Southwest England
The counties of Devon and Cornwall offer travellers with clubs in tow an exciting alternative to the well-trodden and more traditional links golf routes of the Scottish and Lancashire coasts. Here you'll find a number of cracking layouts that are veritable hidden gems when compared with their more famous northern brethren.
If the powers that be broke new ground by decided it was time for the West Country to hold an Open Championship, the East Course at Saunton Golf Club would almost certainly be the chosen venue. Laid out over wonderfully undulating links land on Devon's unspoilt north coast, this is a full-strength championship track that winds its way through dramatic dunes and demands accuracy from the tee.
Further down the coast in Cornwall, far beyond the old-world links at Royal North Devon, lies Trevose, an exhilarating course that offers great variety and wonderful views of the rugged coastline. While certainly no pushover, Trevose offers a relatively kind introduction to those unfamiliar with the "bump and run" game, thanks largely to the generosity of its fairways.
Just across the Camel Estuary from Trevose, the James Braid-designed Church Course at St Enodoc could be the finest in the county and is set amidst towering sand dunes clad with wild sea grasses. The best of the holes here – and one of the most wonderfully quirky holes anywhere – is the 6th, a mid-length par-four that features a blind drive and requires the approach to be played over a mammoth dune called "Himalayas" some 100 yards from the green. St Enodoc is named after a small church that lies nearby, which is the final resting place of Sir John Betjeman, the Poet Laureate, who penned his famous poem Seaside Golf after a rare birdie at the 13th.
Contacts
Saunton Golf Club www.sauntongolf.co.uk
Royal North Devon Golf Club www.royalnorthdevongolfclub.co.uk
Trevose Golf & Country Club www.trevose-gc.co.uk
St Enodoc Golf Club www.st-enodoc.co.uk
