The Royal County of Berkshire is home to Windsor Castle, the oldest and largest inhabited castle in the world and it’s the Queen’s favourite weekend home. From a golfing perspective – largely due to its heathland – Berkshire is also a favourite county for thousands of golfers.

The Berks, Bucks & Oxon Union of Golf Clubs have administered golf in Berkshire since 1924 and this is the only golf union in England comprising of three counties. Newbury & Crookham Golf Club is one of the oldest golf clubs in England and is Berkshire’s eldest, founded in 1873 – although the club’s current course opened fifty years after its formation.

In total, there are 44 golf clubs in the Royal County and the Berkshire Golf Club is one of only three clubs that can boast about having two heathland courses positioned in the Britain & Ireland Top 100. Many will wonder why Sunningdale Golf Club is not featured in our Berkshire county rankings. The reason is that despite Sunningdale Golf Club having a Berkshire postal address, the club is affiliated to the Surrey County Golf Union. However, Sunningdale Ladies Golf Club (now known as Sunningdale Heath) is affiliated to the Berkshire County Ladies’ Golf Association.

The Berkshire County Ladies’ Golf Association was established in 1922, when Sonning, East Berks, Maidenhead and Temple formed what was then called the Berkshire Ladies' County Golf Club. The name change to the present title occurred eight years later, when “Club” was dropped for “Association”. Lady Mary Crichton was the first President of the fledgling association, becoming the first of twenty-three women to hold the position since its foundation.

Our Berkshire Best in County rankings were updated in November 2017. Click the link to read the story.