10 GREAT Golf Courses in the U.K.

It’s only a few months before the Ryder Cup comes to Gleneagles in Perthshire, Scotland (26 – 28 September), with its gorgeous course in the middle of some beautiful countryside with a renowned hotel and spa to match. With golf fever in the air, players should take the opportunity to tee off on one of Britain’s 2,500 courses.

Spectacular coastal views, beautiful five-star hotels, historic towns; a golf course in Britain has often so much more to offer the golf enthusiast than fabulous fairways and creative challenges. Whether you’re looking for a course that is part of a luxury resort, or a course where champions once achieved holes in one, we highlight ten great courses around Britain that are also within easy reach of attractions to visit once the 18 holes are completed.

St Andrews in Fife, Scotland, 

is the home of golf. It’s an hour by train from Edinburgh to Leuchars station then a ten-minute taxi drive. The famous par-72 Old Course is so popular tee-off times have to be balloted! But don’t worry because there are six other courses around town, the newest of which opened in 2008, as well as some other lovely ones nearby outside picturesque villages such as Anstruther, Elie and Crail. The town of St Andrews itself is a real gem and home to both the British Golf Museum and Scotland’s oldest university, where both the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge studied – look out for students in their traditional red gowns. www.visitstandrews.com

The Celtic Manor Resort in south Wales 

hosted the Ryder Cup in 2010. The resort is just outside Newport, which is a two-hour train ride from London Paddington station. There are three championship golf courses at the resort, all of which are 18 holes; the stunning Twenty Ten Course hosted the Ryder Cup. Furthermore, you are not far away from cosmopolitan Cardiff or the beauty of the Brecon Beacon hills and some of the finest gastropubs in Wales. www.celtic-manor.com

Royal Lytham and St Annes on the Lancashire coast of England 

is just six miles south of Blackpool (around three hours by train from London) and has hosted the Open Championship too. It was founded in 1886 and is considered one of the premier links courses in the world. It’s also hosted the Ryder Cup twice. www.royallytham.org

Royal Portrush Golf Club is near Coleraine in Northern Ireland, 

an hour and a quarter’s drive from Belfast. It’s one of the most challenging links courses in the world and the only club in Ireland to have hosted the Open Championship. It’s just ten miles along the coast to the Giant’s Causeway, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the result of an ancient volcanic eruption, and about an hour by car to Derry-Londonderry, which was the UK City of Culture 2013. www.royalportrushgolfclub.com www.cityofculture2013.com

The links course at Carnoustie, 

on Scotland’s east coast, is just an hour and a half by train from Edinburgh, and even pros like Colin Montgomerie have admitted to finding it a challenge. In fact there are three courses at Carnoustie – the Championship Course, the Burnside and the Buddon Links. Depending how well or how badly you play, you can celebrate or commiserate with a visit to the Glencadam whisky distillery near Brechin, a half-hour drive away – book a driver to take you! www.carnoustiegolflinks.co.uk, www.glencadamdistillery.co.uk

Sunningdale Golf Club in Berkshire, England, 

is just a half hour’s drive away from London Heathrow airport, so you could easily play 18 holes if you are staying in the capital. It’s said that the course here is the closest American visitors will find to the iconic Augusta National Golf Club – but, in fact, there are two championship ones here, the Old and New courses, so why not play both? www.sunningdale-golfclub.co.uk

On the coast of south Ayrshire – 

just over an hour by road from Glasgow, Scotland’s largest city – Turnberry, founded in 1902, has spectacular views towards the islands of Ailsa Craig and Arran. On a clear day, you can even see Ireland. The Turnberry Resort Hotel has a luxurious spa and fitness centre to soak weary limbs after a tough day on the links. www.turnberrygolfclub.net, www.turnberryresort.co.uk

Royal St George’s in Kent is on the coast north of Dover, 

about two hours by car from London. Founded in the 1880s, it hosted the Ladies British Open Amateur Championship this June and in 2011 hosted the Open Championship for the 14th time. Its undulating fairways and fast greens can prove a test for even the most determined golfer. Kent is known as ‘the garden of England’ and a day spent on the course could be followed by time spent discovering one of the prettiest corners of the country. www.royalstgeorges.com

Founded in 1891, Ganton golf club in North Yorkshire, England,

has hosted many amateur and professional tournaments. This course is ideally placed to discover the beautiful Yorkshire coast as well as the North York Moors and Wolds – which has inspired artists such as David Hockney – not to mention the 2,000-year-old city of York is a 45-minute drive away. Ganton is around an hour by train from Leeds and three hours from London. www.gantongolfclub.com

Royal Birkdale, a 35-minute drive north of Liverpool 

on the north-west coast of England, will host the Senior Open Championship this year. This beautiful links course is a favourite of many. Not far from Liverpool is the whole of England’s ‘Golf Coast’, which encompasses 20 golf courses, including three Royal courses; as well as Royal Birkdale there’s Royal St Lytham & St Anne’s in Lancashire, the golf course that staged the 2012 Open Championship; and Royal Liverpool at Hoylake on the Wirral Peninsula, the second oldest seaside links course in England. It would be easy to combine a visit here with a stay in vibrant Liverpool or Manchester or explore the gorgeous countryside of the Lake District or the Yorkshire Dales National Park by car. www.royalbirkdale.com

www.rydercup2014.com, www.gleneagles.com, http://golf.visitscotland.com