The Best 36-Hole Golf Resorts in Great Britain and Ireland

The UK and Ireland are home to some of the best 36-hole golf resorts on the planet. Whether you head to Turnberry, the Belfry, or the K Club you will be greeted to not one but two world-class courses. With a ton of history, beautiful scenery, and mind-blowing golf, we look at the golf resort’s you need to be visiting.

Trump Turnberry (Scotland)

The revered Open Championship layout at Turnberry, with its famous views over Ailsa Craig, is one of the most iconic courses in the game. The Ailsa course has received much acclaim since reopening last year. So much so that many are now positioning the Open Championship venue as the best golf course in the world.

The former Kintyre course has also been completely redesigned by Martin Ebert. He has completely transformed the layout, now known as King Robert the Bruce.

No more an inferior relative, the course has spectacular views of Turnberry’s stunning coastline, castle ruins and the lighthouse.

Breathtaking vistas from the 8th, 9th, 10th and 11th of King Robert the Bruce are some of the most remarkable in the game.

Carton House Golf Club (Ireland)

Host to the 2005 Irish Open, Carton House is home to two of Ireland’s finest Parkland layouts. Just fifteen miles from Dublin City centre, the O’Meara is the senior layout at the resort dating back to 2002, while the Montgomery course opened for play a year later. ‘Monty’ was the brainchild behind both designs.

Despite opening within such quick succession, the two layouts contrast considerably. The O’Meara plays as a traditional parkland course, while the Montgomery, despite its inland setting, is set up as a traditional links.

Despite having a sculpted, modern look, the latter is certainly not pretentious, with the fescue and pot bunkers keeping you on your toes throughout.

The Montgomery is the finer of the two courses. Nonetheless, both are excellent layouts and golfers should be sure to take time to play both.

Woodhall Spa Golf Club (England)

Woodhall Spa is home to two exceptional heathland layouts. The rural Lincolnshire venue also houses the headquarters of England Golf. As a result, the venue has played host to some of the country’s most prestigious championships.

The Hotchkin course is one of the best inland courses in the British Isles. Ranking alongside the likes of Sunningdale and Wentworth, the course is a formidable test of golf.  Weaving its way through pines, birch, and bracken, the course is punctuated by some of the deepest bunkers you’re ever likely to encounter outside of a traditional links.

The Bracken lives somewhat in the shadow of its illustrious neighbour but is an exceptional layout in its own right. While the Hotchkin is an out and out heathland set-up, its sister course plays its way through woodland, and since opening in the 1990’s has provided the ideal partner for the original Harry Colt design.

Lough Erne Resort (Northern Ireland)

It doesn’t get much better than Lough Erne. With 5* luxury accommodation and two exceptional golf course the Northern Irish venue has joined the elite strata of British golf resorts since opening its doors in 2009.

The crown jewel is the Nick Faldo designed championship course which plays its way along the banks of the Castle Hume Lough. The 7,000-yard layout has been tipped as a future European Tour host and has all the hallmarks of a top-class championship course. The highlight of your round is the 16th hole, aptly named ‘Faldo’s Turn’, which offers sweeping views of the estate.

Nestled in Enniskillen County Fermanagh, the resort’s second layout, Castle Hume, is a picturesque parkland course with stunning views, manicured fairways, and well-contoured greens.

The K Club Golf Resort (Ireland)

The K Club is best-known for playing host to the 2006 Ryder Cup, an emotionally charged event which would see Europe storm to a comfortable victory. It is the site of one of Ireland’s most exclusive and luxurious golf resorts.

There are two courses on site, the Palmer and the Smurfit, both of which were designed by Arnold Palmer’s team.

The Palmer layout is the centrepiece of the resort. It is also an incredibly challenging course. The result was plenty of entertainment at the Ryder Cup but it does mean players should be sure to bring their A-game. Either way, it is an aesthetically pleasing design, set amid the beautiful Kildare countryside, with water featuring heavily throughout.

