15 Best Golf Courses in England Under £100

15 Best Golf Courses in England Under £100

There is no getting away from the fact that the cost of playing at some of our very best courses, particularly those in the Golf Monthly Top 100, can approach two or three arms and a leg. This is directly linked with demand and supply, clubs rightly looking to keep membership fees affordable, and the incredibly high standards of presentation and conditioning golfers experience nowadays. In my 40-plus years of playing, I have never known courses to be so well maintained.

Yes, if you look at twilight golf, winter rates, county cards and other deals, there are plenty of big names you can play for less than £100, but here we are looking for courses you can play in the height of Summer, on a weekday morning, at their standard rate.

Three are in the Top 100 courses of the UK&I, the other dozen all in the Next 100. I have played and can recommend them all. And while the green fees quoted are the standard Summer, peak rates, many of those featured also have off-peak rates that are even lower. I have indicated where clubs have already published their 2023 rates, but please bear in mind that green fees are very much a movable feast.

Silloth

• Location Silloth
• Founded 1892
• Architect Davy Grant
• GF Round £80 Mon-Fri, £90 Weekend (2023)
• Par 72, 6,408 yards
• Contact Silloth on Solway Golf Club

This is the most northerly course on England’s west coast and the highest-ranked (number 51) that you can play for under £100. It tops the very scenic list of the best golf courses in Cumbria. Not only that, but its remote and dreamy location means demand is slightly less and visitors can therefore play at the weekend. This is an excellent test of golf where the wind will add to the examination set by the course. In a prevailing south-westerly, this is a course of two halves with a particularly tough opening nine. The bunkering is perfectly positioned, and the course is kept in fine shape throughout the year. I played it again a couple of times this Summer and was reminded of its great beauty and challenge.

Read full Silloth on Solway Golf Club course review

Trevose

• Location Constantine Bay
• Founded 1925
• Architect Harry Colt, Mackenzie & Ebert
• GF Round £95 Sun to Thu (2023)
• Par 72, 6,526 yards
• Contact Trevose Golf Club

Location and lack of chimney pots understandably have an effect on pricing. Trevose is one of the best golf courses in Cornwall and so one of our more remote Top 100 courses. Stay in the excellent and varied on-site accommodation and the golf is even cheaper, but it is still the right side of £100 for visitors in 2023. The Championship Course has seen a substantial upgrade over recent years, primarily to the bunkering, and is an excellent test of golf that also provides tremendous coastal views. The remodelled 4th is now a superb and photogenic par 5 that will live long in the memory. With its second course, great accommodation and catering, Trevose is a complete golfing destination.

Read full Trevose Golf Club - Championship Course review

Royal North Devon

• Location Westward Ho!
• Founded 1864
• Architect Old Tom Morris, Herbert Fowler
• GF Round £90 Sun-Fri
• Par 72, 6,693 yards
• Contact Royal North Devon Golf Club

Royal North Devon is home to the oldest course still being played in England, and is a living history book of golf course architecture. Old Tom Morris spent a month here and redesigned the initial layout, and he returned in 1864 when the club was formally founded. Herbert Fowler made changes about 40 years later, and recent coastal erosion has led to some ongoing changes at the far end. One of the best golf courses in Devon, this is a classic and supremely natural design that offers golf at its most elemental.

Read full Royal North Devon Golf Club course review

The Next 100

Beau Desert

• Location Cannock
• Founded 1911
• Architect Herbert Fowler
• GF Round £80-£95 Mon-Fri
• Par 72, 6,458 yards
• Contact Beau Desert Golf Club

This excellent heathland course in Staffordshire was also designed by Herbert Fowler whose other inland work includes both pairs of courses at The Berkshire and Walton Heath. Beau Desert, or Beautiful Wilderness, covers a large acreage which creates a real feeling of space with the holes in many places separated by large stands of pine. The par-4 12th is a real stand-out, almost a double dogleg where it’s all too easy to be blocked out. This attractive course is a strong test and certainly one of the best golf courses in the Midlands.

