Royal West Norfolk - Norfolk - England

The par 5 8th hole at Brancaster is one of the best - or at least fun - holes I’ve ever played. And it’s so deceptively simple you could miss how effective it is. Or so deceptively effective that you miss how simple it is. It’s like velcro in this respect. The 3rd & 9th holes are also not far behind, and what they each have in common is basic yet optimised use of natural features to provide strategic options, from both the tee and the fairway. My favourite stretch was unsurprisingly 3-9. The back 9 can’t maintain the quality, despite containing some diverse and fun holes.

On the day we played several fairways were effectively out of commission due to maintenance work. We were not advised of this work beforehand and there was no green fee reduction for the lesser experience. It is quite a trek to get to North Norfolk and we’d actually flown into nearby Norwich specifically to play here. However, this isn’t the course’s fault, so no hard feelings. And I accidentally took a Royal West Norfolk coffee cup home with me, so we’ll call it quits. I guess the simple lesson is, when traveling for a special round, be sure to ask about any scheduled maintenance.

It’s difficult - or at least unorthodox - to review this course without making a mention of near neighbour Hunstanton. Most reviews tend to describe Brancaster as the “quirky” option and Hunstanton as the more standard “championship” course. There is some truth in this but I feel it tends to lend a lazy characterisation that is unfair to both. Brancaster has several orthodox holes and Hunstanton has a few odd ones. The sum of this stereotyping perhaps tends to favour Brancaster amongst the cognoscenti. I feel there’s very little in it and I can’t decide which I prefer. Here the highlights come earlier in the round, whereas at Hunstanton they are more evenly distributed and the 16-18 finish is more memorable.

Royal West Norfolk perhaps just shades it for me. Definitely. Hunstanton perhaps just shades it for me. Maybe. Be sure to play both

I've been lucky enough to play this course probably a dozen times over the past 5 years and although the course has suffered due to the droughts of the last two summers, it doesn't take away from the fact that it's a world class course, and is even better when played in matchplay.

The first starts off innocuously with an 80 yard fairway but many a ball is lost in the dunes to the left by being too aggressive. The easy bail out then brings the two greenside bunkers very much into play with out of bounds just over the green.

The third hole is world class, a drive over the edge of the marsh, with the goal being to keep the ball as close as possible to the hazard to have a second shot straight down the green. The second shot is blind and the further left the drive, the more the wicked greenside bunkers come into play.

The first of the par 3's, all of which play into the prevailing wind, is only 125 yards long but many a shot balloons up and lands shot, rolling back down the revetted slope into one of the three bunkers sitting 25 feet below the height of the green. To me, Brancaster has maybe the best set of par 3's in the country, even better than Rye which is let down by the 17th.

The 6th is a long iron to a long narrow green with a dune on the right and the marsh on the left. The 10th, which is often overlooked, looks simple on a calm day but once the wind starts blowing, it can rack up some huge scores with the deep bunkers to the right of the green and the chip from the left side no easier as the green is raised, slopes towards the bunkers and the wind feeding the ball back towards the bunkers. The final par 3, the 15th, has one of the highest faced bunkers in the country outside of Cornwall, although the bunker is some 50 yards short of the green.

Much has been already talked about the 8th and the 9th, no bunkers required but tests every facet of the game from distance control on the tee shot, power on the second shot to spin control on the approach to 9.

The return continues in the same vein with a lovely raised punchbowl green on the 12th, a wicked short par 4 13th where long is dead, the 14th along a dune with another punchbowl green to finally the 18th with it's lovely sleepered approach shot.

Afterwards, there is no better view in golf than having lunch upstairs in the bay window, looking down the 1st/18th fairway to the right and the beach to the left before setting off for a second 18 in the afternoon.

Links gem. Played in September in windy sunny conditions. Rewards long hitters with plenty of birdie opportunities. One of, if not, the best links course in England. Will definitely return. Absolutely loved it.

Played the course in the first week of September, a bright sunny day with a howling gale. The first nine was a doddle, the back nine against the wind was pretty much impossible.

The condition of the fairways were probably the worst I have played on fo5 some years, extremely soft and some which were undergoin* maintenance were absolutely dreadful.

