Hillside: 2026 Access and Booking Update
Hillside is the quieter half of golf's most famous fence line, a towering links that shares the Southport dunes with Royal Birkdale and is rated by many who have played both as the equal of its neighbour. Here is where Hillside stands in 2026, how visitor access and booking work, and how to play it.
The news: still the connoisseur's Southport links
Hillside Golf Club sits immediately south of Royal Birkdale on the Lancashire coast, and in 2026 it remains one of the most respected and most underrated links in England. It is a regular host of Final Qualifying for The Open Championship, the route by which club professionals and amateurs earn their place in the field, and that standing keeps it firmly on the radar of serious travelling golfers.
What gives Hillside its quiet authority is the land itself. The course occupies a genuine stretch of the Sefton dune system, and the back nine in particular runs through some of the biggest sandhills on the coast. Greg Norman is widely quoted as calling it the best back nine in Britain, and whether or not you take that literally, it captures why golfers leave Hillside talking about the second half of the round.
The course itself
Hillside plays as a par 72 of about 7,029 yards from the championship tees. The club was founded in 1911 and the modern routing, much of it shaped through the middle of the twentieth century, makes the most of two very different halves. The front nine is the more level, working out across flatter linksland, while the back nine plunges into the dunes and delivers the holes that make the reputation.
It is a course of genuine examination rather than tricks. The fairways ask for position off the tee, the greens sit naturally in the dunescape, and the wind off the Irish Sea can change the character of every hole hour to hour. Conditioning is consistently high, and the turf runs firm and fast through the summer, which is when the running game Hillside is built for comes alive.
How to play it in 2026
Hillside is a private members club that welcomes visitors, and for 2026 the practical points are straightforward. Book a visitor tee time in advance through the secretary's office, be ready to provide a handicap, and aim for a weekday if you want the widest choice of times. The club runs visitor golf around members play and competition diary, so the earlier you plan, the better.
On cost, treat any figure as indicative for the 2026 season and confirm directly before booking, because rates move with the season and the calendar. Hillside sits in the most concentrated cluster of championship links in England, so most visitors build it into a multi day Southport trip rather than a single round. The summer months give the firmest turf, but the course drains well and plays into the shoulder seasons too.
Our take
Our take is that Hillside is one of the great value pilgrimages in English golf, a true Open Final Qualifying links that delivers a championship test without the queue or the price of the most famous names a short drive away. If you are already planning Birkdale, leaving out Hillside would be a mistake.
Build it into a Southport and the Lancashire coast trip, give yourself a weekday tee time booked well ahead, carry your handicap details, and travel in the firm summer months if you can. Play the front nine with patience, then let the back nine through the big dunes show you why people who know this coast rate Hillside so highly.
Plan your Southport golf trip
From Hillside and Royal Birkdale to the wider Lancashire links coast, tell us roughly when and who is travelling and one concierge builds and costs the trip, with no obligation.
Questions
Can visitors play Hillside?
Yes. Hillside is a private members club that welcomes visitors. Book a visitor tee time in advance through the secretary's office, be ready to provide a handicap, and expect weekday play to give the widest choice of times.
What is the par and length of Hillside?
Hillside is a par 72 of about 7,029 yards from the championship tees. The club was founded in 1911, and the back nine running through the largest dunes is the half that earns most of the praise.
Is Hillside an Open qualifying venue?
Yes. Hillside is a regular host of Final Qualifying for The Open Championship, which is part of why it stays on the schedule of serious travelling golfers. Green fees are indicative for 2026 and should be confirmed directly with the club before booking.
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Researched and written by the GolfForKings editorial desk. Course, season and access details verified June 2026 from club and golf travel sources; conditions and green fees change, so always confirm directly before booking. Last reviewed June 2026.