John O'Gaunt (John O'Gaunt) - Bedfordshire - England

John O’Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster and fourth son of King Edward III, held the manor of nearby Sutton during the 14th century and the golf club was founded in his honour in 1948. Situated between Bedford and Cambridge, the club boasts a pair of beguiling 18-hole golf courses, with the longer John O’Gaunt layout rated the tougher of the two tracks.

Mature trees line the holes here as they stretch out across a gently undulating parkland landscape. Accuracy off the tee is absolutely essential as many of the playing corridors are rather tight and a big score can easily result from either a wayward tee shot or a careless approach shot.

There are only three par threes on the card, at holes 4, 10 and 16, with the 186-yard 10th considered the signature hole on the course. Three bunkers to the front of the green will catch anything short at this hole and a large tree to the front and right of the putting surface will punish pushed tee shots.

The only two par fives are also worthy of comment: the 504-yard 9th sweeping from left to right with an uphill approach to the green and the short, 406-yard 17th doglegging right to a green that’s surrounded by a dry moat – now, it’s not every day you read about that sort of hazard on a golf course, is it?