Royal Porthcawl Golf Club

Royal Porthcawl is, in our opinion, the best golf course in Wales – and would be a fitting venue for The Open.

The elite amateurs who travelled to south Wales to play in the Amateur Championship of 2016 competed over a course that is not only widely regarded as the finest in the Principality but also one deemed capable of hosting The Open.

While the first statement might be contested by supporters of Royal St David’s, Pennard and Aberdovey – both of which have significant merit – most prefer Porthcawl, illustrated by its position in our GB&I Top 100s.

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The second assertion is more open to debate, yet largely owing to factors not pertaining to the course. “It is a gem. It can certainly measure up with any of the courses that host The Open and Senior Open,” says Bernhard Langer of a links over which he won the Senior Open in 2014. “It would make a great Open Championship course,” agrees Tom Watson.

The infrastructure required to host an Open these days might very well dispiritingly preclude Porthcawl being anointed. So might the return of Royal Portrush to an already intensely competitive ‘rota’ of Open hosts.

Against which, one might argue one, two or even four regular hosts might in the near future disappear from selection for political reasons, and that what had looked an unlikely opening may appear.

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Certainly, the R&A’s preferred architect Martin Ebert has worked on the links recently and it is one of the governing body’s favoured hosts for its championships. The 2016 championship was the seventh ‘Amateur’ it has staged, and it has also hosted a Walker Cup, the aforementioned Senior Open and a Curtis Cup.

It did so in 2016 in tandem with Pyle & Kenfig, a felicitous way for Porthcawl to celebrate its 125th anniversary.

The club was formed in 1891 by coal and shipping merchants from Cardiff, with a nine-holer laid out among the gorse and bracken of Locks Common by Charles Gibson, the professional at Royal North Devon.

The original course was soon insufficient to cope with the increasing popularity of the club though, and within four years land for a second nine was secured. The original nine – witnessed on arrival at Porthcawl as the land on which it sat is dissected by the driveway – was then abandoned due to the significant walk between the two halves, and Ramsay Hunter was engaged to create the first 18-hole course in Wales.

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The work of Hunter, of Sandwich fame, was altered by world war efforts and a succession of esteemed architects including Harry Colt, Fred Hawtree, JH Taylor and notably Tom Simpson. More recently, Ebert has rebuilt some greens.

Porthcawl was granted its regal prefix in 1909 but it wasn’t until the 1950s, aided by the astute husbandry of Fife man Marcus Geddes, that it reached its potential.

Geddes was a proponent of fast-running, fine fescue links and his work helped attract elite championships to this nook of south Wales. They tended to bear timeless stories too; the 1965 Amateur, the second hosted here, was notable for Michael Bonallack’s comeback from seven down after eight holes to beat Clive Clark 2&1 but also for him winning the jackpot on the fruit machine at lunchtime. Thirty years later, GB&I beat an American side containing the ‘phenom’, Tiger Woods, 14-10 in the Walker Cup.

Professional luminaries triumphed here too, from Percy Alliss (a former assistant at Porthcawl) in the Penfold tournament of 1932 to Peter Thomson in the 1961 Dunlop Masters to Sandy Lyle in the inaugural Coral Welsh Classic of 1980. Two years later, Gordon Brand Jnr held off Greg Norman in an event battered by a thunderstorm during which lightning struck the TV aerial of the press tent and ruined the writers’ enjoyment of a World Cup football match from Spain!

In picturing that mid-summer event of 1982, one’s mind conjures images of the scorched links that would have played hosted, even with a good drink from the thunderstorm. In such ‘brown’ conditions, Porthcawl is at once a visual delight, yet necessitates such huge patience and precision that one is never at ease.

Due to the absence of dune corridors found on many elite links, it famously permits a view of the sea from every hole, as well as south to Somerset and Exmoor and across Swansea Bay to the Gower Peninsula. Instead, undulating terrain created by blown sand climbs away from the captivating opening three beachside holes and characterises this world-class links. Marram, gorse and heather cover the rolling hillside, although vegetation is admirably being scraped back to reveal original authentic sandy areas.

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As per every classic links, Porthcawl is not all about brawn, with placement of drives between what can be thick rough and mastering the often fast-running conditions as important as thumping it miles. The victory of notoriously short-hitting Gary Wolstenholme over Woods – in his wondrously athletic but wild youth – in the Walker Cup is exhibit A.

Then there is a set of greens that are routinely slick and uncommonly contoured, with putting into bunkers not unheard of. If you follow this golfer in doing so, take solace in the rumour a famous lady of yesteryear is thought to have gone one better and lost a ball while putting downhill and downwind on the 5th!

Now up to 7,100 yards from the championship tees, the 6,580 off the whites will be ample for all but single-figure players – and the 6,300 off the yellows advisable for most.

The regular changes in direction, with holes pointed in every direction on the compass, is another strong theme here and ensures it is always testing and interesting. The aforementioned first three head in a north-westerly direction as they hug the coastline, the 3rd green being the point to the ‘triangle’ of land on which Porthcawl is laid out. Think of this opening trio – a gentle opener followed by two stern par 4s, with the common theme of uncommon beauty – as the left-hand side of the triangle.

The right side is then provided by three holes that follow in a steadfastly south-east direction, a 3-5-4 combination that play with the prevailing but travel against the grain to greens set into the hill.

