An hour southwest of London lies the richest band of inland golf in the world: sandy heath, silver birch and pine, and a sea of purple heather that turns every approach into a question of nerve. Here are the ten heathland courses we rate most highly, ranked, with our verdict and how to play each.
Photograph: Sunningdale Golf Club, Mark Glithero, via Google
The English heathland was a happy accident of geology. When Victorian golfers discovered the sandy, free draining soil of Surrey, Berkshire and Hampshire, a generation of architects led by Harry Colt, Herbert Fowler and Willie Park Jr realized it could give an inland course the firm, fast turf of the seaside. Sunningdale opened in 1901, Walton Heath in 1904, and within a quarter century the belt held more world class golf than anywhere outside the links coast.
We weighed design, the quality of the heathland turf and heather, the routing and the sheer atmosphere of the place, and we noted access plainly, because several are private members clubs that nonetheless welcome visitors on weekdays. Every fact here, from designers and opening years to championship history, was checked at the time of writing. Green fees move with the season and are best treated as indicative; the heather is at its purple best in late summer. The verdicts are ours, and our concierge will build any of them into a costed trip.
The heathland archetype and, for many, still the best of them. Willie Park Jr laid out the Old Course in 1901, and Harry Colt, the club's secretary, refined it for decades into a perfectly paced walk through birch, pine and heather. Bernard Darwin called it the gentlest of examinations and the most pleasant of days. Private, with visitor tee times midweek.
The most exposed and most muscular of the heathland greats. Herbert Fowler routed the Old across high, open common where the wind has nothing to stop it and the heather grows thick, an inland course with a true links feel. It hosted the 1981 Ryder Cup and the 2023 AIG Women's Open. Private, welcoming visitors on weekdays.
The Burma Road, Harry Colt's longest and most famous heathland design, threading tree lined corridors to a grandstand finish. Long the home of the BMW PGA Championship, it was substantially renewed by Ernie Els in 2010. Tougher and more manicured than its purer neighbors, but a championship test every traveler wants to tick off. Private, with visitor access.
Harry Colt's own quiet favorite, which he modestly called the least bad course he ever built. A short, serene par 68 through Crown pinewood and heather, famous for a set of one shot holes as good as any in Britain. Deeply private and gloriously unhurried, a round here is golf's idea of a secret garden. Access by member introduction.
Harry Colt at his most dramatic, draped across the wooded hills of a Surrey estate with sweeping elevation changes rare on the heath. Tumbling fairways, heather banks and stately approaches make it one of the most beautiful inland courses in England. Private, with limited visitor tee times midweek.
The quirkier and more charming of the Berkshire pair, with the unusual makeup of six par 3s, six par 4s and six par 5s. Herbert Fowler used the rolling Crown heath and towering pines to brilliant effect, and the variety keeps every hole fresh. A members club that welcomes weekday visitors, often paired with the Blue Course.
The bolder, more exposed companion to the Old, designed by Harry Colt on higher, more open ground with firmer greens and a sterner examination. Many good judges prefer it to its celebrated sibling. Playing both in a day is one of golf's great inland pleasures. Private, with visitor tee times midweek.
The cradle of strategic design. Tom Dunn laid the original course, but it was the amateur theorists Stuart Paton and John Low who, with their famous fairway bunkers on the fourth, taught architecture to think in terms of risk and angle. A modest, scholarly, deeply influential heathland course. Private, welcoming weekday visitors.
The cult choice, a wild and original layout by J. F. Abercromby across steep heather ravines on the southern edge of London. Quirky, demanding carries and a string of memorable one shot holes give it a character all its own, and a recent restoration has returned the heath to health. Private, with visitor access.
Wilder and sandier than the manicured Surrey clubs, Hankley sits on open common with a genuine wasteland feel, the heather thick and the wind free. James Braid reworked the layout to a fine closing stretch, including a famous long par 4 18th over a deep cross bunker. Private, welcoming visitors most days.
Designers, opening years and championship history verified June 2026. Most of these are private members clubs that welcome visitors on weekdays, several by member introduction only. Green fees move with the season and are indicative only. Always confirm visitor access and fees directly before booking.
Tell us how many courses you want to play and which corner of the belt, Surrey, Berkshire or both, and roughly when. One concierge arranges the introductions and tee times and costs the trip to the head, with no obligation.
The Old Course at Sunningdale is the most highly rated heathland course in England, a Willie Park Jr design refined by Harry Colt and long regarded as the model of the type. Walton Heath's Old Course, a former Ryder Cup venue, and Harry Colt's Swinley Forest and St George's Hill lead the rest of an exceptionally deep field.
Most are private members clubs that welcome visitors on weekdays, often outside peak member times, and a few of the most exclusive, such as Swinley Forest, are by member introduction only. Tee times, dress codes and fees vary by club and season, so always confirm visitor access and fees directly before booking.
Heathland tee time windows, the courses that welcome visitors and the trips our concierge is quietly building around London. Every other week.