The greens were excellent as were the beautiful bunkers for which I am awarding the course it’s 3 stars. The chap in the pro shop was very welcoming and friendly.

A major problem on the course was a lack of signage between holes, very poor and something easily rectified.

Given the poor state of the course perhaps we could have been given the option not to play or be given a pro rata discount. Having our money taken only to discover how bad the fairways were was sharp to say the least.

If you are in the area perhaps try Kings Lynn GC instead, half the price, twice the quality.

I think the eight year waiting list to join RWN is to get a park8ng space for walking your dog and not for the overated quality of the golf course.

The members here are among the luckiest souls that play the game. One of my favourite aspects of British golf is that certain clubs give you a glimpse of the origins of the game on a level that is rarely matched. Images of golfing museums like Royal North Devon and Prestwick came to mind as I stepped inside the clubhouse at Brancaster. Furnishings from 1892 are still in place, and things don’t change much at all as you escape from modern day. I understand that when the club installed showers a few years ago in the locker room, that the news made the local paper!

The tide that surrounds the golf course is as mythical and fabled as the golf itself. A day doesn’t go by where the impact and timing of the tide doesn’t cross your mind, as you may not be able to exit the property until the tide goes back out. I could think of worse things than being stranded at a world-class golf course for 4 hours.

The course is outstanding and comfortably in the Top 15 in England for me, which is very strong merits. Martin Ebert has drafted a master plan for improvements and no doubt the course will only get better. I truly enjoyed the outward routing of the front nine, which included many shots over those trademark railway sleeper-ties, especially at the par 4 3rd and the epic par 3 4th hole which arguably is destined for greatness. On a couple of occasions, the routing turned back towards the clubhouse, primarily for the shorter holes before embarking on the showcase 8th and 9th holes at the end of the property, which meander through the tidal areas and you literally have to see it to believe it.

The vision of Holcombe Ingleby in 1892 to create these holes and find that routing is truly spellbinding. With the tide fully in, both your tee shot and your second shot on the par 5 8th hole must navigate diagonal platforms of fairways cutting through water ways. The back nine heads back towards the clubhouse from the end of the property before the bold 12th hole makes a left turn and cuts straight across the property with the bonus of an elevated punchbowl green. The short par 4 13th hole brings you back across the property before continuing for the house. Iconic railway ties, some enormous in stature will frequently give you that “wow” feeling as you brace yourself for the examination. When the back nine at Brancaster is into the wind, you’ll use every club in the bag in less than 2 hours. The 1st and 18th holes share a fairway and the adventure ends back at the beach entrance.

Both the course and the clubhouse have stood the test of time, and are relentless with their pursuit of preserving the past. With upcoming improvements to the course on the horizon, it further puts Royal West Norfolk into a category of its own, in that it has unmatched quirk, antiquity, history and will be of championship standard. This old course is no push over whatsoever. You have to see it all to believe it – and who cares if you get stuck with the 9-metre tide – it could be the best part of your trip.

Where to start. A golf club that doesn't like visitors has its own clubhouse just for members and has two golf club names attached to it. The Artisans who live in Brancaster join Brancaster Golf Club and the exclusive list of paying members (and their dogs) who make up Royal West Norfolk Golf Club.

I am lucky enough to have played this course, a family friend is the pro. It's a stunner of a golf course, the layout being unlike any other. When the tide comes in, the golf course becomes impossible to drive to and the course turns into a different animal, a few holes turn into islands and become so much more difficult to play, but spectacular if you're lucky enough to witness it. There are a few great holes at RWN and a few world class ones, one of which being the par 5 8th? hole. A tee shot over the waste area onto a plateau fairway, then the decision to play up the same strip to shorten your third into the charming green or to go over another strip straight for it. Even more stunning when the tide comes in and fills the area up so you can't play out of it! I remember playing a par three with a ridiculously deep bunker I thought wasn't even in play it was a good 40 yards short of the green. It wasn't until I played it again straight into a brutal wind, safe to say I was naive!

