Christmas 2009

With Christmas approaching, the Operations Team at Driveline Golf decide turkey is off the menu and head out for a good curry (and a few beers).... after all the office in Shefford is close to the Shefford Tandoori ....... the '7th best Indian Restaurant' in the UK!!

Here come the boys. Steve, Paul and Melly head for the pub. We must ask Steve what that gesture means!!

Paul & Gwen - When the pressure is on, Gwen 'wants to die'....Do you think Paul takes her seriously?

Steve & Lawrence - Lawrence gives Steve a few tips about being a 'new' father....Steve's heard it all before!!

Paul & Melly - Paul looks miserable... so nothing new there and Melly is well in the swing of it.

Gwen & Steve - Steve thinks we're joking when we say the bill will be down to them.... Gwen isn't so sure...

International Golf Travel Market 2009.
Every year, golf tour operators come together with hoteliers and golf course owners to contract each others services for the coming year. The International Golf Travel Market (IGTM) is a key date in the diary of anyone who is serious about golf tourism. This year it was held in Malaga.

Beforehand, a group of tour operators from across the world got together with Driveline Golf for a 3 day, pre workshop visit to the Valle del Este Golf resort in Spain. Located in the south eastern corner of Spain (about one hour south of Murcia) it is one of the finest golf resorts we know and with two or three other world class golf courses nearby (notably Desert Springs, and Mundo Aguilon) it is fast becoming a favourite with UK golfers.

Our thanks to Alfredo Caparros and the team at Valle del Este for all their help.

But it’s not all about serious business. We played for the El Pollo Grande Trophy (don’t ask why it's called that) over three rounds under the spurious rules of South African tournament director, Scott Edkins (aka ‘Scott Wins’). This year however, his rules backfired and Scott didn’t win!! He was usurped by an even dodgier handicap from Brazil.

And here is the winner, Michael Nagy. We thought "bandit" was a Mexican term...but it turns out it's pure Brazilian.

You may wonder why he's holding a pack of nappies in his right hand. The fact is he's got 7 days to get the bribe money into my account before I reveal the answer to the world....

Driveline Golf Group Bookers Golf Weekend

We were delighted to be able to invite 22 of our group bookers to France for a weekend's golf competition. We stayed at the Hotel du Golf Barriere in Deauville and played two rounds - one each at Golf Barriere and Golf St Julien. Our thanks to the team at Lucien Barriere and Eurotunnel who sponsored the trip. This is one of many such trips and getting an invitation is easy. Just book a golf holiday with us and make sure you bring 30 of your friends on the trip.



By becoming a fan of our Facebook pages, you can see more pictures. Click Here

Paul was invited to represent Team England (in Red) in the Andalusian English Cup on 24 September at Selsdon Park in Surrey - a one day golf event with a team of English tour operators playing a team of golf course directors from southern Spain (in White). Who won? Modesty forbids me to say…. but it wasn’t the visitors from Andalusia.

Once again we've invited 20 of our top group bookers to join us for a weekend golf competition in France on 2nd October (not to mention some serious wining and dining)...I just hope the winners remember to buy the rest of us a drink!

‘How do I get invited on these trips?’ I hear you ask. It's easy. Just buy a golf holiday from us and make sure you include 30 of your friends.

Look out for the post trip photos.

Congratulations to Driveline Golfer, Steve Walsh - His first daughter was born on Saturday at 3.55 pm. Baby Emma weighed in at 8 lbs 11 oz and both mother and baby doing fine.

Bargain Hunters Take Note!!

I can't believe the plethora of special offer autumn golf breaks in the UK that have come across my desk in the past few days. Many of them are for less than £100!! including two rounds of golf and dinner at 4 star properties with good golf courses on site. Bargain hunters take note!

Sue Colby has been doing sterling work recruiting new hotels and golf courses to add to our collection of UK golf holidays and golfing breaks. These new venues will be appearing on the Driveline Golf website in the coming weeks. Thanks Sue.

Golf Holidays and Golf Short Breaks in Belgium

Special Offer
Click Here ...for details of our latest golf holiday special offers including a fabulous break to Belgium from £199 per person that includes 2 rounds of golf, 2 nights hotel and the Channel crossing.

