The debate about which is the finest of the three ‘W’s’ in Surrey is one of the more fiercely contested in all of British golf, a debate which until I had made this visit to West Hill I was unable to take part in fully. 

Having now seen all three courses, I can see why the defence for each by their supporters is so vociferous. All three are fine golf courses in their own right, but I think you can divide their characters into three broad camps. Woking is the purists choice, an understated and timeless historically significant club that gets the architecture geeks excitable. Worplesdon offers a wonderful experience from beginning to end, with the clubhouse and facilities adding to the collective offering markedly, while the golf is also memorable as it comes at you in a number of defined stages. Finally, West Hill will win plaudits from those who admire beauty in a golf course and value the surroundings and the land a course is built on contributing to the whole experience. For me West Hill is one of the prettiest courses I have played in England.

One thing that always makes a heathland course easy on the eye is the abundance and health of the heather, and there is no worry about that at West Hill. As you look down the partially blind 1st hole, you feel almost enveloped by a blanket of the purple stuff, with the view punctuated by small groups of towering Scots Pines and the odd glimpse of some effervescent green grass; it really is an attractive and tantalising site. The 1st is a clever opener, seeding doubt in the unnerved with very little fairway on show and strategically thought provoking, as the fairway leads downhill towards a ditch that will be in play for many, particularly in firmer conditions. The course isn’t overly long (a par 69 and 6402 yards from the very back tees), but it is a stern test, with the punishment admonished by the bunkers and heather combining with Cuthbert Butchart’s positional questioning to engage and terrorise the players mind at every turn. 

There are so many good holes and the variety is quite incredible. Blind shots, gently cambered and sloping fairways, some dazzling green sites and a multitude of hazards all while emitting an inherent feeling of playability for all, with very little in the way of excessive forced carries to the fairways or into the greens. I absolutely loved the opening eight holes, a stretch of golf that has just about everything, ebbing and flowing physically and metaphorically. The run off to the right of the 2nd green is bold yet unsighted from the fairway, the 3rd is a fine and testing par-4 from tee to green and the run 6 thru 8 might be as good a heathland trifecta as you will find in all of Surrey. The reveal as you crest the hill on the 6th, the jeopardy short and left of the par-3 7th and the magnificence of the strategy and ball striking test of the 8th work wonderfully, the latter being for me the best hole on the golf course, selected from a fine supporting cast.