2 Nights, 3 Rounds
Hesketh is the oldest golf club in the Southport area, founded in 1885, and it still feels every bit the proper links test you'd hope for in this part of the world. When The Open is at nearby Royal Birkdale, Hesketh is regularly used for Final Qualifying, which is a good indicator of the course's quality and the sort of test it provides.
This is a links that can play firm and fast, especially when the wind gets up, so it's more about plotting your way round than simply swinging hard. Accuracy off the tee matters, the short game needs to be sharp and the greens have enough subtle movement to punish anyone who switches off. I'd say it's a fair course, but it won't flatter lazy course management. A century of history shows in the shaping and the feel underfoot, and it rewards local knowledge without being tricky for the sake of it.
As a base for a golf break, Southport is hard to beat. You've got Royal Birkdale, Hillside and Southport & Ainsdale close by, plus a lively town centre for post-round food and a few pints. Hesketh fits nicely into a multi-course itinerary too, giving you that authentic links feel without the formality you sometimes get at the biggest names. Include Hesketh as part of your next Southport golf break and you'll quickly see why it keeps its place in the local rotation.
Who is this for?
Golfers who want to play a historic links course in one of England's best golfing regions, and anyone building a Southport golf break around multiple championship-standard courses.
Who is it best for?
Mid-to-low handicappers who enjoy strategic links golf, and groups looking for a proper test that's been good enough to host Open qualifying but still feels welcoming and unpretentious.
2 Nights, 3 Rounds
Hesketh is not a traditional links course, but can be viewed almost in two separate halves; part of the layout features superb holes that are carved through the towering sand dunes, while the remainder borders the Ribble Estuary. This diversity makes Hesketh an intriguing challenge, where visitors must build up to the formidable closing stretch, where consecutive par-5s to finish can either make or break a scorecard.
Recent alterations by the esteemed Hawtree Design team have made Hesketh more relevant to the modern game, and emphasised its position as one of the best on the Southport tour.
Be brave at the back-to-back par-5s to finish, where you can make or break your scorecard.
Hesketh Golf Club is ranked as one of the best courses in North West England
Mike
✓2 Oct 2019
A lovely course too. We took our time as it was a rainy and potentially thundery morning but thankfully none of it came our way. The course is set up very nicely for visitors and we really enjoyed our round. Staff & members all very friendly.
Sasha
✓24 Sep 2019
We liked the course, it has a few really interesting holes, but overall is fairly easy. We played at 10am on a Sunday and there wasn’t anyone on it, which was rather surprising and we went at a good pace and got lucky with the weather, while those teeing off later had to have their waterproofs on.
Greger
✓25 Jun 2019
Ian
✓9 May 2019
A lovely set up, great location. The fairways were a little scruffy in places and the greens had recently been seeded so not as fast as they normally are.
Andrew
✓26 Mar 2019
Average course but a good warm up
Anthony
✓20 Sep 2018
Yes
Yes
£45 plus discretionary
There are 3 bars on site
There is complimentary car parking