As the demand for golf in some parts of Europe increases every year, the availability there is such that golfers are having to book sometimes up to one year in advance. Every year thousands of British golfers head for the excellent golf courses in Northern France – many of them (thankfully) booking their golf break with Driveline Golf

This means getting tee times and hotels during the spring and autumn months can be difficult for those who book slightly later. But it doesn't have to be like that. Be prepared to travel just that little bit further and an abundance of fine Belgian hotels, chateaux and splendid golf courses await you - all with excellent availability. Take our word for it, Belgium is a first class golf destination with excellent motorway links and is less than 2 hours from Calais. But as yet it is relatively undiscovered by golfers.

The best courses (in our opinion) are to be found to around Waterloo and Mons to the south of Brussels. However Bruges, in the north, is also surrounded by some excellent golf. There are also some fine courses around Namur but here you are faced with a longer drive from Calais.

If it is that good, why aren’t we all heading there in droves? Well, we have a theory about that – at least as far as golf is concerned. We think the locals know they’ve got some of the best courses in Europe but they are more than happy to keep it to themselves. They simply don’t care if the rest of the world looks over or past them to see what France, or Spain or Portugal offer visiting golfers.

So, because they keep their heads down, mind their own business and don’t dance up and down shouting about how good their golf courses are, the rest of us have been suckered into thinking it’s not up to much. Sorry Belgium, we see it as our job to blow your secret. So let’s repeat what we said earlier. Belgium is great for golf.

The concentration of courses is to be found in the Brabant Wallon and Hainaut regions, just south of Brussels where overall countryside is flat – which is one of the reasons it became part of the killing fields that were the trenches of the World War I. Where a few hills do exist, you can bet you’ll find a golf course there.

Nowhere is this better exemplified than at Royal Golf Waterloo. Here you will find two 18-hole courses (La Marache and Le Lion) and it is a past host to the Belgian Open which speaks volumes for the standard. The condition of the greens and fairways is first class and attention to detail is everything. In fact our only ‘beef’ with Royal Waterloo is that it is not always available at weekends.

Don’t worry though, there is plenty of other quality venues nearby.

One such example is Golf Royal Hainaut - 27 magnificent golf holes. Also Club de Sept Fontaines is home to two very fine golf courses as is Chateau de la Tournette. The choice of other terrific Belgian golf courses is enough for us to be able to omit some of the lesser tracks in order to ensure you are offered only those that we think will delight you.

Belgian golf has a long history, an excellent present and a healthy future but if the local golfers had their way you can’t tell your friends for fear they just might want to go.

Welcome to Driveline Golf’s Definitive Golf Holiday Blog
Future posts will hopefully serve as a guide to the best value golf holiday regions that can be found at Driveline Golf . We will also be introducing you to the guys and girls in our office.

Our aim is to give you ideas about overseas golf regions to visit, the courses to play and also the different types of hotels that are available in these featured regions. Since we opened our golf holiday collection in 1998, we have been regular visitors to our chosen venues and it seems that each time we visit them, something has changed. Golf courses have opened or they have been altered (sometimes for the better, sometimes not) or there has been a change of ownership that has altered the course’s policy towards visiting golfers. Then there are hotels that have opened…or closed, or have been renovated. Just to whet your appetite, would you believe you can take a golf break for less than £100 per person? You can you know.

Whatever, there is always something different and we want to make sure you make your choice based on the latest information available. ‘Rapid change’ is something we have to live with and a traditional holiday brochure does not always reflect the many changes that have taken place to a region over a very short period of time. We believe the best way to keep up to date is by logging into these pages or visiting our website because it can be (and is) regularly updated to instantly represent all that is new.

Or you can call us 0870 330 1055.

We are committed to give you the very best price for your holiday. In the past we published seasonal prices but these would often be superseded by subsequent, discount and special offers received from our hotel and golf suppliers - offers we receive regularly. We want to pass on these offers as a saving to you so once you've decided where and when you want to travel, please contact us. Furthermore, only after you have agreed the itinerary, accepted the quoted price and we have confirmed its availability will you be committed to the booking.

One final tip - Beware the promise that some operators give; the one about “If you can find a lower price elsewhere, we will match it”. Our philosophy is simple. If someone is willing to drop the original price just because we have made you a better offer, they were trying to charge you too much in the first place.

This being the first post, we hope it will make you want to come back here.
Good golfing