Meanwhile. the Smurfit course brings plenty of entertainment of its own. It more closely resembles an American style course than something usually encountered on the Emerald Isle, with extensive mounding, plenty of water, and clever bunkering.

 The Belfry Hotel and Resort (England)

The spiritual home of the Ryder Cup, The Belfry has hosted the event more times than any other venue in the world.

Having welcomed the world’s best for three consecutive home Ryder Cups in succession, the Brabazon is a must-play for all golf fans. Designed by Peter Alliss and Dave Thomas, the course is the site of some of the most memorable moments in the game.

Once an uninspiring piece of farmland, the course is now a mecca for all golf fans. The crowds may not be there to accompany you but attempting to drive par-4 10^th is still likely to make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up. There are two other courses at the resort, the Derby and PGA National. The Derby course was unveiled at the same time as the Brabazon in 1977 and is a fabulous supporting cast member.

The PGA National opened for play two decades later and is also an American-style course, with wide fairways and plenty of water hazards.

Fairmont St Andrews (Scotland)

It’s hard to find a more idyllic place to play golf than Fairmont St Andrews. The 520-acre five-star resort is blessed with a breathtaking clifftop setting. There are two courses, the Kittocks and the Torrance, both of which offer unparalleled views of St Andrews and the North Sea.

The venue has received a host of accolades over the years. A recent Conde Nast Traveler reader’s poll placed the resort 18th in its poll of “The World’s Top Golf Resorts”.

You’ll be hard-pressed to find two eighteen-hole course that pose more questions of your game.

Rosapenna Hotel and Golf Resort (Ireland)

Golf may have arrived at Rosapenna before the turn of the nineteenth century, but it was the addition of a new layout in 2003 that really set the golfing world alight.

There is still plenty of history to be enjoyed at the County Donegal venue. Three of the most famous names in golfing history Old Tom Morris, James Braid, and Harry Vardon, were the masterminds behind the traditional links layout which runs alongside towering dunes.

It is the later edition, Sandy Hills, which carves its way directly through the lunar landscape that is considered the most spectacular of the two courses. The inspired Pat Ruddy design is now quickly rising to become of Ireland’s top-ranked golf courses.

With the Old Tom Morris layout also receiving a recent makeover by Ruddy, the club is now home to two truly exceptional courses.

In 2012, Rosapenna acquired St. Patrick’s Golf Links to become the second biggest links golf destination after Saint Andrews.

Gleneagles

Gleneagles has become one of the most iconic resorts in golf. After all, where else can you find three top-class championship courses at the same venue?

Golfers and non-golfers alike will be spoilt for choice at the Perthshire resort, which is set to host the 2019 Solheim Cup.

While golfing legend James Braid would design the original two layouts, Jack Nicklaus would be the man behind the most recent PGA Centenary course. As a result, golfers will find three unique and contrasting tests.  The PGA Centenary, which provided a stunning backdrop to the 2014 Ryder Cup, has a distinctly American feel. Meanwhile, the Kings Course is considered the best moorland layout in Britain. The picturesque Queens Course completes the trio and is a charming track that should not be overlooked.

Prince’s

Prince’s forms part of a majestic trio of courses that occupy one of the greatest stretches of golfing coastline in Britain. Despite playing host to the Open Championship, the links is one of the UK’s best-kept secrets.

Bordering Royal St George’s, the 27-hole layout is sometimes overshadowed by its illustrious neighbour. Nonetheless, the historic venue is an exceptional course, with recent improvements only enhancing Prince’s reputation as one of England’s most exciting layouts.

A traditional links, with pot bunkers and surprises aplenty, the Kent course would welcome the world’s best in 1932, when Gene Sarazen, the first golfer to win all four majors, would lift the Claret Jug.

Find your favourite courses: www.allsquaregolf.com and download our mobile app on the App Store and on Google Play.