Royal Zoute Golf Club

The verdict

Royal Zoute is the grand old name of Belgian golf. Founded at the end of the nineteenth century and reshaped by the great English architect Harry Colt from 1907, it became the Royal Zoute Golf Club when the royal title was granted in 1925. It sits in Het Zoute, the most exclusive corner of the Knokke-Heist resort, a short walk from the dunes and the long Belgian beach, and it has the unhurried, between the wars elegance that Colt brought to so many of Europe's best courses.

The Championship Course is the headline layout, with a shorter par 64 Executive course alongside it for a relaxed second round. While the land is gentler than the towering dunes of the great British and Irish links, the turf, the wind and the strategic Colt routing give it an unmistakably British feel, and it remains the benchmark by which Belgian golf is measured. For the travelling golfer it is the obvious centrepiece of a trip to Flanders.

The holes worth the trip

What makes Royal Zoute special is the Colt strategy laid over honest seaside land. The fairways run firm and the rough is the wispy, dune grass kind, so the round is about angles and ground game rather than aerial power. Position off the tee opens the green; the wrong side leaves a half blind or awkward approach to putting surfaces that are subtly tilted and quick when dry. It is a course that flatters thoughtful golf and exposes the careless.

The wind off the North Sea is the constant, shifting through the round and turning short par 4s into genuine decisions and long holes into a grind into the breeze. Colt's bunkering is placed to catch the lazy line rather than to dominate the eye, and the green complexes do most of the defending. Local knowledge counts here, knowing where to miss and how to use the contours, which is why members hold such an advantage over first time visitors.

It is not a long course by modern standards, and it does not need to be. The blend of firm turf, clever routing and ever present wind gives Royal Zoute its teeth, and the between the wars character gives it its charm. Pair it with the Executive course for a full day, and you have the best golf Belgium offers, an easy hour and a half from Brussels and minutes from the cafes of Knokke.

Where to stay nearby

Knokke-Heist is one of the most fashionable resorts on the Belgian coast, with elegant hotels, fine restaurants and galleries within minutes of the course, so most golfers base themselves in the town and walk to the tram and the beach between rounds. For a quieter, more historic stay, the medieval city of Bruges is half an hour away and makes a memorable centre for a golf and culture trip.

Royal Zoute pairs naturally with the other good courses of Flanders and the nearby Dutch coast, where the dune links around the border add variety to a week of seaside golf. With the Executive course on site there is plenty to fill a long weekend without travelling far, and the food and beer of Flanders are reason enough to linger.

Looking for a base? See our recommended hotels and resorts near Knokke-Heist and Bruges.