There has been plenty of time this year for idle day-dreaming and list making. I have got notes on my phone listing everything from the 10 best clubhouse lunches to the 10 best long par 4s. The first list was a lot easier to populate!

A list I put together recently was of the 10 courses I wanted to play in England. The only criteria I had was that I hadn’t played them yet.

I’ve played quite a few courses ‘down South’ but mainly at the really top end - you can see my reviews here. A tough critic might say they were more top-100 chasing than connoisseur selections! So, returning from a day at the excellent Prince’s Golf Club I started making some notes about which English courses I wanted to get to next, when travel is easier and the days are a little longer.

By chance, ‘The Golf Lover’s Guide to England’ has been published in the last couple of weeks and I have devoured the contents to help shape the list a little. I was a big fan of last year’s ‘The Golf Lover’s Guide to Scotland’ and Michael Whitehead has really delivered again.

The book covers 33 courses in England. For each, Michael provides the historical context to the club followed by a course description. He also gives you some selections for other courses to play in the area. What really makes the book come alive is the amount of research Michael has clearly put in. Only the most ardent golf historian wouldn’t find out something new.

Here are the 10 English courses, from north to south, that I am really looking forward to playing, hopefully before 2021 is out! I’ve included some interesting links I came across in the course of my research but if you are looking for something to ask Santa for, I would strongly suggest adding ‘The Golf Lover’s Guide to England’ to your list.

SILLOTH ON SOLWAY
Silloth lies some way off the beaten track in the very north west of England. I was actually booked in to play there earlier this year but there was a power cut at Tebay services and my electric car didn’t have enough charge to make it all the way! When I do get there I’m expecting to find a links course with maybe a few more quirks than the ‘classic’ English links setup. When you have a course designed by a North Berwick man I guess that’s to be expected. Everyone I know who has played it raves about the lovely people and great value too.
Silloth Golf Club Website, Cookie Jar film, Golf Empire Review

GANTON
This is a course that has been touched by greatness. Originally designed by Tom Chisholm of St Andrews, Braid, Taylor, Vardon, Colt, MacKenzie and Simpson have all had a hand in the architecture of Ganton over the years. The course has hosted the Curtis Cup, Walker Cup and Ryder Cup and is considered one of the finest inland courses in the country - Michael describes it in his book as an ‘inland links’. There’s dormy house accommodation onsite which looks like a great place to stay before an early tee time!
Ganton Golf Club Website, Fine Golf Review, Hidden Links

ALWOODLEY
Alwoodley, just outside of Leeds, was the very first course designed by Dr Alister MacKenzie, before he set about creating such masterpieces as Augusta National, Cypress Point and Royal Melbourne. It looks like a heathland golf course to savour and the bunkering looks particularly interesting. Architect Clyde Johnson has been undertaking what he describes as ‘light polishing’ to ensure the course stays true to the good doctor’s vision.
Alwoodley Golf Club Website, Golf Monthly, Cunnin’ Golf Design

WOODHALL SPA
The third of the northern(ish) inland courses, Woodhall Spa is revered as one of the very best courses in England, and is 56th in the World in my ‘Ultimate Top 100’ list. Tom Doak rates it very highly and says in his Confidential Guide, ‘There are great short par 4s like the 10 and 17th, great longer par 4s like the 3rd and 11th, and great par 5s like the 9th and home hole. But it is the three short holes and their deep guardian bunkers you’ll have the hardest time forgetting’. Doak has been doing restoration work on the course in recent years which has been widely appreciated. It’s very high up my ‘must play’ list!
Woodhall Spa Website, Top 100 Website, Today’s Golfer

HOLINWELL (NOTTS)
Michael Whitehead says that ‘If you’ve never played golf at Holinwell before, everyone who has will tell you that you should. Everyone is right. This is one of golf’s finest walks’. Well that’s exactly what has happened to me. I hadn’t heard much about it before taking a keener interest in golf course architecture but several people have since urged me to get to this Nottinghamshire course. It’s a mixture of heathland and moorland with some woodland thrown in for good measure. I think there’s a wee trip to be done, stopping at Ganton and Woodhall Spa en route to Holinwell, and taking in Alwoodley on the way home to Gullane!
Hollinwell Website, Golf Club Atlas, Green Keeping article

ROYAL WEST NORFOLK
Royal West Norfolk (otherwise known as Brancaster) is another hard-to-get-to course that is said to reward in spades the effort made to get there. This is a links course unlike any other - when the tide is high the golf course becomes an island! I’ve read that Brancaster takes quirkiness to a whole new level and the old-world vibe in the clubhouse makes for quite an experience. With Hunstanton just next door this is definitely an area of the world I need to discover before there are too many more high tides!
Royal West Norfolk Website, Golf World Top 100, Golf Club Atlas

ST GEORGE’S HILL
I had a great trip to Surrey a couple of years ago but alas St George’s Hill couldn’t be fitted into the schedule - this is a members’ club and, while visitors are welcome, times are limited. When I do get a tee time I expect to find a Harry Colt masterpiece. Darius Oliver describes it as ‘The prettiest, and possibly the best, of all heathland courses in Great Britain’. You’re spoilt for choice on a trip to Surrey but St George’s Hill really looks stunning
St George’s Hill Website, Planet Golf, Golfing World Youtube

SAUNTON
There’s definitely a trip to the south-west of England to be planned before too long. Nearby Burnham and Berrow and Westward Ho! are both on my list to see down there as well as Saunton. This is links golf but most comment on the challenging green complexes and the interesting land. Some have talked about it as a potential Open host venue. While that may be fanciful, it has definitely piqued my interest to visit!
Saunton Website, Sean Arble on GCA, Top 100 Website

ST ENODOC
It looks quite close on the map but it is another two hours drive past Saunton to get to St Enodoc. By all accounts it is well worth the effort. This James Braid layout is famed for its huge dunes, crinkled fairways and small greens. The 6th hole is probably the most famous, with a second shot required over the huge Himalayas bunker, but this is a course with many highlights. It’s a long way to go but looks like a must for all lovers of great golf architecture.
St Enodoc Website, jdrewrogers.com, Evalu18

RYE
Rye is another classic English course, and another Harry Colt design. It has been famed for years as one of the most private courses in the country, but visitor play is possible. The website explains, ‘Invitations to visiting golfers are made at the Secretary’s discretion. Players wishing to play their own ball will generally be invited to play late morning or after lunch’. No Groupon deals here! I’m intrigued to see what the club is like but am equally intrigued by the golf course. A 6,300 yard par 68 course that runs along and over sandy ridges it sounds like one of the longest short courses anywhere, with 9 par 4s over 400 yards. A truly unique place!
Rye Golf Club Website, Top 100 Website, National Club Golfer