Walton Heath Old Course: 2026 Access and Booking Update
The grandest of the great Surrey heathlands, a Herbert Fowler masterpiece on open common where the heather runs to the horizon. Here is where the Old Course stands for 2026, the championship dates that shape the calendar, and how to book a visitor round.
Photo via Google.
The news: a busy championship calendar to plan around
Walton Heath remains one of the most sought after rounds in the south of England, and its 2026 calendar is the thing for visitors to plan around. The club hosts the Walton Heath Trophy from July 21 to 23, an elite amateur stroke play championship contested across both the Old and New courses, and it again stages a US Open Final Qualifier in May, the regional gateway that sends players to the year's US Open.
The course itself is unchanged, a true championship heathland fresh from hosting the 1981 Ryder Cup and the 2023 AIG Women's Open. What the events mean in practice is simple: around the qualifying day in May and the Trophy in late July, visitor access to the relevant courses is restricted, so a 2026 round needs to sit outside those windows. Below is the course and how to play it this year.
The course, and its character
Walton Heath is heathland golf at its most muscular and most pure. Opened in 1904 to a design by Herbert Fowler, the Old Course sits high on exposed Surrey common, and that elevation gives it a wild, windswept quality the sheltered heathlands lack, with firm, fast running turf that plays far more like a links than its inland address suggests. The heather is the defining hazard, a sea of purple that swallows the wayward shot whole, and the par 72 stretches to about 7,331 yards from the championship tees.
The closing stretch is among the most demanding in English golf, a run of long, exposed holes where par is a fine score in any breeze. The greens are firm and true, asking for the approach flighted to hold, and the high ground means the wind can turn a routine hole into a struggle in a single afternoon. Fowler built a course that has needed little change in more than a century, and walking it in the footsteps of James Braid, the club's professional for over forty years, and the Ryder Cup gives every round a weight of history few inland courses can match.
How to play it in 2026
Walton Heath welcomes visitors, frequently through stay and play or package arrangements, with weekday mornings offering both the most availability and the course at its best. Book well ahead, particularly in spring and summer, and steer clear of the US Open qualifying day in May and the Walton Heath Trophy from July 21 to 23, when the relevant courses are given over to competition. Indicative 2026 green fees are around 240 to 265 pounds for eighteen holes in high season depending on weekday or weekend, with the New course and day rates also available; treat any figure as indicative and always confirm directly before booking.
To get the most from a visit, take a day rate and play both the Old and the New, two of the finest heathland courses in the country side by side. Length helps on the Old, but control and nerve in the wind matter more, so flight the ball down and respect the heather off the tee. Pair Walton Heath with the other great Surrey and Berkshire heathlands for a complete trip, and reserve early because a championship year tightens the tee sheet across the whole region.
Our take
Our take is that Walton Heath is the heathland round to build a Surrey trip around, and the 2026 events are a reason to go rather than a deterrent, as long as you plan around them. A course trusted with US Open qualifying and a national elite amateur championship in the same summer is a course at the top of its game, and the conditioning that comes with hosting them is a bonus for the visitor who times it right.
If you are planning a 2026 trip, take a day rate on a weekday outside the May and late July windows, play both courses, and pair them with the neighbouring heathlands. Come prepared for the wind on the high ground, leave the heather well alone, and confirm fees and available days directly before committing.
Plan your Surrey heathland golf trip
From a day rate across the Old and New at Walton Heath to the best of the Surrey and Berkshire heathlands, with lodging and the tee times sorted around the championship calendar, tell us roughly when and who is travelling and one concierge builds and costs the trip, with no obligation.
Questions
What events are at Walton Heath in 2026?
Walton Heath's 2026 calendar includes the Walton Heath Trophy from July 21 to 23, an elite amateur stroke play championship played across the Old and New courses, along with a US Open Final Qualifier in May. Both close the relevant courses to visitor play around those dates, so plan a round outside them and confirm the schedule with the club before travelling.
Can visitors play Walton Heath Old Course in 2026?
Yes. Walton Heath welcomes visitors, often through stay and play or package arrangements, with weekday mornings offering the most availability. Book well ahead, especially in spring and summer and around qualifying and championship dates. Indicative 2026 green fees are around 240 to 265 pounds for eighteen holes in high season depending on weekday or weekend, with the New course and day rates also available; fees change, so always confirm directly before booking.
Who designed Walton Heath's Old Course?
The Old Course was designed by Herbert Fowler and opened in 1904, high on exposed Surrey common, and has needed remarkably little change since. It plays as a par 72 of about 7,331 yards from the championship tees. James Braid was the club professional here for more than four decades, and the course hosted the 1981 Ryder Cup and the 2023 AIG Women's Open.
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Researched and written by the GolfForKings editorial desk. Course facts, honours and the 2026 Walton Heath Trophy and US Open qualifying dates verified June 2026 from the club and golf news sources; access and fees change, so always confirm directly before booking. Last reviewed June 2026.