by Jabunong – Golf Passport UK

Course: Richmond Park Golf Course – Duke’s
Date: May 2026
Gross Score: 85 | Net Stableford: 34 pts (+2) | Handicap: 13

The first round of the year always carries a bit of extra weight. You’ve spent months telling yourself you’ll get to the range more, sort your short game, stop leaving birdie putts short on the left. And then the date arrives, and none of that happened — so you just show up and find out who you are.

I found out pretty quickly.

Before the ball was struck

My tee time was 1:00pm. I arrived at 12:50.

Not the hour of warm-up I’d planned. Not even five minutes on the putting green. Just enough time to change my shoes, grab my bag, and jog to the first tee looking like I had somewhere else to be.

My playing partner for the day was Mutsa — my brother-in-law and a solid golfer. He, unlike me, had spent the morning at another course working on his game. He didn’t say much about it when I picked him up. He didn’t need to. The psychological advantage was already secured.

I suggested a two-man scramble, keeping it relaxed for the first round of the year. He agreed.

Then we stepped onto the first tee. And the scramble idea quietly disappeared.

Hole 1: A Very Public Disaster

There was another group waiting behind us on the tee box.

I mention this because what followed would have been embarrassing enough in private. With an audience, it was something else entirely.

I stepped up to the first — a par 4 — dressed well (this matters to me), swing thoughts half-formed, and promptly duffed my driver into the rough. What followed was a sequence of recovery shots that didn’t recover, a green reached too late, and a triple putt to finish. An 8. On a par 4. With people watching.

I laughed. Genuinely. Because what else do you do? I looked like a complete beginner who’d borrowed someone else’s wardrobe. The only move was to laugh, pick up the tee, and walk.

But quietly, as we made our way to the second tee, I made a decision: the driver was done for the day.

The 3-Wood Decision

After that first hole, I made a deliberate call — the driver goes back in the bag and doesn’t come out again. The 3-wood was taking over off every tee.

It sounds simple. But making that decision after one hole, sticking to it for 17 more, and trusting it when the temptation to reach for the big stick crept back in — that’s where rounds are actually won or lost. Not on the range. On the course, in the moment, when your ego tells you to swing harder.

I ignored my ego. The 3-wood didn’t let me down once.

The Round, Hole-by-Hole

Front Nine: 46 — 14 Stableford points

Back Nine

Hole 10 (Par 3) – 4
Green in regulation, two putts. Started the back nine the way I wanted to finish the front.

Hole 11 (Par 4) – 5
Poor tee shot, but the recovery was clean. Bogey with no drama.

Hole 12 (Par 5) – 6
Good setup into the hole. Approach misjudged into the wind — the wind at Richmond Park is sneakier than it looks, especially further out. Dropped a shot, but a par 5 double is manageable.

Hole 13 (Par 4) – 4
One of the highlights of the day. Controlled, tidy, nothing wasted.

What You Need to Know About the Ditches

Here’s the thing that no course website will tell you about Duke’s: the ditches are not decorative.

They’re placed where your instincts tell you to aim. The safe landing zone that looks generous from the tee? There’s a ditch waiting just past it. The approach line that looks straightforward? A ditch runs across it at exactly the wrong distance.

I’ve seen golfers come to Richmond Park treating it as a friendly parkland course, and the ditches have other ideas. They’re the real difficulty rating of this course. Play a club less than you think. Take the line that keeps you short. The par system at Duke’s is built around the assumption that you’ll find at least two of them — plan around that assumption.

Course Review – Duke’s Course

Richmond Park Golf Course (Duke’s Course) continues to be one of the best value golf experiences in London.

Value for Money ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

£100 for a 2-ball green fee. In West London, that’s exceptional. Add in the location — 25 to 30 minutes from Heathrow — and you’ve got one of the most accessible quality courses in the city. There are two courses on site (Duke’s and Prince’s), which means repeat visits never feel like the same day out.

Layout ⭐⭐⭐

Tree-lined fairways, ditches that demand decision-making, and a mix of short and longer par 4s that keeps the scorecard honest throughout. It’s not a course you overpower — it’s a course you think your way around. The back nine, in particular, opens up in a way that rewards patience built on the front.

Condition ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Greens rolled true and consistent all day. Fairways were slightly dry, which gave extra run but also meant more unpredictable bounces. Well maintained overall, and the layout more than compensates for any surface variability.

Difficulty ⭐⭐⭐

Deceptively challenging. The yardage doesn’t look intimidating on paper. The ditches, the wind, and the elevated greens make it play longer and harder than you expect — especially if it’s your first time here.

Booking ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Direct through the Richmond Park Golf Course website https://www.richmondparkgolf.co.uk/ or via GolfNow https://www.golfnow.com/ for occasional discounts. Book well in advance for weekend slots — this course fills up.

Scorecard and Final Thought

An 85 off a 13 handicap, first round of the year, no warm-up, and an opening 8 — I’ll take it without hesitation.

The real win wasn’t the scorecard. It was the adjustment. After one terrible hole in front of strangers, I made a decision, committed to it, and played the back nine almost entirely on my own terms. That’s not rust. That’s not luck. That’s the kind of in-round problem-solving that actually takes a player from an 85 to a 79.

The 3-wood is staying in the bag until the driver earns its place back.

The biggest areas to work on going forward: the par 3s were leaking shots all day, and holes 3, 4, and 5 on the front nine — all manageable par 4s — were all 6s. That’s where a low 80s round lives.

But for a season opener? This was a solid foundation.

Final Thoughts

This round was a perfect reminder of how quickly things can change in golf.

From a nightmare start on the 1st to a composed and controlled back nine, it genuinely felt like two different rounds. The biggest positive was finding consistency with the 3-wood and making better decisions as the round progressed.

The weather held up nicely—sunny for most of the round before the rain came in right at the end. We couldn’t have timed it better.

A solid start to 2026, and plenty to build on.

Overall Rating ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Play Again?: Without question

Richmond Park Golf Course — Duke’s Course, Richmond, London. Green fees from £50 pp (weekday) to £100 for a 2-ball (weekend).
Two courses on site. Booking: richmondparkgolf.co.uk https://www.richmondparkgolf.co.uk/

Jabunong