Belton Woods Stay And Play Review

Jeremy Ellwood visits the 36-hole resort in south Lincolnshire

Belton Woods Stay And Play Review

Jeremy Ellwood visits the 36-hole resort in south Lincolnshire

Belton Woods Stay And Play Review

Lakes course: par 72, 6,857 yards; Woods course: par 73, 6,681 yards

Greenfee: £45 per round

The courses at Belton Woods complement each other very well, with the Woods skirting around the outside of the Lakes in two separate loops of nine.

There’s water aplenty on the latter, with the first lake appearing short left of the pretty par-3 2nd.

It certainly makes you think at times, particularly just short of the 6th and 8th greens, and then on the strong par-5 finale, especially if you’re going for it in two.

There are more changes in elevation on the Woods layout, which plays alongside the resort’s lodges early on, before climbing to the highest ground for a loop of three excellent holes from the 4th.

Three pars 5s over the closing stretch bring hope of a late rally.

Also play… Stoke Rochford (stokerochfordgolfclub.co.uk) is a parkland course 12 miles south on the A1 where a river comes into play on four holes.

Accommodation

This QHotels resort has a choice of rooms from classic and executive to VIQ, where an upgrade will get you a host of extras.

It also offers a number of lodges mostly set alongside the 2nd and 3rd holes of the Woods course.

Belton Woods Stay And Play Review

The extensively refurbished health club and spa offers plenty over and above a fitness studio, pool, gym and treatment rooms, with tennis, squash and even croquet and archery also available on site.

You can eat in Stantons Brasserie, which offers a splendid carvery and rotisserie dinner menu, or more informally in the Claret Jug, which doubles up as the clubhouse.

The outside terrace is a bustling place in the summer, and just perfect for enjoying a post-round drink while watching others try to stay out of the water.

Where else… The imposing, elevated Belvoir Castle (belvoircastle.com), complete with Capability Brown grounds, lies just ten miles away.

Best Deal

A one-night, dinner, bed-and-breakfast break with 36 holes of golf costs £99pp until the end of March (excluding Saturday nights).

From April it’s £109 for the same break.

Where

Belton Woods is just off the A1 near Grantham.

Turn off at Gonerby Moor Services on to the B1174 and follow the Belton signs.

Checklist

Buggy hire: £35 Power trolley hire: £10 Trolley hire: £5 Club hire: £25 Driving range: Yes Putting green: Yes Short-game area: Yes Pro shop: Yes Changing rooms: Yes Sky TV: Yes, in the bars Wi-Fi: Yes Price of a pint: From £4 to £5

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Jeremy Ellwood
Contributing Editor

Jeremy Ellwood has worked in the golf industry since 1993 and for Golf Monthly since 2002 when he started out as equipment editor. He is now a freelance journalist writing mainly for Golf Monthly. He is an expert on the Rules of Golf having qualified through an R&A course to become a golf referee. He is a senior panelist for Golf Monthly's Top 100 UK & Ireland Course Rankings and has played all of the Top 100 plus 91 of the Next 100, making him well-qualified when it comes to assessing and comparing our premier golf courses. He has now played 1,000 golf courses worldwide in 35 countries, from the humblest of nine-holers in the Scottish Highlands to the very grandest of international golf resorts. He reached the 1,000 mark on his 60th birthday in October 2023 on Vale do Lobo's Ocean course. Put him on a links course anywhere and he will be blissfully content.

Jezz can be contacted via Twitter - @JezzEllwoodGolf

Jeremy is currently playing...

Driver: Ping G425 LST 10.5˚ (draw setting), Mitsubishi Tensei AV Orange 55 S shaft

3 wood: Srixon ZX, EvenFlow Riptide 6.0 S 50g shaft

Hybrid: Ping G425 17˚, Mitsubishi Tensei CK Pro Orange 80 S shaft

Irons 3- to 8-iron: Ping i525, True Temper Dynamic Gold 105 R300 shafts

Irons 9-iron and PW: Honma TWorld TW747Vx, Nippon NS Pro regular shaft

Wedges: Ping Glide 4.0 50˚ and 54˚, 12˚ bounce, True Temper Dynamic Gold 105 R300 shafts

Putter: Kramski HPP 325

Ball: Any premium ball I can find in a charity shop or similar (or out on the course!)