London’s golfing culture is what makes it an essential destination for the true aficionado of the sport and its history. The game is taken seriously here, to be sure, but not overly so. There’s a gentle good humour to it all, an embrace of idiosyncratic characteristics deriving from great tradition and a sense of Britain’s status in the golfing world.
Let’s have a short wander around the range of courses we offer as part of our luxury golfing packages.
Stoke Park
The course at Stoke Park is one of the finest examples of parkland golf in the British Isles. The estate dates back to the eleventh century, but much of the land today can be attributed to the giants of eighteenth-century landscape architecture, Capability Brown and Humphry Repton.
The course was created in 1908 by pioneering golf architect Harry Colt, and was opened in 1908 as ‘the finest golf club in the British Isles’.
Its 27-hole championship course is set in 350 acres of parkland and offers 27 holes of spectacular golf, the three nine hole loops being Colt (1-9), Alison (10-18) and Lane Jackson (19-27). The imposing clubhouse (a historically listed building in itself) boasts some of the best and most elegant facilities in the world. In 1996, Stoke Park received the award of “Golf Club of the Year”, chosen from 2,200 Clubs in the British Isles, and of course, we can’t omit a reference to the most famous golfing sequence in film history, where James Bond gained a last-gasp victory over the villainous Auric Goldfinger on the 18th green in 1964.
Sunningdale Old Course
Sunningdale is a name to conjure with when it comes to the very pinnacle of inland golf in England. In its layout and manicured beauty, it is as close to Augusta National as any club in the British Isles. Golf is a thing of passion and beauty at Sunningdale, with the Old course often regarded as one of the UK’s most aesthetically pleasing inland courses.
Located approximately 30 miles South West of London, Sunningdale has hosted many great tournaments and boasts a great variety of holes. As a quick pointer, be careful not to be lulled into a false sense of security by the relatively staid par-five 1st, because when you get to the 2nd!...
The great Bobby Jones played a qualifying round here for the 1926 British Open and said afterwards: "I wish I could take this course home with me." The original course is now called the Old Course, with the club having opened the New Course in 1923. The Old Course is accessible for the non-expert golfer and probably a little more picturesque in appearance than its more modern sister course.
Finally, a quick culinary tip. If you need a bite to eat after a challenging round, you can get one of the best sausage sandwiches in the world from the clubhouse, apparently!
The Grove
The Grove is home to one of the UK’s most prestigious golf courses - designed by international course architect Kyle Philips (the man behind the Kingsbarns links course). Phillips has blended his golf course into the natural surroundings with great skill, and has used state-of-the-art technology to ensure firm, fast putting surfaces. Among many fantastic holes is the 4th, a daunting par-3 reminiscent of Augusta itself, which requires a good long iron to carry the water. This hole epitomises the truly memorable experience of playing a round at this outstanding club.
The Grove is everything a British inland course should be: it's always in great condition and the tests include subtle bunkering, undulating greens, lakes, streams and mature woods. And when you add those features together it makes for 18 holes that are distinctly individual yet fit together as an extremely impressive whole. If you relish the opportunity to putt on speedy, true greens, The Grove will suit the bill, as this set of greens must be among the best in the British Isles.
The Grove has welcomed many greats of the game over the years, having staged a World Golf Championship event, won by Tiger Woods in 2006, as well as hosting the British Masters in 2016.
Walton Heath
Surely there are few finer and more highly-regarded courses in the county of Surrey than Walton Heath Golf Club. Located near the world-famous Epsom Racecourse, this expanse of glorious heathland has been home to the Club since it opened in 1903.
The Old Course – like its sister course, the New – was designed by novice architect Herbert Fowler, who conjured up a delightful 18-hole layout among the heather, gorse and bracken typical of the county. Four years after the Old Course was inaugurated, Fowler laid down the New Course, which was opened as a nine-hole lay-out but soon extended to a full 18 and ready for play by 1913.
Illustrious former members include four Prime Ministers ( including Lloyd George and Sir Winston Churchill). The club also has the distinction of being the venue for the 1981 Ryder Cup match between Europe and the United States.
Our packages are extremely flexible; if you'd like us to create something unique for you, we can do exactly that according to the courses you'd most like to play, the number of rounds, the accommodation and the number of nights you'll be with us.
For more details about our unique golfing experiences, please go here.
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