JPN - Seta Golf Club
We set aside one day to play golf during our 4 day stay in Kyoto, and really glad we did! About a 40min taxi out of Kyoto city, we played this public course on a Sunday December 3rd at 9:40am – conditions were cold (8 degrees) and slightly overcast, not much wind. The course boasts three 18 holes, and the north course, which we played, has hosted the Toto Japan Classic.
Condition
The tees and fairways had a few divots but overall the course was in great condition given the season.
Crisp autumn morning - be sure to pack warm clothes!
Biodiversity
Incredible colours of autumn trees framing the fairways, lots of water and undulating landscapes, and birds of prey on many of the holes – in particular the haunting call of a black kite as it waited and swooped for its prey.
Black kite followed us around
Vistas
The course was definitely built into the natural environment and the hills created great vantage points both to observe the internal vistas and the surrounding landscapes. It was quite a drive to get to the north course from the clubhouse - about 10 minutes, luckily we had our caddie, Saki to navigate the directions and terrain.
Self driving buggy was a first for us
Organisation
The cafeteria was quite large and impersonal and the building didn’t really feel like your traditional clubhouse, more like a new age airport hangar. That being said, everything was brilliantly organized from the moment you arrive - your clubs are unloaded from the car, you get a number at reception, and you walk up the stairs to the locker rooms to get settled in. From there you meet your caddie and are whisked off in a self driving golf cart to your first tee.
Our caddie, Saki was a very skilled driver around the course
The food was on another level. We literally had no idea what we were ordering, and when we got adventurous and thought we ordered sushi for entrée, it turned out to be sea anemone!
For sale in the proshop - may have trouble getting these back into Aus…
As per protocol, there is an hour long lunch break (you get given a docket with your exact return time), and of course the obligatory onsen experience after the game. We also stayed for drinks whilst waiting for our cab – google could not help with with translating the drinks menu – when we took a photo of the cocktail of the day, google translated it as “dried mackerel horse head” - not sure this was accurate. I was brave enough to order it, and turned out to be a lemon soshu style spritz – absolutely delish!
Design
We were thoroughly challenged by the course, and each hole posed a new test. It became easier once we worked out how to communicate with Saki our caddie speaking through google translate. There was a surprising amount of water to drive into, and the designer seemed to be tempting players – to the extent they actually wrote a cartoon about it (see below).
Hole 14, par 4: some wise guidance from the locals (100 yen for anyone who can interpret without google translate)
It was very “Japanese” in the sense that you really felt like you were in Japan – there was very little English, everyone else was local, and everything worked like clockwork! It was quiet and orderly, the proshop clothing was different (in the fashion sense – not a criticism). We all know that Japan loves its golf, and this experience was a prime example of this!
One surprise: the self driving golf cart – controlled remotely by our caddie as she was looking for our lost balls. We participated in a charity shot on one of the par threes, and I won a neck warmer which was a big surprise as we didn’t quite understand what was happening, and the prize was rather welcome against the cold breeze.
Greatest challenge: Deciphering the lunch menu, and hole 11 par 3, lost two balls in the water, same shot!
Something the course taught you: keep something warm in your bag as it was super cold, think about correcting for when standing above / below the ball (lots of undulations)
Favourite hole: hole three par 4, interesting and challenging bunker placement and right dogleg right – beware the water! Not sure this, counts - but the hot onsen after the game was a game changer.
Piece of advice: make and effort to engage with caddie, they are a wealth of information and insight (and they love golf). Make time for an onsen, it is something we don’t do in Australia and really enhanced the experience.
80/100 rating: our subjective review for this course on this day.
