A community course in the rural town of Whatawhata. Te Kowhai Golf Club was my second choice of a quick 9 whilst driving upcountry. I pulled over at Ngahinepouri Golf Club but it was closed for a tournament. That was 2 courses in one morning that turned me away due to an overabundance of golfers.

I am 43 courses into the 393 across New Zealand, just over a tenth of the way there. It is time to pick up the pace. The thought of quickly running around New Zealand and playing 393 golf courses has had a reality check. I need to keep my head down and swing hard to get closer to my golfing goal.

I have a new golf coach, I’ve had a couple of the coaches leave from the Institute of Golf at Ellerslie. Maybe the challenge of me is too much for these men.

The new coach, Ross speaks my language, a fellow Scot. Already I have seen improvement in my ball striking. The journey is looking positive to the single figure mark. But I need to apply myself and commit to getting this done.

The chap in the clubrooms at Te Kowhai Golf Club suggested I take a card to help me find my way around. “You’re on your own out there – a private round at no extra cost!” The front of the card at Te Kowhai has a picture of a nice bird. At first, I thought it was a Kowhai, but it turns out the Kowhai is a tree!

The front of the card is much prettier than the back.

This course has flat narrow fairways and many trees. I soon squashed my first thought of how I would make easy work of this little course. How wrong I was. Midwinter and slightly long fairway grass were not forgiving to a poor skinny drive looking for a bit of run-up. The greens were perfectly fine and flat to putt on. Easier than Waitomo’s earlier that morning.

A straight par 5 to start off was followed by long par 4’s 380, 345 and 254. No, it is not a typo 254 metres, the trick here is that if you don’t get into the right-hand side of the fairway at about 215 metres you are confronted by a wall of trees.

If I had an opinion, I’d shorten the par 4’s add 3 more par 3’s call it a 12 hole course and let the community enjoy an easier set of challenges in this lovely setting. Or am I just a little grumpy that I couldn’t quite get the measure of this course?

I noticed my clubhouse keeper had let 2 others onto the course, his lies about my own private round rung in my ears. Not alone I stood on the 9th dis-satisfied with my golf but pleased to have stopped at Te Kowhai Golf Club.

The ninth was a tough hoof into the strong wind 162 metres and the well-struck hybrid still didn’t get up to the green. A chip and a putt and I was back in the car to head home, a little tired. Nothing that Bat Out of Hell blaring at me from the stereo wouldn’t cure.