This is an 18 hole course that meanders through a horse shoe shaped undulating ground that is tucked away at the centre of Port Harcourt's (Bori camp or Military/Air Force Barracks). It has five very long par 5s and 3 short but challenging par 3s.
There are several out of bounds which embrace the course right from hole one, so with all eyes on you as you stand on the 1st tee box, it can be very embarrassing shanking your tee shot from the tee box No 1. There are several holes with marshy sourroundings so one is always advised to keep one's ball in the fairways which are often narrow, otherwise you might spend a lot of time searching for your balls which most of the time are declared as lost balls. So in Air assault ambition is usually tempered with valour and keeping your eyes on the ball is as good as keeping your ambition close to your capability.
The 18th and final hole is a dog leg that is crossed by a river which often is the devils advocate for the player who is leading in the score sheet. Unless you play cautiously, it can be the decider and aptly named so, especially in a nervous contest leading upto the last hole.. I have seen a leader board player drop two or three shots to wipe his lead with double or triple bogey due to nervousness. Yet I have also seen a daring (I don't care) player cutting through the many trees in this last hole with a tiger leg to hit an eagle and win a tournament.
Apart from the long par fours and the terribly challenging undulating course, the scenery is beautiful ,if a bit noisy as motor cycle-riders can be a distraction especially in holes 6-11 and 15-17 which are bordered by a busy road. Still ,it is a beautiful course and usually not for the faint hearted. To play the whole course, you really have to be strong and have some stamina. Which reminds me of an 18 handicapper, expatriate worker with one of the oil companies in Port Harcourt, who made a birdie on the last hole in 1998 and promptly dropped stone dead after the stroke. The club house needs some renovation but offers African and European dishes. The bar is average and compared to the high cost of living in this oil city, drinks are relatively cheap and guests are usually very comfortable and can see you from the club house whereever you are in the course. Air assault is still maturing with numerous trees and beautiful landscape, yet it is a course which lives upto its name and a must for any visitor to the oil city of Port Harcourt, also called Garden City or Pitakwa.
Mark: 8
Value For Money: Good
Maurice Ezeoke February 18, 2013
Club Captain (Jan-Dec 1997)