SAUNTON
Just as Taunton tipplers debate the relative merits of Trevose and St Enodoc, so Barnstaple boozers are divided on which of Sauntons two championship tracks is best. Playing both, it’s easy to see why opinions are so divided. The East Course remains a fantastic track, perhaps the best in the South West, but the huge and ongoing upgrades to the West driven by Head Pro Albert Mackenzie (no relation!) narrow the gap daily. This may be the best two course setup in the UK, with a great clubhouse and a huge pro shop where John Morgan should be asked for advice before setting out…
If the powers that be broke new ground by deciding it was time for the West Country to hold an Open Championship, the East Course at Saunton would almost certainly be the chosen venue. Laid out over wonderfully undulating links land on Devon's unspoilt north coast a few miles west of the pleasant market town of Barnstaple, Saunton is a full-strength championship track that winds its way through dramatic dunes and demands accuracy from the tee. It would be a poor decision to make a round on the East your first on a trip to these parts, as it has the potential to seriously bite. Fortunately, however, the club has a second course - the West - which is a very fine layout in its own right and provides an excellent work out before tackling its longer and tougher brother. Long, wispy rough, hard and fast greens and classic pot bunkers, combined with an exceptional routing make the East one of the most majestic - and most unheralded - courses in the land.
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