Although playing this in December, the condition was immaculate. considering I could not see another human on the course whilst we were there, it doesn't get too much attention from visitors, or it's membership who prefer to smoke and drink in the company of the fire and mans best friend in the clubhouse!

The facilities at RWN are good, a grass range close to the pro shop with a small chipping green beside, and an indoor simulator to play a variety of courses with an indoor lesson room with cameras and launch monitor which I had a good few lessons from Simon, the experienced local pro.

Although the score has to remain fair with other courses I've played, the practice facilities and the reception there don't compete with the likes of courses with a similar rating on here, but we do play the golf course and not on the range!

Played Course: December 2016

Layout 8.5

Condition: 9

Facilities: 6

Between tees & Congestion: 9

Views: 8.5

TOTAL SCORE: 41/50

The setting, with the marshes on one side and the North Sea on the other, is lovely. And the throwback clubhouse and the high tide stories only add to the charm. Brancaster was the best conditioned course of the dozen I played in England in September 2018. On top of all that, there are some outstanding holes (4, 8, 9, 12 and 13 come immediately to mind). But other holes were too similar and thus less memorable. (A day after playing, there were half a dozen I couldn’t recall.) Still worth the drive from London….or any place else.

Is there anywhere more serene than this glorious links course on a sunny breezy day. Unique in its use of so many sleepered bunkers and the use of marshy inlets requiring long carries off the 8th and 9th tees. And when you go into the clubhouse you’re back in the 1930s but in a good way! You’ll need your best game here but it is just a great experience to have played this magical course.

Royal West Norfolk, or Brancaster as it’s known to the locals is a completely unique experience and something I’d recommend as a “must play” for all keen links golfers. Before turning up, you’ll need to check their website for the high tide timings to make sure you don’t get stranded on the course (I could think of worse places to get stranded) and everyone should pay a visit to the clubhouse which is steeped in history and features bucket loads of old school charm. As you cross the beach between clubhouse and course to enter via the beautiful Memorial iron gate, you’re already aware that this isn’t going to be any typical day’s golf.

The quirks on the course start immediately with a fairway at the 1st that shares its short grass with the 18th. This is instantly followed by the 2nd where the fairway crosses diagonally across the 17th so keep your wits about you for these opening holes. Plateau greens are numerous across the layout with some greens, most notably the 3rd and 4th being shielded by a wall of wooden sleepers protecting the approach with a nasty line of three pot bunkers waiting to collect anything that connects with timber. “Goalpost” style marker posts mark the preferred line of the blind tee shot on the 5th, another quirk that I’ve not seen before on a golf course and something that seemed novel until you read the pro’s comments on the course planner which states that your drive should be to the right of the marker posts due to the slope in the fairway. Royal West Norfolk doesn’t do things simply.

Lovely but challenging holes continue, and the course then takes on a change in appearance as you’re asked to negotiate marshland later in the front nine. Distance accuracy is paramount as you cross that marshland twice as it intersects the hole between tee and fairway and then again between fairway and green on the par five 8th. The clearances aren’t insignificant either, so I did wonder how the more senior members approach this hole?

To continue on this golf course architecture merry-go-round, the green on 12 is semi-blind as you hit into a wonderful punchbowl green. Then comes a set of bushes that you have to negotiate when playing into the 13th whilst those brilliantly eccentric timber faced bunkers are a constant threat, some of them huge, particularly the behemoth in front of the short 15th. Just when you’re thinking that the only thing missing is views of the beach and the sea, you’re then presented with a scenic beach backdrop against the tee shot on the 17th.

Royal West Norfolk has pretty much everything that you’ve seen replicated in latter day links designs. I loved the quirks and the relaxed nature of the club whereby taking your dog on a lead for a stroll around the course is very much welcomed. It’s a great course that deserves to be known as one of the best links layouts in England and well worth the drive to northern Norfolk. Combine it with Hunstanton and you won’t regret it.

On our annual GBI trip in June, we played RWN twice. Not having laid eyes on it in more than 30 years, it certainly deserves its “quirky” reputation! Unfortunately, both days were very windy, and underscored the out and back, with and into the wind layout, which made it difficult to enjoy.