An exquisite short hole to the south then begins the bottom of the triangle. Played to an intimidatingly slender green guarded by six bunkers, it might be flippantly but not wholly inaccurately be described as Wales’ Postage Stamp. If you kept walking off the back of the 7th green in a straight line across the practice ground you would eventually find the 18th tee and thus the clubhouse.

But instead Porthcawl now loses is navigational discipline. From the 8th tee it darts about the land within the triangle in all directions. Only 16 and 17 vaguely follow each other of consecutive holes.

The back nine is 200 yards longer despite both halves featuring two 3s and two 5s, the quartet of two-shotters that even off the whites all exceed 410 yards (off the backs they average 458) from the 13th making the difference.

The dog-leg 13th begins an exacting finish. Played into the prevailing wind, the margin for error on the approach is minimal due to sand either side of a narrow green. The 15th is even better, set on a fantastic slab of undulating ground where bunkers set into the face of a ridge frame the tee shot before a green on the brow of the ridge beyond rising and falling terrain.

The 16th is played downwind but that advantage is negated by cross bunkers that mean you face a shot of at least 158 yards.

The scorecard suggests they are in balanced by a mid-length short hole and a ‘short’ par 5. But while the 14th may be modest in length for a championship par 3, like the 7th it requires a controlled short iron to hold its plateau green, especially in the customary crosswind.

The final par 5, meanwhile, may be only 504 yards off the tips, but it is uphill and includes a blind drive. It is, nevertheless, a chance of a birdie when it is calm.

Then to the final hole, where many great victories have been sealed, although not Langer’s Senior Open win, as it played as the 1st. Whether that was a trial run for the main event is a moot point. In the meantime, fortunate club golfers ought to savour Wales’ No.1 for themselves.

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Course	72 par
Course Style	-
Green Fees	-
Course Length	6,773 yards (6,193 metres)
Holes	-
Difficulty	-
Course Membership	-

• Course has: Bar
• Course does not have: Buggy Hire
• Course has: Driving Range
• Course does not have: Practice Green
• Course has: Pro Shop
• Course has: Restaurant
• Course has: Trolley Hire
• Course does not have: Dress Code
• Course has: Club Hire
• Course does not have: Handicap

• 4 out of 5 At least Dick Turpin wore a mask? 27 October 2015

  By Lyno

  A very good links course and without doubt one of the best in Wales. Not as good as P and K back nine but far superior front nine. Charge far, far too much per round and have played St Andrews for far less money. Still a tad pretentious I feel at Porthcawl.

• 5 out of 5 Excellent links golf...played it during 2010 Ryder Cup came over from Athens, GA 20 July 2014

  By Gusser2004

  Perfect day for links golf. Temperature was in the high 40s to low 50s, it was raining, and the wind was blowing between 15-25 mph with gusts to 35 I think. The first tee I hit my drive about 260 but had to start it out of bounds left just to keep it in the fairway! I remember hitting a knock down 5 iron 120 yds and then two holes later hitting the same 5 iron 260 yds. I played great and shot 78. Pro said no one had broken 80 in two days because of the wind. Needless to say it was a memorable round and would love to play it again one day. Man I love links golf and Royal Porthcawl is a must play for those visiting the UK for golf. Excellent value as the Royal courses go too!

• 4.5 out of 5 A true, quality test of a golfers ability! 16 March 2010

  By LUTINO77

  I played the course on Friday 12th March, Tee Off Time 9.00am, weather was drizzly with sunny spells. I have played for 20 years and play off a solid 15 handicap. I played with 2 friends and we paid £50 each for the round. The booking was very easy and they had a wide range of tee times available, in fact the guy who took the booking couldn't be more helpful. My first thoughts as we pulled into the car park was that we had arrived at an old, prestiges course that is stooped in history (getting changed in the adequate changing room whilst looking at Walker Cup photos off Tiger, Padraig and David Howell kind of fills you with the Wow factor before you hit a ball) The Pro shop is adequately stocked and the members that we encountered were exceptionally friendly and polite. From the moment you walk to the first tee and you have the wind and ocean to your left you know you are about to play a course that is going to inspire. The tee offs were flat, well grassed and the choice of playing on the white tee offs was a pleasent surprise. The Greens were quick and considering it was March they were in great condition and i am sure in summer would be amazing. Every putt we hit was true and again for the time of year thats a big compliment to the green staff. Every hole is very different and the Par 3s in particular were outstanding, covered in bunkers (amazing quality, full of sand and almost a delight to get into!) and tricky greens simply added to the test. Fairways were well grassed and what was so impressive was that the green staff were out re seeding every divot to keep them in the great condition we found them. We played the Roman Road course the following day and there is no comparison this course is head and shoulders better, its more challanging, more inspiring, more welcoming, worth the money and in far better condition. The only slight negative was the clubhouse offered a restricted meal afterwards but with a lovely town close by it didnt matter to us. All in all this course is worth every penny of its fee and is a credit to links courses-i hope you also find standing on the 1st tee as inspiring as i did.  

• 4.5 out of 5 true golf 21 May 2009

  By dirkdiggler0708

  this was by far the best course i have played it has all the tradition and a stunning course to boot we had fantastic weather as well which helped but would still like to play when windy we enjoyed it so much we played it again on same day more so because we did not do it justice 1st time round but 2nd time we knew were to put ball and where not will return again to this welsh wonder

• 4 out of 5 Wow, that wind 29 September 2007

  By gslack

  Played this course twice, each time in 20 mph winds. Tough course in a blow. Full of history. Can't be missed!