Blackmoor

• Location Bordon
• Founded 1913
• Architect Harry Colt
• GF Round £95 (2023)
• Par 69, 6,170 yards
• Contact Blackmoor Golf Club

This totally engaging par-69 Harry Colt design in Hampshire celebrated its centenary in 2013 and is an excellent example of a course that deserves to be far better-known. Length is not the issue here, and the course is blessed with five very appealing and varied par 3s. Its crisp, firm fairways are lined by heather, pine, birch and oak, and all but two of Colt’s original holes still remain. Not a million miles from some of the major league courses in neighbouring Surrey, this is one of the best golf courses in Hampshire. You can’t help but think that if this was a few miles to the east and just a little longer, it would be far better-known and command a far higher green fee.

Cavendish

• Location Buxton
• Founded 1925
• Architect Alister MacKenzie
• GF Round £45 Mon-Fri, £55 Weekend
• Par 68, 5,721 yards
• Contact Cavendish Golf Club

I first stumbled across this short but testing Alister MacKenzie design in 2014 and was immediately very taken. Do not be deceived by the lack of length - it is packed with charisma, natural beauty and golfing interest. Three of the five par 3s are just a short iron, and there is a lone par 5 at the 14th, but it’s far from a pushover. Demanding two-shotters include the super-tough 10th as well as the closing hole, a dogleg right to a green overlooked by the stylish clubhouse which plays every inch of its 441 yards. No distance from the town of Buxton, you feel like you are in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by stunning scenery.

Read full Cavendish Golf Club course review

Crowborough Beacon

• Location Crowborough
• Founded 1895
• Architect Alistair MacKenzie
• GF Round £85 Mon-Fri, £95 Weekend (2023)
• Par 71, 6,319 yards
• Contact Crowborough Beacon Golf Club

This is fairly local to me and is one of the best golf courses in Sussex. I have therefore played it regularly over the last 35 years or more. It has also grown on me with pretty much every visit and is a very distinct and enjoyable heathland design. It is situated on high ground which means there are fine views over the Sussex Downs, and is particularly lovely when the heather is in blossom. Lightly bunkered, a particular feature is the strong par 4s, especially the 2nd which sweeps down the hill from left to right, and the closing hole which is a brute back up the slope to the welcoming clubhouse.

Read full Crowborough Beacon Golf Club course review

Enville

• Location Stourbridge
• Founded 1935
• Architect Alf Pagham, Frank Pennink
• GF Round £80 Mon-Fri
• Highgate Par 72, 6,491 yards
• Contact Enville Golf Club

Enville is the home of two very fine heathland/woodland courses, the newer being the Lodge which opened for play almost 40 years ago. It is the Highgate, however, that is in the Next 100 golf courses and generally receives the greater attention. It features some very interesting and at times demanding golf with perhaps the prettiest hole being the 16th; a lovely par 3 in a clearing which calls for a long-iron or even wood, slightly uphill over a pond that is the only water feature on either course. The closing hole is an excellent risk/reward par 5 raising hopes of a birdie to finish.

Huddersfield

• Location Huddersfield
• Founded 1891
• Architect Tom Dunn, Sandy Herd, Herbert Fowler, Cameron Sinclair
• GF Round £60 Mon-Fri, Sun after 13:00
• Par 71, 6,499 yards
• Contact Huddersfield Golf Club

This beautifully peaceful course immediately won me over and belies the fact that this excellent club is only a mile or so from the town centre. There are plenty of strong and attractive holes, with the front nine starting and finishing with two first-class par 4s. The par-3 11th is very pretty, but my favourite holes are the two that follow it; a sweeping par 4 along the hillside and a par 3 from an elevated tee over no-man’s-land. I am a big fan of the course and also of its classic, stylish clubhouse.

Read full Huddersfield Golf Club course review

Isle of Purbeck

• Location Swanage
• Founded 1892
• Architect Harry Colt, Tim Lobb
• GF Round £70 Mon-Fri, £90 Sat, £80 Sun (2023)
• Par 70, 6,295 yards
• Contact Isle of Purbeck Golf Club

The Bournemouth area is home to four Top 100 courses, and like them, this is also one of the best golf courses in Dorset. It has a fabulous setting on a beautifully elevated expanse of heathland to the south of Poole Harbour. The Harry Colt redesign offers panoramic vistas out over the sea and across to the Isle of Wight, and at a shade under 6,000 yards from the yellows, it is perfect for holiday golf and match-play. I have always enjoyed playing here, but the conditioning has never really matched the setting. However, change is afoot, and the club has recently engaged architect Tim Lobb to help them realise their undoubted potential.

