Dunstanburgh Castle Golf Club

I've walked passed this course a few times when walking the Northumberland coastal path which runs alongside much of the course.

On every occasion I've said that I must play there but I never got round to it until today. The course is a proper links course set amongst the dunes, the day before we had heavy snow and rain but the fairways were quite dry with plenty of ball run on. The greens were in great condition fast and true with many slopes and undulations making putting tricky. The course is well laid out and navigation between tees was easy. The views of the Northumberland coast and nearby Dunstanburgh castle are outstanding. If you've not been here before you must visit it's a hidden gem. The club house staff were friendly and welcoming, although there's no pro shop etc, they do serve food, tea, coffee and alcoholic drinks.

Definitely worth a visit.

Dunstanburgh Castle is one of the real gems of the north, from the challenge to to faculties, it’s just one of those courses that if it were in another part of the UK would be extortionate and packed, but here you get a great round for a good price on a course with true greens and spectacular views.

I played on a Saturday morning, I wanted to tee off early and booked a 07:40 tee time, however I was really early and the four members who were shooting off at 07:00 said: don’t hang around waiting if the tee is free crack on! I let them get away, but finally caught them up at the 6th where they immediately let me play though and I raced round the rest of the course, well as much as you can as you have to take in the vista of every shot.

Clearly the 13th is the signature hole, but they are all fantastic. My only minor gripe is the rough, it’s savage, on some of the holes it is a case of: fairway, first cut, two foot grass and you lose your ball, even if it just rolls in, please just give the edges of that sawgrass a trim!

The clubhouse is nice and has a great mix of golfers, walkers and beach goers.

I thoroughly recommend this course, for me one of the best in the UK!

the wind was blowing which made the course play long

greens were running fast

rough was a true penalty shot

bunkers were deep

enjoyed our game but pars were hard to come by