Hole 2 "Castle"

Lumley Castle looms large, as the name suggests, a brooding presence beyond the green, yet providing a line from the tee, either on its cupola or left hand tower. For many, the drive from the medal tee (hard up against the out of bounds fence) can prove intimidating, even reaching a flat lie on the fairway something of an achievement. From there, the hole turns left, all the time climbing steadily to a small two-tier green, making it play longer than the measured length, except in a westerly wind. The deep bunker short and left is to be avoided (all too easy to run up a six), while that digging into the right hand portion of the green is visited surprisingly infrequently. Perhaps because, with the pin sited on the lower tier (signalled by a single pennant on the flag), a shot from just short is far preferable to one down from the upper tier. From there, in summer, stopping a putt by the pin can be an art form. Better three putts, though, than going right through into the Castle grounds.