Camberley Heath
- GF: 18 holes: £150 Mon-Thu, £180 Fri-Sun
- W: camberleyheathgolfclub.co.uk
If such an unthinkable thing is possible, then Surrey arguably has too much great golf. This means that, occasionally, some of its loveliest courses are overlooked. Not far from the holy trinity of Worplesdon, West Hill and Woking, Camberley Heath is a well-preserved Harry Colt classic from 1913 that serves up a feast of beautiful English heathland golf.
Gentle undulations and mature pines keep you fully cocooned from the outside world, while adding to the glory of the views and the golfing challenge. Each of the four attractive short holes is memorable, with two of them close to the 200-yard mark.
Play the five drive-and-pitch par 4s well and there's every chance of a good score on this delightful layout. Despite the competition, this is one of the best golf courses in Surrey.
West Herts
- GF: 18 holes: £88wd, £105we
- W: westhertsgolfclub.co.uk
The club moved to its current home in Rickmansworth in 1897, with Old Tom Morris designing the routing and JH Taylor the bunkers. Colt was engaged in 1908 to design what are now the closing five holes, before further modifications by Alister MacKenzie in 1922.
This is a traditional parkland layout that in recent times has upped its game with an impressive bunker upgrade, resulting in a far more visual and engaging test of golf that is one of the best golf courses in Hertfordshire. Par is an unusual 34 out, 38 back, with three tempting par 5s late on that offer chances to save a score.
Burton-on-Trent
- GF: 18 holes: £70 all week
- W: botgc.co.uk
In 1914, