Hilversum knows how to be the perfect host

Colin Byrne/Caddie's Role: The 84th Dutch Open was relegated to the end of season slot last week in Hilversum, west Holland. It is pretty hard to say this is a demotion in any sense.

The town is as elegant and tranquil a place as you could wish to be in. To be there when the autumn leaves are scattered about the outskirts of the southside of town, where the 93-year-old Hilversum Golf Club is set, was a pleasure.

The area was inhabited by merchants who wanted to get away from the relative congestion of Amsterdam. Judging by the size of the mansions in the area these were very wealthy merchants. It was the elevation of the land that attracted the new inhabitants as there was less danger of their property getting washed away by floods.

The course, formally opened in 1910 but unofficially in play from 1895, was naturally built on higher heathland. It stood up well to the deluge that descended upon Holland early last week. Despite being extremely wet the course was playable. There was a stark difference between how it plays in late July (traditionally when the event is played) and how it played last week.

Being a tight and relatively short course, in summer the problem arises of bouncing off the hard undulating fairways into the surrounding trees. Accuracy was more important than length. In October you needed both. The par-five 12th turned from a drive and a six iron into a drive and a three wood in the heavy conditions.

Having previously described the perils of a tournament driving range designed for golfers who hit their practice balls a modest distance during warm-up sessions, making a tour range pro proof is proving increasingly difficult. The A27 motorway runs at the end of the Hilversum range. Two massive cranes were extended at the end of the range supporting a vast net which stretched in front of the motorway and stopped the pros from wiping out the unsuspecting Dutch motorists on their way to or from Utrecht.

The problem last Tuesday was that the wind was so strong the safety net ripped. So the pros were limited to six irons until the repairs were done overnight. The net was back up again by Wednesday. Standing at 65 metres and about 80 metres wide the netting and the cranes didn't come cheap. For a tournament struggling for sponsorship the €60,000 for the cranes and net hire was a major dent in the budget.

As ever the spectators helped themselves to the Titliest range balls. Nobody could carry their drives over the towering net so it was hard to lose the balls. The only other explanation for 5,000 balls reducing to 2,500 by Sunday could be the habitual pilfering.

The members of the Hilversum Golf Club are arguably the most hospitable of any event we go to in Europe. There is a gaggle of ladies in the reception area seemingly at all times to field any questions you may have as a visitor. They do their best to make us all feel welcome. On Saturday evening they set up a big screen in their bar area so the players and caddies could watch the England versus Turkey football game. They even went to the extent of shifting the committee table to accommodate the screen. The atmosphere at Hilversum is a warm one.

There was an element of luck involved in the clubs survival through the second world War. Despite German occupation the club was kept open during the war because there was a German flight captain stationed nearby who wanted to play golf. He was responsible for keeping the club open. Many clubs in Holland were lost and never to be replaced due to the occupation.

The war didn't close the club nor did the major fires which burnt down the previous two clubhouses. There is a resilience in this area, obviously some strong survival instincts and a respect for people from all walks of life.

On one side of the club bar hangs a painting of a proud and handsome looking older man wearing a big overcoat and carrying a set of golf clubs. It is a painting of Hemmie Raven, one of five brothers who caddied at the club dating back to the 1920s. I have seen photos of members and guests enjoying the pleasures of various golf courses around the world but I have never come across an oil painting of a caddie adorning the members bar of an exclusive golf club. Hemmie, who died in 1992, obviously held a revered position at the club. He caddied back in the days when there was a shortage of bag men and he and his brothers would use their ample shoulders to lug the bags of an entire fourball around the course.

This was back in the days when players had no limit to the amount of clubs they had in their bag. When Hemmie got too old to carry the clubs, the members bought him an electric caddie car so he could continue his bag toting into his 80th year. He was a scratch golfer and the caddie for all dignitaries who visited the club. Apparently he caddied for Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands and such was his ease with people he even played tricks on him by catching his ball whenever he tried to take a drop. It was still in the days of dropping over the shoulder.

A tournament demoted to October but perfectly timed for the first Dutchman, Marten Lafeber, to capture the national title since before even Hemmie was carrying a bag for a living.

Hopefully his win has boosted golf in the lowlands and got a new sponsor interested in the event for next year. It would be a shame to lose the most hospitable event of the season.