Whittington Heath Golf Club

Whittington Heath Golf Club is tucked away on an elevated heathland plateau in middle England where there are delightful views across to nearby Lichfield Cathedral. The course has never appeared in a Top 100 list but we think it's well worth seeking out if in the Staffordshire area.

It's one of the oldest clubs in England, originally founded in 1886 when a rudimentary nine-hole course was laid out on a former horse racing circuit. Whittington Heath really came of age between the Wars when Harry Colt was commissioned by the military club owners to extend the course to 18 holes. The military connection remains strong and the club was known for many years as Whittington Barracks.

The result of Colt's work was a challenging 6,490-yard par 70 course, which provided a real test for golfers of all levels. The club has hosted a number of top amateur events, including the 1986 Women's Home Internationals, which saw the Irish team emerge victorious.

Sandy, springy ground is ideal for golf and there's plenty of it here at Whittington Heath. The course wends its way through tangly heather and gorse: you'll need to keep on the straight and narrow to score well.

Whittington Heath has consistently flown under the radar and remains a relatively unknown heathland course. Unfortunately, the club was directly in the path of the new HS2 (High Speed Two) rail link, so if you've not already experienced the original Colt course, you've left it too late.

The old clubhouse was directly in the path of the new rail line, as were holes #9 and #18 – holes #2, #3, #6, #7 and #10 were also impacted. Fortunately, the club was able to acquire sufficient adjacent heathland to allow Jonathan Gaunt to lay out some new holes, the architect has also rerouted some of the existing holes to accommodate the railway development.

A construction program involving the renovation of all bunkers, the remodelling of green surrounds and the introduction of five holes on new ground is underway. Work completed on the project in 2021.

“We’re looking to bring back a much more open, heathland character to the golf course, with wider views of the landscape, as it would have been when Harry Colt was working here in the 1920s,” said Gaunt. “We expect that when the golf course establishes, it will begin to take on that ‘Golden Age’ look – broad expanses of hinterland with rolling features and dramatic areas of wilderness edging into the playing areas.”