full membership. Course gets really busy on a weekend and sometimes slow play is a problem. Pins are changed regularly and greens in good condition. If you pay and play works out very expensive, drinks and food in the claret jug overpriced too.

• 2 out of 5 Far too busy 19 May 2011

  By burtiebonham

  I just became a member recently as there's an offer where its £295 for around 40-45 rounds. It sounded too good to be true and as usual it was. The course condition is pretty good but the greens are poor for a course that's £65 at the weekend to play. None of the holes are particularly hard and there's no real difference to the hazards since De Vere took over & tripled the price. The worst thing about the course is how busy it is. Its never possible to just turn up & play. Even when you book a week in advance there are very limited tee times available. When you do play you can expect a slow round that's always over 4 hours, last Tuesday it took myself in two ball 5 hours. They simply put too many people on the course at once. There seems to be no limit on members and I'm scared to think what's its going to be like in the height of summer. Overall I'd say its cheap with the current membership offer but due to this it's too busy and can be very stressful. I will certainly not be renewing my membership.

• 4 out of 5 Great course. Expensive food and drink 20 October 2008

  By chamboski

  Interesting course and a good test, was in great condition when we played. Was a fairly slow round (4 1/2 hours for a 2 ball), but the 4 balls were queued up in front of us. Make sure you take a full wallet if you want to eat or drink, you can tell it's a DeVere Hotel venue.

• 2 out of 5 Not Meeting Expectations 05 May 2008

  By Sophie Douglas

  I was due to be playing this course in a corporate event the week after and when i booked on stated specifically that i wanted to play the holes i would be playing the week after, the gent in the pro shop told me which part of the course i would be playing and a competition would be finishing but that would be: "no problem, you will probably have the course to yourselves at that time". On a arrival, very plush, noted the putting green outside the clubhouse out of action, so no getting the speeds of the greens prior to playing then! continued into the club house into what looked a very well stocked pro shop to be told i couldn't play the holes i requested. Not happy! even with 2 fore 1 still £25 each!!!!. Clubhouse and changing facilities very modern and definatley what you would expect from De Vere. Proceded to the first hole and teed off, prefered lies still in operation. The grass on the tees was very long and some what hindered, the greens on the 19 - 27 section were very poor, some disease had taken hold and had left bare patches across all of the greens, it was like putting on the local pitch and putt, not a first rate venue. The course itself was very evident why prefered lies were still in use, areas were so muddy your ball could plug on the fairway in certain places. Some of the travelling between the tees was rediculous especially between the 21st and 22nd with not enough directions when you have to walk about 100 yards throught the hotel car park. On the 26th, which was our 6th someone jumped in front of us on the course and proceded to play 4 or 5 balls into the green from about 100 yards holding us up and on the next par three also he decided to play 4 balls from the tee! We then played the back nine 10 - 18, waiting for someone else who had jumped infront. The condition of the course was better, still very wet and the greens a little better in terms of disease. However they had been left very long and for a top venue were impossibly slow. Could certainly benefit from "next tee" signs placed next to the greens or some indication put on the course planner. Overall very dissatisfied, would have felt really let down if i had paid full price, felt some what aggrieved even with paying 2 fore 1 as there are other courses in the area in far better condition.

• 4 out of 5 Fantastic Course! 12 July 2007

  By david jordan

  As a new member of the course I am absolutely thrilled with the standard & condition the course is in. I have been playing golf for the last two years after not playing since I was 16 and had been looking to join a course. For the £625 I paid in June (Pro-rata of £750) with no joining fee I am amazed at the quality of the course. This isn't to say they haven't got work to do, as they have. More on this later though. First for the positives. I hadn't played at Oulton Hall when it was council run and I had heard numerous things about the drainage of the course and the fact that it was practically unplayable when it had been raining. This is far from the truth now. There is new drainage everywhere with the scars starting to heal nicely now. The general quality of the fairways is fantastic. The greens whilst challenging are true and in good condition if not a little slow. The best part of the course for me though is the challenge it possesses every time I play it. For a course with not many bunkers and hardly any water you really have to play the course tactically. Almost every other hole is a dog leg and course knowledge is a must (I recommend the strokesaver booklet for £3). Many of the tee shots offer a tempting amount of fairway however if you are not a straight golfer there is trouble everywhere. With the use of 27 holes you can normally get on at any time although even in the time I have been a member it is getting very busy on a weekend with Hotel guests and corporate days. You have to accept this being a member of a club associated with a hotel though. Finally, if you are having a bad round, there is always the beer buggy that comes around the course to help you forget your woes! Now for the few negatives although some slightly harsh! Bunkers. These need a bit of work on them as if the weather is good the sand isn't bad although after a bit of water the bunkers become very hard and water pools in some of them. Water features. Needs a few more water features for aesthetical purposes. Number of members. When I joined there was 475 members with a cap of 500. The current number is 510 with an proposed cap of 550. I feel that the number of members at the moment is the right amount and if it goes any higher than 550, with the corporate days and hotel guests the course could become to busy. A joining fee of £250 has now been introduced though. To end on a positive note, I have just booked my trip upto De Vere Slaley Hall as with your membership you get 10 rounds per year at every other De Vere course as part of your membership which also allows 3 visitors, 10 times a year at every De Vere course as well at Visitor rates (£15 weekdays, £20 Weekends). Hope to see you soon. Dave