| Golf
Courses in the Midlands and West Coast of England |
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Royal
Lytham & St Annes Golf Club |
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Venue for 10 Open Championships with the earliest winner
here being Bobby Jones in 1926 and the most recent, David Duval in 2001. Royal
Lytham is a links course with two strange aspects - it is a links course but there
is no sea in view and the course opens with a par three. With 197 bunkers to contend
with, full concentration is required by golfers playing this course!
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Formed in 1889, Royal Birkdale is regarded as one of the greatest courses in the
UK. Royal Birkdale is ranked in the top 30 courses in the world and provides golfers
with a severe but fair test, although when the wind blows it does not seem very
fair! The first ever Ryder Cup match to be halved was at Royal Birkdale when Jack
Nicklaus memorably conceded Tony Jacklins' final putt on the 18th green.
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Royal
Liverpool
Golf Club (Hoylake) |
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Royal Liverpool is more commonly
known as "Hoylake" and is certainly one of the most difficult links
courses in England. The course is situated on Wirral peninsula south west of Liverpool
and has a relatively flat appearance, however do not be fooled as a tough test
lies ahead. The Open Championship is to return to Hoylake in the near future with
Roberto De Vicenzo being the most recent winner here in 1967.
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Southport
& Ainsdale
Golf Club |
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Southport and Ainsdale, or 'S & A' as it is also
known as, is used as an Open Qualifying course when The Open is played at Royal
Lytham and Royal Birkdale. An undulating course characterised by sandunes, gorse
and heather, Southport and Ainsdale has hosted The Ryder Cup on two occasions
- 1933 and 1937.
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A championship seaside links through sandhills and partly
through pine trees, Formby is another fantastic course set on the coastal shoreline
of Lancashire. Variable winds noticeably alter the day to day playing of each
hole on this traditional links course.
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Situated next door to Royal Birkdale, Hillside has been the subject of differing
quotes from two Open Champions: Jack Nicklaus described Hillside as a "wild
looking links" and Greg Norman thought the back nine was the "best in
Britain". Tough par fours, huge dunes and sandhills are most prominent on
this course with excellent views from elevated tees on the inward half.
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Hesketh Golf Club is another of the Open Championship Qualifying courses
for Royal Birkdale. The signature hole is the 388 yard par 4 fourteenth. On this
hole you will require an accurate tee shot as trouble on both sides of the fairway
awaits those stray drives. This course is at its most testing when the prevailing
wind is blowing in off the sea.
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The Belfry has three course: The Brabazon, The PGA National and The Derby. The
Brabazon Course has played host to The Ryder Cup on several occasions and remains
the most popular of the three. The most famous holes on this course are the 10th
(Ballesteros's Hole) and 18th where many Ryder Cup matches have been won and lost.
The PGA National Course, opened in 1997, is also of championship standard and
for those golfers who prefer less of a test, The Derby Course is ideal.
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| Other
recommended golf courses in the area |
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