Cornwall has some brilliant golf clubs which offer great vistas and traditional links golf
The Best Golf Courses In Cornwall
Cornwall is England’s remotest county, occupying the most south-western point of the UK.
Due to its remote location, many of its courses are reasonable to play and many of them are exceptionally good.
Cornwall has two courses in the Golf Monthly UK&I Top 100 – St Enodoc’s Church Course at 36th and Trevose’s Championship Course at 75th.
However, there’s an abundance of great golf in the county including the St Mellion Resort which includes the Jack Nicklaus course, host of the Benson and Hedges International Open for six years in the 90s.
St Enodoc
There are two courses at St Enodoc; the Church and the Holywell, which has nine par 3s and nine par 4s.
The layout of the Church has changed over time and the Holywell course uses some of the land it used to lie upon. However, except for some of the later holes, Holywell is more parkland than links.
The superb James Braid-designed Church Course is a genuinely world class links courses with many varied, attractive and memorable holes.
The 9th tee, with the shimmering estuary to the left and the wooded Bray Hill rising behind the green is one of the best views in golf.
The 6th hole at St Enodoc. Credit: Kevin Murray
There are also fine views over the church to the Estuary and Padstow in the distance from the 13th and 14th fairways as they rise up and curve around St Enodoc church.
But the most imposing view at St Enodoc is of the huge bunker in the middle of the soaring sand dune in the middle of the 6th fairway, about 100 yards out from the green and obliterating sight of it.
It is without doubt one of England’s finest courses and a pleasure to play.
Trevose
The glorious views from Trevose’s clubhouse and 1st tee over the course to the sea are always a delight.
This Harry Colt layout has made more open by recent clearances of vegetation.
It also been made harder, as befits a course which has hosted the Brabazon Trophy and McGregor Trophy in recent years.
The 4th green at Trevose, overlooking Booby’s Bay
The par-3 3rd over a steep valley and the dogleg par-5 4th to the edge of Booby’s Bay are the best regarded holes; the 4th green is the only time you play next to the sea. But a favourite of ours is the par-3 8th for its understated beauty and challenge.
The Headland course provides nine holes of character and the best view from a Trevose green, from its 5th. The Short Course is par-3 layout of much charm.
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St Mellion
St Mellion Resort features two courses with the Nicklaus Course the shining star.
It was actually Jack Nicklaus’ first ever European course design and opened for play in 1988.
Nicklaus once said, “I knew it was going to be good but not this good.”
The course hosted the Benson and Hedges International Open six times in the 90s which featured winners like Seve Ballesteros, Bernhard Langer and Jose Maria Olazabal.
In 2010, the Kernow Course opened after golf course architect Alan Leather was briefed to retain the best of the old course in creating a new course.
He added nine new holes to the nine best from the Old Course which opened in 1976.
Bude
Bude 4th hole
Bude has several blind holes – fortunately this is a layout where you can often wander from the tee without cost.
There is something liberating about playing to a target you can’t see. Prevented from worrying about a nasty-looking bunker, you just concentrate on making a sweet strike.
This North Cornwall links is not long and the three par 5s are only 446, 482 and 457 yards.
Putting well is key to a good score here, and the course is always kept in excellent condition with true, well contoured greens – a joy and a challenge to putt on.
Our favourite hole is the shortest, the 4th, 138 yards off the yellows, to a green shaped as a rounded isosceles triangle, approached from the pointed end, both flanks guarded by three bunkers.
Perranporth
This is an enjoyable course laid lightly upon the land, with dramatic views and holes. Fairways are rarely defined, with marker posts on many holes.
The flamboyantly undulating linksland clings to the slopes of a headland towering over a beautiful backdrop of town, beach and sea.
The 3rd and 4th greens at Perranporth have particularly fine views.
An oddity of the layout is the lack of balance. There are three par 3s and three par 5s. The par 5s are all long – 501, 531 and 541 yards even off the yellows – yet there are no par 4s longer than 394 yards, and only two of more than 365; and ten of the final dozen holes are par 4s.
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