As the tour nears its final days, there will be no signs of slowing down. In fact, I like to speed things up when it comes to the home stretch. The excitement of Paris and the end of the tour is near. Here is the home stretch of the RGV Tour de France
When it comes to chateaus, the tour has been slowly increasing in terms of spectacularity. As the tour rolled into Chateau des Vigiers this trend was once again confirmed. I checked into the chateau and took a quick tour of the golf course as the sun went down.
There are 3 nine hole courses at Chateau de Vigiers and each nine offers its own set of slightly different experiences. Parkland and countryside vibes is a continuous theme throughout all three nines. All roads lead back to the splendid chateau and the finishing holes around the chateau are the most scenic. Several chateau ruins even spill out onto the course. I got up early to enjoy a foggy round before a lunch at the restaurant.
When it comes to capturing the magic of every golf course that I visit, I am at the mercy of the sun gods. After my round at Chateau de Vigiers I was hustling hard to get over to Golf du Haut Poitou in time for the sunset. The reason for my hustle is that the French recreational golf vehicle (FRGV) was having battery issues and I was having to jump start the vehicle every morning. It was truly j'ai mal au cul. That is french for a pain in my ass.
Fortunately, I managed to pull in the parking lot with about 30 seconds to spare. Pete Fly quickly spring into action and captured the crisp little beauty above. Moments later the sun ducked behind a cloud and did not return. Golf du Haut Poitou plays up and down the hillside and through the forest with the most exciting moments offering views of Lake Saint-Cyr. As with most of the French golf courses that I have visited, there is a short course that is a ton of fun and has some great views as well.
When it comes to elite parking spots the RGV Tour de France, Etretat has been leading the charge pretty hard. However, Bauge has entered the conversation with its spacious and luxurious accommodations. As you can see in the photo below I have a ton of field space for activities.
From my parking spot I was able to capture one of my favorite sunsets on the tour. Afterwards, I took the brief walk back to my portable house and retired to my quarters for some photo editing and Netflix.
One of my favorite photos at Bauge is from the 3 hole short course. It’s a quick little loop that I wish we would see more of in America. A lot of golf courses in France have a short course that gives the visiting golfer some different options for play. 3 holes of golf is very manageable and is a fun place to learn the game. When you mix that with 55 gallon barrels to aim at on the range, you have a formula for tremendous golf success.
I had been looking forward to my visit at Les Aisses golf club for about a week. As I played various golf courses around France Les Aisses would come up often as a local favorite. So when I pulled through the gate I was excited to check out the action. I started with the 9 hole Canine course to warm up in the evening. The Canine course has a slightly different feel to it and plays second fiddle to the Aisses course, but just like your neighbors dog, if you ignore it for too long, it will eventually take a bite out of your Aisses.
The next morning I was the first one to take on the Aisses course. I swept the dew that like it was my job as the sun began to flicker across the golf course. Even with a glorious sunrise, the most compelling aspect of the Aisses course is the glorious heather that lines most of the fairways. There are few courses in the world that have this splendid mixture of vegetation. Renowned courses in England like Sunningdale and Swinley Forest come to mind.
A sunrise on the Aisses course.
Martin Hawtree has created something a cut above most of the public golf courses in France at Les Aisses Golf. Any respectable French golf trip should seek to include this course on its itinerary.
The tour is nearing its final few days and the chateaus are continuing to receive upgrades. The chateau at Augerville was particularly spectacular as it looms directly behind the island green 18th hole. It’s just perfect. If I were to build I castle in France it would certainly have a moat that goes around the castle and a golf green. The only thing missing is alligators and cannons shooting fireballs.
Aside from the chateau, the golf course is a fun one to play. All of the holes cut through the forest and spill over and around the undulating hills. Once again, I was the first one on the course and I was able to enjoy the serenity of Augerville in its early morning splendor.
After a spirited romp around Augerville and a relaxing stay in the chateau, The RGV Tour de France decided to add an additional golf course to the tour. This course came complete with a helipad for my #1 drone and good buddy “Pete Fly.” Pete was very excited to land on the helipad at Chateau de Cely “just like the big boys do.” You should have seen his face when he landed on the left hand side of the big H.
If it’s good enough for the Ryder Cup and The Olympics, it is good enough for the finale of The RGV Tour de France. After 22 days on the road, I have arrived on the final golf course of the tour, Le Golf National.
When I first visited France in 2017, I was scheduled to play Le Golf National. However, the frost delay that morning lasted all day long and we never had the chance to hit a single shot. The good news is that I was able to take some really cool photographs that would end up on the pages of Golf Digest. I always wondered how my game would hold up on this stern test of championship golf. 7 years later, I would get the chance to find out.
Instead of freezing temperatures, I would get the the opportunity to battle the French rain one final time. The golf course is perfectly suited to hosting large international events and reminded me of a mixture between Whistling Straights and the stadium course at TPC Sawgrass. With sloping hillsides and stadium surrounding on just about every hole, Le Golf National is an ideal venue for watching some championship golf.
The finishing 4 hole stretch is particularly notable. With water lurking just about everywhere, anything can happen on the final few holes. Even though I was not in contention for a spot on the Olympic podium, I still managed to dunk one in the water on 15 and make double. I took the blow in stride and decided that I was going to finish strong. I would proceed to make a satisfying birdie on the final hole as the crowd went absolutely bananas.
On the RGV Tour de France I would golf 34 courses in 23 days. The best part about this little journey is that all of these golf courses are open to the public. Just book yourself a tee time and the experience can be yours. You can learn more about the each of the courses at the Play Golf in France website.
I would like to extend an extremely large thank you to all of the golf courses and people that I visited over the course of my French journey. Even though I spoke no French, everyone was excited to welcome me with great hospitality. Please allow me to exclaim one final “Merci bouguet” to all.