The Wiltshire County Golf Union was founded in 1924 and there are now 27 clubs affiliated to the Union with around thirty courses across the county. Wiltshire is one of the smaller English golfing counties, but it has some wonderful courses that are not as well known outside the local area as they should be.

Wiltshire Ladies’ Golf Association was formed in 1910, so female golfers in the county were well ahead of their male counterparts when it came to collectively promoting the game just over a century ago.

The Manor House and its near neighbour Bowood Golf & Country Club vie for the top spot in Wiltshire and these two modern 1990s layouts are supported by some fabulous old fashioned courses which predate them by more than 100 years. Kingsdown Golf Club is a fine example of Wiltshire's quality; founded in 1880, this is the oldest club in Wiltshire and the second oldest in the West Country behind Royal North Devon.

The two clubs of Marlborough and Salisbury & South Wilts were both formed in 1888 and North Wilts and West Wilts were established soon after. The vast Salisbury Plain is at the very heart of Wiltshire with Tidworth Garrison (1908) and High Post (1922) representing two of England’s better downland golf courses. But any article on Wiltshire would be incomplete without mentioning the prehistoric Stonehenge with its age estimated at 3100 BC. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, it remains to this day an important setting for serious archaeological study.

Our Wiltshire Best in County golf course rankings were updated in 2019. Click the link to read the story.