Saunton Golf Club - East Course
Rating Snapshot
About
The Saunton courses are situated on Braunton Burrows which lie between the Taw and Torridge estuary and Saunton Sands. The views of North Devon's beautiful coast with the river, sea and golden sands as a background makes Saunton unique among golf courses. These advantages are matched by the facilities at the Clubhouse and the welcome you will find there.
Saunton is situated on North Devon's beautiful coast with the river, sea and golden sands as its background, making it unique amongst golf courses. These advantages are matched by the facilities at the Saunton Clubhouse and the welcome you will find there. There are two 18 hole courses at Saunton, both are traditional links courses, the East being the recognised Championship course. Whereas the West although shorter in many ways offers a more exacting test of golf. There are two putting greens available as well as practice grounds to brush up on your swing!
Sauntons East Course has been the venue for many major championships and the testing 18 holes makes it one of the best links courses in the country.
Established in 1897 Saunton has a long history, voted 25th in the top 100 courses in the British Isles, the East course is one course that should not be missed when visiting the Southwest. The quality of the course has long been recognised and it is often home to the most prestigious amateur championship as it was in its centenary year. Starting with a monster par 4 of 470 yards, this course soon lets you know that you are somewhere very special.
| Tee | Par | Length | Rating | Slope |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blue | 71 | 6774 yards | 74.7 | 134 |
| White | 71 | 6444 yards | 72.9 | 129 |
| Red (W) | 74 | 5934 yards | 75.7 | 142 |
| Yellow | 70 | 5708 yards | 68.7 | 121 |
| Hole | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Out | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | In | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blue M: 73.7/134 | 478 | 526 | 402 | 441 | 122 | 370 | 428 | 380 | 392 | 3539 | 337 | 362 | 414 | 145 | 455 | 478 | 434 | 207 | 408 | 3240 | 6779 |
| White M: 72.3/128 | 470 | 499 | 367 | 428 | 113 | 343 | 402 | 357 | 378 | 3357 | 313 | 349 | 396 | 138 | 432 | 463 | 406 | 186 | 387 | 3070 | 6427 |
| Red M: 69.6/124 W: 75.6/142 | 390 | 462 | 359 | 433 | 104 | 299 | 381 | 312 | 370 | 3110 | 295 | 316 | 386 | 120 | 412 | 435 | 370 | 166 | 350 | 2850 | 5960 |
| Handicap | 5 | 13 | 9 | 1 | 17 | 15 | 3 | 11 | 7 | 8 | 12 | 4 | 18 | 2 | 14 | 6 | 16 | 10 | |||
| Par | 4 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 36 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 35 | 71 |
| Handicap (W) | 11 | 5 | 3 | 9 | 17 | 15 | 1 | 13 | 7 | 6 | 10 | 14 | 16 | 4 | 8 | 2 | 18 | 12 |
Course Details
Rentals/Services
Practice/Instruction
Policies
Food & Beverage
Bar, CateringAvailable Facilities
Clubhouse
Reviews
Southwest Championship Links
Saunton has two courses,the East and the West. I would suggest playing both but I only had time for 1 course so I chose the East. The East is the older of the two, has a name designer and is used for Open Qualifying and other tournaments. This is a great test of links golf. The ocean is nowhere in sight, but the course plays firm and fast, there is some wind, the fairways have some slope and the shot options which make links golf a joy are available in abundance. The routing is a large loop so you get all parts of the wind. Not an abundance of bunkers but some well placed ones to keep things interesting. The green sites are good and not a lot of contour.
What makes Saunton unique is the fact that 11 of the first 12 holes are par 4s and 1 par 3. Be ready with your driver immediately or be ready for a long day. The last 6 holes are a lot of 5s and 3s to make the round interesting. My guess is that this makes a match play round quite interesting. Saunton is a good test and the onslaught of par 4s certainly add to the challenge.
The club has a putting green, range, restaurant and all of the amenities that you will need for a proper day. The membership is quite nice and welcoming as are the staff. Greens fees are quite good for a course with a pedigree; you'd pay about double in the states, They have twilight rates, day tickets to play both courses as well as day tickets for 36 on one course.
No blind shots or quirk here. A perfect course for an introduction to English countryside golf. MY only regret is not playing both courses. If in SW England this should be on the itinerary.
Northern Ireland & Dublin Classic Golf Tour
Royal St George’s Golf Package
Dublin Links Golf Package
England’s Royal Golf Package
