Five counties in our East Midlands region – Derbyshire, Leicestershire & Rutland, Lincolnshire, Northamptonshire and Nottinghamshire – feature in this article, the first of seven English course re-ranking releases.

“Long,” No. 14 at St Andrews Old Course is the longest hole on the card. This and some other details from the Scottish icon have come to solidify our understanding of the term “Long”.

What’s maybe not so well known is that the Isle of Man is also totally geared up to attract visiting golfers to all its golf courses, every one of which is open for fifty-two weeks of the year.

I hadn't played Ganton for a few years, so on a bright, sunny and still morning, the anticipation as we turned off the A64 into the long narrow driveway down towards the club was tangible.

A few people in the northwest of France thought we might be interested to see what some of their golf facilities had to offer. Needing no further encouragement, we headed off to Brittany and Normandy.

The “Eden” is one of several templates finding its origins at the Home of Golf itself, the Old course at St. Andrews. It’s a decent hike from the Royal & Ancient, as No. 11 “High In”—the original Eden—is the farthest hole from the clubhouse.