Lilleshall Hall

The Lilleshall Hall estate dates back to the 12th century, when it was originally known as the demesne of Lilleshall Abbey, owned by the Augustine religious order. Local businessman Henry Ford purchased the property in 1927, creating pleasure gardens for the public to enjoy, with an amusement park, narrow gauge railway and children’s playgrounds.

Ford also established an 18-hole golf course, designed by Harry Colt, who added a new nine to the already existing 9-hole layout. After World War II, the Hall and part of the estate were sold to the Central Council for Physical Education, which was looking to establish a second national recreation centre to complement Bisham Abbey in the south of England.

The sports centre was opened by Princess Elizabeth in 1951 before it was eventually handed over to the Sports Council in 1974. Meanwhile, the golf club continued to function next door, developing into the 6,226-yard layout that now operates in the modern era, playing to a par of 70, with one par five hole on each nine at the 2nd (“Through the Back”) and 10th (“Pickens Wood”).

Feature holes include short par fours at the 7th (“Kestrel Copse”) and 17th (“Ice House”) and the two longer par threes at the 205-yard 8th (“Harty’s Oak”) and 228-yard 12th (“Strawberry Lane”). The left doglegged 397-yard 18th (“Heron’s Pool”) rounds things off nicely, playing to a home green that’s protected by one solitary bunker to the front right.