Luffenham Heath

• Location Stamford
• Founded 1911
• Architect Harry Colt, James Braid
• GF Round £90 Mon, Wed & Thu, £95 Fri-Sun
• Par 70, 6,563 yards
• Contact Luffenham Heath Golf Club

This excellent design sits on an expansive and very peaceful and rural, gently undulating site. It is one of the best Harry Colt heathland courses. There are two par 5s which run in opposite directions, but also some demanding par 4s such as the 2nd, 11th and 13th, all of which make playing to handicap tricky. The 17th is often considered to be the signature hole, an excellent par 3 protected by distinctive mounding and bunkers. I have visited a couple of times in the last five years and am already looking forward to returning.

Read full Luffenham Heath Golf Club course review

Piltdown

• Location Uckfield
• Founded 1904
• Architect Jack Rowe, GM Dodd
• GF Round £90 Mon-Fri & Sat PM (2023)
• Par 68, 6,055 yards
• Contact Piltdown Golf Club

This East Sussex golf club dates back to 1904 and enjoys a marvellously peaceful and attractive setting about 15 miles from Gatwick Airport. It is one of a very rare breed - a full-length championship-standard design that has no sand bunkers at all. While this and a modest length might suggest that it is lacking in challenge, the heather, pine and very tight par of 68 mean that scoring is never easy. The course constantly changes direction and the five short holes are varied and very pretty, with the 4th being a real brute and the round concluding with a tough one-shotter over yet more heather.

Rockliffe Hall

• Location Darlington
• Founded 2009
• Architect Marc Westenborg
• GF Round £70 Mon-Thu, £80 Fri-Sun
• Par 72, 6,786 yards
• Contact Rockliffe Hall Golf Club

Not far from Darlington on the banks of the River Tees, this challenging course is a monster from the back but happily has plenty of far more appealing tee options for all. On some holes, water whispers at you, on others it shouts. With its 5-star accommodation, spa, superb cuisine, and other sporting activities, Rockliffe Hall is a complete golfing resort. On top of this, the course is kept in great condition and the green fees deliver good value for a genuine championship test.

Read full Rockliffe Hall Golf Club course review

Seacroft

• Location Skegness
• Founded 1895
• Architect Willie Fernie, Guy Campbell
• GF Round £50 Mon-Fri, £70 Weekend
• Par 72, 6,492 yards
• Contact Seacroft Golf Club

This excellent course on the Lincolnshire coast offers one of the very best value rounds in the Next 100. It is separated from the beach by marshland, and was designed by Willie Fernie who won The Open in 1883, with enhancements made by Guy Campbell around 100 years ago. There are six par 4s of 400 yards or more, three of them in the last four holes, and an unusual but engaging section of 5-3-5-3-5-3 from the 9th to the 14th where you will be hopeful of picking up a shot or two on the card. A comprehensive and ongoing plan to upgrade the course is paying dividends and I am looking forward to getting back to see the progress.

Seaton Carew

• Location Hartlepool
• Founded 1874
• Architect Alistair MacKenzie, Frank Pennink
• GF Round £50-£80 (check with club for details)
• Par 72, 6,658 yards
• Contact Seaton Carew Golf Club

Founded as the Durham and Yorkshire Golf Club almost 150 years ago with a 14-hole course, the name was changed to Seaton Carew in 1887 and the course extended to 18 holes four years after that. There are now 22 holes which can be played in a variety of configurations, with the original Alister MacKenzie holes making up the Old, and 14 of these combining with four newer holes designed by Frank Pennink known as the Brabazon. Regardless of which you play, this is a very fine and traditional links where the natural setting contrasts winningly with the industrial surroundings. It has hosted a number of important amateur events and is well worth seeking out. A day ticket in the Summer of 2022 was still under £100, so why not play all 22 holes and make up your own mind on which configuration is best!

As mentioned, green fees are subject to change at pretty much any time, but just about all of the courses featured here can still be played in low-season, or as a twilight, for even less than the rates shown above. Bearing in mind that links courses in particular are often just as good in the Winter, there is still great value to be found at many of the best golf courses in England.