Course is suited to head-to-head golf

Our golf correspondent Gareth Le Prevost takes his clubs along to La Grande Mare – venue for the Guernsey Open Matchplay – and in the company of club captain Ross Bateman sees for himself the progress made by the club in raising the bar in terms of developing the woodland course.

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IF YOU want dramatic matchplay, La Grande Mare is the place to play, according to the club captain.

During an evening excursion out on the 4,761-yard west-coast layout, Ross Bateman demonstrated how he approaches the various challenges LGM presents and the logic behind his preference for matches over strokeplay is very understandable.

The standard scratch score of 64 is arguably two or three shots light of what it should be, something the membership would like to see rectified, but the nature of the course lends itself to exciting one-on-one contests in which momentum can change in an instant.

With the Ravenscroft Guernsey Open Matchplay being held at La Grande Mare in less than a fortnight, some of the island's elite players can put that theory to the test in the inaugural tournament, which is being run in association with the Guernsey Press.

'It's great to have a chance to showcase the competition, particularly after hosting the Island Women's Championship this year,' said Bateman.

• Read Gareth's full report on the course in the Guernsey Press