Golf “Off the Beaten Track” England Series 1 - The North coast of Cornwall and Devon

Golf “Off the Beaten Track” England Series

Introduction

International Golfers visiting England typically head for three areas. The most popular is the coast in the North West centred on Southport. A coastline of over 30 miles runs from the Wirral peninsula in Cheshire north via Merseyside to Fleetwood. Often known as the golf coast there are 12 links golf courses, many high in the English rankings. They Include 3 Open championship courses. Other golfers visit the Kent coast for 3 excellent links golf venues. England is unique in having numerous high quality Heathland courses. The major area is a belt of heathland to the south and west of London. Here you find many of England’s top ranked inland courses and can easily visit London.

This series highlights areas that are typically missed by visiting golfers. We include many links golf courses and heathland courses, types which are not often available to golfers from outside of UK and Ireland. The series concentrates on specific areas to limit the amount of travel. 

Golf “Off the Beaten Track” England Series 1 – The North coast of Cornwall and Devon

Introduction

This tour is along the rugged coast of North Cornwall where Atlantic rollers create excellent surfing continues. It continues along the coast into the north coast of Devon. You play six testing traditional links golf courses including the oldest course in England at Westward Hoe, founded in 1864.

A Typical Itinerary

Day 1 - Arrive at a London or Newquay airport, met by AGS Representative, collect auto or meet your private driver/guide, proceed to MetropolE Hotel at Padstow for 4 nights.One of Cornwall’s most famous harbour towns, Padstow is probably best known for its wonderful seafood.

The Metropole Hotel sits overlooking Britain's foodie capital, the vibrant town of Padstow. One of Cornwall’s most famous harbour towns, Metropole offers stunning sea and harbour views, 58 spacious traditional style bedrooms and delicious 2 AA rosette dining in the Harbour Restaurant. Complete with a heated outdoor pool, massage and beauty treatments, enjoy a truly Cornish welcome.

Day 2 – Play Trevose Championship course, it was laid out by world-renowned golf architect Harry Colt. The course is in two loops  with the front 9 hugging the sand dunes and coastline and back 9 forming inland links. The sea can be seen from every hole and typically with links golf, the wind direction has a great influence on play. The greens are quick and the fairways are tightly cut. The rough can be penal but fair, as are the many strategically placed bunkers.. Trevose requires you to use most clubs in your bag and is a memorable experience. 7079 yards, Par 71.

Day 3 – Play Perranporth, a natural championship links course. The original layout has not been changed, a real tribute to good design. It has stunning views over the sea and the extensive golden sands. Superb greens are hard, fast and absolutely true. The course drains well and is always playable off normal tees and greens, 365 days a year. A challenge for the low handicap players and yet allows the higher handicap player to return reasonable scores.  6296 yards, Par 72.

Day 4 – Play highly ranked St Enodoc, it has undulating fairways, firm greens, some blind shots and great estuary views. With its hilly terrain no two holes are the same. The course is tight with punishing rough. The 10th hole is the signature hole. A good drive needs to be followed by an even better second aimed at the church porch to avoid the lateral hazard which runs the length of the hole and creeps close to the left side of the green. 6207 yards, par 70.

Day 5 – Play Bude on route to the Park Hotel at Barnstable. Situated in the centre of town, Bude & North Cornwall Golf Club provides 18 holes of great links golf. The natural all weather fairways and greens are rarely unplayable. It is a natural course sometimes called quirky. You need to drive straight and there are tight lies and uneven stances on the close cropped undulating fairways. The greens have beautiful quick surfaces, with both severe and subtle borrows. The course offers golfers of all levels a variety of holes and a challenging and enjoyable experience. 6036 yards, Par 71.

The Park Hotel is in a quiet corner of the bustling market town of Barnstable. It is a short walk to the shops, bars and restaurants of the town centre, while the beaches, moors and rolling hills of North Devon stretch ready to be explored in every direction. The Hotel is elegant and comfortable, with modern amenities and attentive, personal service. Each of the luxury bedrooms has an en-suite bathroom, satellite television and tea and coffee making facilities. Room service is available 24 hours a day. The beautifully furnished lounge bar and restaurant provide comfortable and elegant surroundings. The restaurant has a popular lunchtime carvery most days. The dinner menu showcases the finest in locally sourced, expertly crafted cuisine.

Day 6 – Play Royal North Devon known as Westward Hoe! It was founded in 1864 and is the oldest golf course in the England. The playing surfaces are second to none. They provide year-round fast and true greens, firm tees and tight fairway lies requiring crisply struck iron shots. To sum it up, this is true golf played out under big skies and against a backdrop of crashing surf. (6653 yards, par 72)

Day 7- Play Saunton West, a championship course in its own right and arguably needs more attention to course management than its wonderful neighbour the East. It needs thoughtful club selection from the tee and precision into well-guarded greens. It is somewhat shorter than the East course, but has some extreme doglegs calling for astute shot making. (6356 yards, par 71)

Day 8 – Depart for Airport

Check out our England Golf Tours.