England Golf Trip

[Chanceman]

Sunningdale is the gem of English golf. Everything else fits around it. Not just as a golf course but as an experience . 

[Frank_Kasule]

On 12/17/2024 at 4:15 PM, sabram said:

St Andrews is not in England  and it's not close to the other courses on your itinerary. I'd suggest either doing a Scotland trip based around St Andrews  and the other great options in Fife or nearby East Lothian and/or Dundee (skipping England this time) , or save St Andrews for a separate trip and keeping this one focused on the south of England. I'd also save Woodhall Spa for a separate trip as it would add a lot of time in a car when there are so many outstanding courses close to all the other ones on your list.

 

Here's what I would do for a fantastic eight day trip:

 

Fly into Heathrow

Day 1 Play Swinley Forest  - stay in Surrey

Day 2 Play Sunningdale Old and New, which is only a few minutes from Swinley

Day 3 Play St Georges Hill, then drive to Pulborough (The Labouring Man Country Inn is a nice little family owned inn with a good restaurant and pub on site, just a few minutes form West Sussex Golf Club)

Day 4 Play West Sussex (a/k/a Pulborough), then drive to Rye (The Hope Anchor Hotel is a quaint old Inn that includes breakfast in the heart of the Village of Rye, just a few minutes from Rye Golf Club)

Day 5 Play Rye, then drive to Deal

Day 6 Play Royal St Georges (a/k/a Sandwich} and Royal Cinque Ports (a/k/a Deal), stay over in Deal or Sandwich and drive to The Addington the next morning

Day 7  Play PM round at The Addington

Day 8 - Play Walton Heath Old and New,  then fly home from Heathrow

 

 

 

 

 

This is a fantastic itinerary! Definitely a good mix of memorable and highly ranked courses. 

I'd try follow this route if possible. 

[James the Hogan Fan]

I did a very quick trip a few years ago where I played North Foreland, all 27 at Princes, and Royal St. George's. 

 

No one will share my opinion most likely, but I really enjoyed North Foreland. I played on a beautiful day and the staff went out of their way to accommodate me as a visitor. They have some amazing views, the ruins of a castle on the course, and I thought a fun set of holes. I would make it a point to play there again if I ever came back. 

 

 

Princes was fun, RSG has the open history, but North Foreland was the diamond in the rough that I was very happy to have found.

 

 

[Chanceman]

17 hours ago, James the Hogan Fan said:

I did a very quick trip a few years ago where I played North Foreland, all 27 at Princes, and Royal St. George's. 

 

No one will share my opinion most likely, but I really enjoyed North Foreland. I played on a beautiful day and the staff went out of their way to accommodate me as a visitor. They have some amazing views, the ruins of a castle on the course, and I thought a fun set of holes. I would make it a point to play there again if I ever came back. 

 

 

Princes was fun, RSG has the open history, but North Foreland was the diamond in the rough that I was very happy to have found.

 

 

Well that is one out of the blue! Thanks. Can you enlarge on the course? Links, parkland, features etc? Comparable to any others ?

[sabram]

2 hours ago, Chanceman said:

Well that is one out of the blue! Thanks. Can you enlarge on the course? Links, parkland, features etc? Comparable to any others ?

Here's a link to  a detailed course tour by Golfwrx poster El Gringo

 

North Foreland Course Tour on Golf Club Atlas

[Chanceman]

59 minutes ago, sabram said:

Here's a link to  a detailed course tour by Golfwrx poster El Gringo

 

North Foreland Course Tour on Golf Club Atlas

Thanks. Fantastic information. 

[James the Hogan Fan]

6 hours ago, Chanceman said:

Well that is one out of the blue! Thanks. Can you enlarge on the course? Links, parkland, features etc? Comparable to any others ?

 

I don't know if I can elaborate more than the provided link from sabram. The first hole is what you'd expect from an English estate/manor type course with trees and hedges bordering, and you slowly play your way down the hill into more open terrain almost to the cliff edge, before turning away and winding back up into the "garden". Then back across the road the second 9 is a wide open journey across terrain sloping down from the clubhouse. 

 

My favorite hole was the 12th, with an exhilarating long approach to a back pin that was behind the mound/bunker on the right (visible in the golfatlas thread). Time has taken my acute memories of the green complexes and so on, but not my memory of that shot at least, which went into the bunker. 

 

I played in March, the front 9 was a bit soggier but the back 9 played linksy in my opinion. 

[Chanceman]

8 hours ago, James the Hogan Fan said:

 

I don't know if I can elaborate more than the provided link from sabram. The first hole is what you'd expect from an English estate/manor type course with trees and hedges bordering, and you slowly play your way down the hill into more open terrain almost to the cliff edge, before turning away and winding back up into the "garden". Then back across the road the second 9 is a wide open journey across terrain sloping down from the clubhouse. 

 

My favorite hole was the 12th, with an exhilarating long approach to a back pin that was behind the mound/bunker on the right (visible in the golfatlas thread). Time has taken my acute memories of the green complexes and so on, but not my memory of that shot at least, which went into the bunker. 

 

I played in March, the front 9 was a bit soggier but the back 9 played linksy in my opinion. 

Good stuff. I will note it for a future trip to Kent.

[Ocugolf1]

We are doing in early June: 

birkdale

hoylake

Royal Lytham and st annes

both Sunningdale

swinley forest

addington

 

have room for one more. Anything close that’s a must?

[Chanceman]

6 hours ago, Ocugolf1 said:

We are doing in early June: 

birkdale

hoylake

Royal Lytham and st annes

both Sunningdale

swinley forest

addington

 

have room for one more. Anything close that’s a must?

As you will be in the Surrey Heathland you could play Walton Heath, Woking, Worplesdon, St George’s Hill and a myriad of others. Of those SGH is not to be missed imho.

[mci711]

41 minutes ago, Chanceman said:

As you will be in the Surrey Heathland you could play Walton Heath, Woking, Worplesdon, St George’s Hill and a myriad of others. Of those SGH is not to be missed imho.

 

St George's Hill is what I would add as well. 

[hammergolf]

10 hours ago, Ocugolf1 said:

We are doing in early June: 

birkdale

hoylake

Royal Lytham and st annes

both Sunningdale

swinley forest

addington

 

have room for one more. Anything close that’s a must?

We’re going in the end of September and playing:

Hillside

St. Annes Old Links

Wallessy

Birkdale

Hoylake 

Lytham & SA

West Lancs

 

Missing out on

Formby

Southport & Ainsdale