Lys Chantilly (Les Chênes)

Overview: Les Chênes, the Oaks course at Club du Lys Chantilly, is a woodland layout in Lamorlaye on sandy ground near Chantilly. Tom Simpson's routing uses tree-lined fairways, subtle changes of level, and false flats that can make a seemingly simple approach harder than the drive. The forest gives the course its identity, but the ground beneath the trees matters just as much: sandy soil supports a firm playing surface and allows the ball to run when conditions are right. At 18 holes and par 70, Les Chênes is a positional course in which accuracy, angle, and distance control are more important than chasing length. Its quiet setting and restrained architecture reward players who pay attention to the shapes of the holes.

History: The site became a golf property in 1929, when Tom Simpson designed the Les Chênes course. The club's current association traces its origin to that historic site, while the present Club du Lys-Chantilly association was declared in 2007. The course's original identity has remained tied to Simpson's tree-lined routing and sandy setting, even as the club's organisation and sporting programme have evolved. The history is therefore best understood as a distinction between the 1929 course and the later legal association that now operates around it.

Did You Know? Les Chênes is one of two 18-hole courses at the Lys Chantilly site, alongside Les Bouleaux, with a nine-hole short course also listed by the club. The names are not interchangeable: Les Chênes is the Simpson course opened in 1929, while the other loops belong to later parts of the site's development.