Courses within an hour
Golf near Lynton and Lynmouth
Two of the oldest links in England are within an hour, and there is moorland and parkland golf considerably closer.
There is no course in Lynton or Lynmouth - the ground does not allow it, which anyone who has walked up from the harbour will understand. What there is instead is an unusually good spread of golf within an hour's drive, including two courses with genuine historical weight.
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The links
Royal North Devon, Westward Ho!
Founded in 1864 and generally accepted as the oldest links course in England still on its original ground. It plays across common land where sheep and horses graze the course, over great banks of sea rush, and it is as close to Victorian golf as the game still gets. It is about an hour and fifteen minutes away and worth the drive for the experience as much as the golf.
Saunton
Two championship links courses in the dunes near Braunton, consistently rated among the best in the country. Serious golf, and busy - book well ahead. Around an hour away.
The links courses on this coast are the real draw, and they are properly old - laid out on dune systems that have been playing golf for well over a century. They are also exposed. A round there is a different game in a westerly than it is on a still morning, and the yardage on the card is a suggestion rather than a promise.
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Closer to hand
Ilfracombe
A clifftop course high above the Bristol Channel with views that are frankly a distraction. Undulating, exposed and a great deal of fun. About forty minutes by road.
Minehead and West Somerset
A links course running along the shingle on the Somerset coast, flat by local standards and consistently windy. Roughly forty-five minutes east.
Moorland and parkland
Several smaller clubs sit inland around South Molton and the Exmoor fringe, offering parkland and moorland golf that is less exposed than the coast and usually easier to get onto at short notice.
Nearer the villages the courses are shorter, hillier and considerably more forgiving of a visitor who has spent the morning walking. They are the sensible half-day option, and they hold up better in wet weather than the low-lying links do.
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Playing as a visitor
Most clubs in the area welcome visitors, and several actively court them. Tee times should be booked ahead in summer and at weekends. A handicap certificate is asked for at some of the championship courses and rarely elsewhere. Green fees vary widely between the historic links and the smaller inland clubs, and most clubs offer a reduced twilight rate.
Booking ahead is the difference between a round and a wasted drive, particularly at weekends and through the summer. Most clubs take visitors on nominated days and ask for a handicap certificate at the championship courses; a phone call settles both questions in a minute.
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Weather and the wind
Coastal courses here are exposed and the wind is a genuine part of the challenge rather than an occasional inconvenience. Links golf is at its best in autumn, when the ground has firmed and the summer visitors have gone. Winter play is normal on the links, which drain well; the inland parkland courses are the ones that suffer after heavy rain.
Given the driving distances, golf here works best as a half-day or full-day plan rather than something squeezed around other things - most of the courses are the wrong side of a moor road from the villages.
The prevailing wind here is westerly and it comes off the Atlantic with nothing in the way. On the coast that means holding the ball down and accepting that two clubs more into the breeze is normal; inland, in the combes, the same wind arrives in gusts off the hillside and is harder to read.
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Choosing between them
If you have one round in you, the question is what you want from it. Royal North Devon is the historical experience - common land, grazing animals, sea rush and a course that has barely moved since 1864. Saunton is the pure golf: two championship links, properly demanding, and busy accordingly. Ilfracombe is the view, and considerably less serious. The inland clubs are the ones to ring on the morning when the coast is under weather and you still want to play.
Budget for the driving. Nothing here is close to Lynton, the roads are slow, and a round plus travel is a full day rather than a morning.
Common questions
Is there a golf course in Lynton or Lynmouth?
No. The nearest courses are at Ilfracombe and Minehead, both about forty minutes by road, with the championship links at Saunton and Westward Ho! around an hour away.
What is the oldest golf course in England?
Royal North Devon at Westward Ho!, founded in 1864, is generally accepted as the oldest English links still played on its original ground. It is about an hour and a quarter from Lynton.
Can visitors play the courses near Lynton?
Most clubs welcome visitors. Book tee times ahead in summer and at weekends, and expect a handicap certificate to be asked for at some of the championship links.
When is the best time to play links golf in North Devon?
Autumn, once the ground has firmed and the summer crowds have gone. The links drain well and are playable through the winter; it is the inland parkland courses that suffer after rain.
