Advice on which club in Oslo

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Steve1983
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Advice on which club in Oslo

Post by Steve1983 »

Hello everyone

British guy here moving to West Oslo next month and would love some tips on which clubs to join/play. I have been playing at Bodø Golfklubb this season and would be great to meet some new people who love their golf like me.

Done some research and seems clubs like Grini/Ballerud seem ok and reasonable price range. Bogstad looks a top course but 40,000kr joining fee :o !!!

Would love some input from you locals around Oslo and if you would like to meet up a game that sounds great. Ive been playing golf for one season and my UK handicap is 28 but my registered handicap here in Norway is 45. Need to get some more scores into Golfbox!

Cheers
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Re: Advice on which club in Oslo

Post by Yorkie »

Hiya Steve.
West of Oslo you can choose between; Bogstad, Grini, Haga, Ballerud, Lommedalen, Bærum, Kjekstad and Asker. Ballerud is a nice short hole course, and the rest is full size courses (Grini 9 holes, the rest 18(27). Apart from Bogstad, none of them stand out in my opinion, and Bogstad is out as there is a waitinglist to join. Depending on where you live you might also consider Holtsmark, Tyrifjord and Drammen. Holtsmark has the best design, however the condition can be a bit hit and miss. Tyrifjord is a bit of a gem as it is located on an island, pretty as a picture, and decent design as well, downside is the mosquitos ;) My impression is that Kjekstad, Asker and Tyrifjord has good membership atmosphere, members there seem to be very proud of their club and whenever I visit they seem to be very friendly and social environments. The courses at Kjekstad and Asker, well, let's say that there are different opinions on their design.
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Re: Advice on which club in Oslo

Post by Golffreak »

I assume you work on the west side as well? If you want to play after work, there might be more relevant to look at how long you will be in traffic driving to the various courses. As already mentioned, you are already 20 years too late to become a member at Bogstad as the members who has waited since 1988 got an offer to become members last year... Nice course, but the waiting list does not mean it is that much better than some of the others ;) . Anyway, Haga Golf club is just a few minutes away with 27 holes. There are different opinions about the course lay-out, but in good condition it is a nice course. The problem is that the groundwork is very poor, and the members just got a report from some experts that it needs to be re-built in order to get good conditions (!). In other words, I would be very reluctant to spend my money at Haga GK. Grini GK is a fairly good 9-hole course, but not the most exciting in my opinion. Fairly good conditions usually though. As mentioned from Yorkie, Asker, Bærum, Kjekstad are alternatives as well. If you live in Bærum or Asker, it is not too long of a drive to Holtsmark or even Tyrifjord. The conditions at Holtsmark could be better on average, however they were great in 2011. Even if you live on the west side, I would seriously consider Hauger GK but this is a more difficult course. It is one of my favourites though, and I would say that they generally have good conditions. If you can tolerate to drive about 20-25 minutes (without traffic), then you have Miklagard north of Oslo. The greens there are the best usually, and the general conditions are very good. This is also a difficult championship course, but they have several tee boxes.

BTW, unless you are 100% sure that you will play at the course for the rest of your life don't buy (or accept) any shares at the golf clubs. You will not be able to get rid of it later, and you are obliged to pay the annual fee which vary from 8-14K NOK per year. You can rent a right to play (look at finn.no or golfsiden.no), or just pay greenfee. You can get some discounts at some clubs if you have the Viasat Golf card for example (by subscribing to Viasat Golf TV channel).

Good luck with your golf, you can practice indoors at Fornebu indoor golf center for example.
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Re: Advice on which club in Oslo

Post by Steve1983 »

Thanks Yorkie and Golffreak for the replies, some really good insight into the areas. Also thanks for the info on shares as I also thought they looked a waste of time and money! On closer inspection im moving quite central neat St Hanshaugen so im guessing nearest clubs would be Grini,Haga and Ballerud. I think next season I may just pay the greenfee each time until I find a club I like. Looks like there are some lovely courses West of Oslo and will definitely make the trip.

Anymore info would be welcome.

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Re: Advice on which club in Oslo

Post by Pia_C »

Grønmo is also a nice 9-hole course located south in Oslo, a 10-15 min drive from St. Hanshaugen.
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Re: Advice on which club in Oslo

Post by Yorkie »

Hiya Steve,
St.Hanshaugen is pretty central, so you migth want to peruse the clubs north/southeast as well. Getting up to Grini/Haga can be bl.. nuisance, and getting to Oppegård or Hauger would be the same in terms of time. SE, Grønmo, already mentioned, quite nice and good training fasilities, Oppegård, Drøbak, Østmarka is worth a look. Oppegård, decent forest course, Drøbak, nice parkland, a bit short tho, Østmarka, well, ok I guess. N; Hauger, Losby and Miklagard. Hauger, quite demanding, and you get a good cardio as well. Losby, good course undoubtedly, personally, I dont quite get it, but cant be a fan of all courses :) Miklagard is by many considered to the best course in Norway, always super greens and good training facilities. PM me next season (dont think there is too many rounds left of this) and we'll play some rounds, net match of course, looser buys the coffee ;) (a pint and crisps after the round doesnt quite fit the current legislation unfortunately)
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Re: Advice on which club in Oslo

