East Devon Golf Club

East Devon Golf Club is absolutely enchanting, the golf course is laid out on high ground, 400 feet above the sea, close to the clifftops, where one can drink in the most spectacular views in golf. The sweeping panorama of Lyme Bay is in view, and on a clear day, you can spot the Isle of Portland, jutting out into the English Channel.

The fairways have been cut through a profusion of gorse and heather. It’s as pretty as a picture, an undulating seaside heathland course with an overwhelming feeling of spaciousness because wide tracts of gorse and heather divide each fairway.

Robert Tosswill, a retired army officer laid down the original course, working with the natural lie of the land and it opened for play in March 1902. James Braid visited the club the following year, and according to Golf Illustrated, his work didn’t just involve lengthening, but “considerably altering and improving” the course.

Herbert Fowler made further alterations in 1913 and after the First World War Harry Colt remodelled the course, creating the layout largely played today. Braid returned to the club in 1931 to alter today’s 8th hole, 18th green and surrounding bunkers.

Measuring a little over 6,200 yards, East Devon is not championship material, but with a lowly par of 70 and some tight drives, this is a challenging and attractive test of golf. Right from the off, the course wends its way slowly but surely to the clifftops. The climb is gradual and certainly not hard work. Many of the holes are memorable and certainly the 9th, a downhill par four, was a record breaker for T. Aydon. In 1934 he entered the Guinness Book of Records for hitting the longest recorded drive. It was measured at 450 yards and he reached the edge of the green. It is no longer featured in the current records, but bear in mind that this drive was struck 70 years ago without the aid of modern technology.

East Devon’s one-shotters are charming, and the pick of the bunch is the 10th, a stunning par three played from an elevated tee across a valley clad in gorse and heather to a well protected, three-tiered green. “The best view in golf”, according to Peter Alliss, can be taken in on the 16th tee, a 406-yard par four. This is the start of the downhill stretch back to the clubhouse. Don’t go too far right here – there are cliffs and out-of-bounds waiting to catch the slice. Anything too far left will be caught by heather or blocked out by trees. The 17th is a delightful long par four with another lovely view and loads of heather and gorse. A par here will feel like a birdie.

East Devon is an elegant course on charming heathland. It’s relatively unknown, but it’s certainly discerning and immensely enjoyable – well worth a visit.

Frank Pont was appointed in 2019 to conduct a research study with a view to developing plans for future restoration work on the course.