Post by Golffreak »

Just a couple of other ideas.. You might appreciate courses like Oppegård, Drøbak, Hakadal, Haga etc more in the beginning as these are a little easier than Miklagard and Hauger. Before you invest in either "buying" a share (you can get them for free now at every club, except Bogstad) or renting for a season, I suggest that you try out all the courses next season and just pay greenfee. There are some club tournaments etc that you cannot play by not being a member, but you can book a round about 3 days in advance which is usually OK. Instead of just being a member at some remote golf club, I suggest that you become a "greenfee-member" (discount) at one of the clubs around Oslo. Compared to the cheapest remote club, you pay about 1000 kr more but then you can play in tournaments and get discounts etc. Holtsmark, Losby and others offer this at a reasonable price (around 1500 kr).

Good luck :)
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Re: Advice on which club in Oslo

Post by Steve1983 »

Again thanks for the replies fellas. Yorkie will def send you a pm next season, be great to play a few rounds with a local. Golf freak had the same idea too about just paying a greenfee next season, have no qualms about just paying as I play next season. It's all about getting used to the area next season for me. New chapter for 'me and I can't wait to hit those courses :-)

Take you up on the round bet Yorkie, prob be buying you pint in England by the looks of your handicap lol. Anyway looking forward to reducing my handicap and enjoying courses down south next season. Thanks for the replies and be nice to play a few rounds with you guys next season.

Cheers
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Re: Advice on which club in Oslo

Post by Franz »

Hmm, I just posted here ten min ago...and it's not here...?

Was just asking if you'll have a car?
It's quite a different story with public transportation.

I'm living a hard four iron from St Hanshaugen, but will be moving to Bodø some time next summer. Happy to show you 'round one of the courses south east of town before that.
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Re: Advice on which club in Oslo

Post by Steve1983 »

Sounds good Franz. No I dont have a car which could be difficult, i guess i just need to check out with course closest to train station.
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Re: Advice on which club in Oslo

Post by Franz »

Steve1983 wrote:Sounds good Franz. No I dont have a car which could be difficult, i guess i just need to check out with course closest to train station.
Oppegård is the most accessible by train.
By any public transportation, I think...?
5 min from Greverud St.
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Re: Advice on which club in Oslo

Post by Golffreak »

I have never used public transportation to any golf course, but Oppegård must be the most accessible. There might be a bus route passing Grini and Haga, and there might be a bus stopping close to Miklagard. It will take a while though, and don't know how frequent they are.. The golf courses are by far easiest to access by car, and you won't meet a lot of golfers on trains or buses ;)
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Re: Advice on which club in Oslo

Post by veggiss »

Miklagard is 10 mins walk from the train station.
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Re: Advice on which club in Oslo

Post by Steve1983 »

Yeah I know it's not an ideal situation not having a car but looks like I can reach a few courses by t-bane in 20-25mins which is fine for now. By checking on google map looks like stations near are Høvik at Ballerud golfcourse, Eiksmarka for Grini and looks like Oppegård is accesible too. Need to but myself a smaller golf bag for the journey!

Is it around end of April courses reopen for 2013 season here in Norway? Going to have put with flying back to UK for a few freezing cold rounds of golf!

Thanks again everyone
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Re: Advice on which club in Oslo

Post by furu »

Some courses around Stavanger and Bergen are open during the winter. But yes, end of April is normal. Short season :)
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Re: Advice on which club in Oslo

Post by Golffreak »

If you are a bit hardcore, and have a car, you can play at least from beginning of April until end of October by driving to Vestfold or Østfold. Depending on the weather and winter, there are a couple of courses that open early and close later in the fall. I played until almost month of December last year, and started the season in March:-). Both rounds was at Onsøy, about an hour by car from Oslo. Conditions are not like during the summer of course, but if you are a hardcore-golfer you play as long as it's open... ;). A lot of people also drive to the west coast of Sweden to play, especially in the spring as some courses open a few weeks earlier. There are good courses all the way down the coast, and the further south the earlier they open ususally.

If you don't have a need for a car besides golf, maybe you can join a car pool club or something? I don't think that is too expensive, and you don't have to worry too much as you don't own the car yourself (maintenance, buy/sell etc). Should be easy to find if you google it. Other alternatives could be to become a member at a club you can leave your gear, and then use public transportation, bicycle, scooter or something. There are not too many clubs with storage lockers unfortuntaely. Carrying a full set of golf clubs on the bus or train during the rush hours is not something I recommend, as you can hardly squeeze in yourself..

Don't forget that you can train indoors at Fornebu, and that is accessible by bus and you don't have to carry all your clubs. It's a good place to train during the winter.
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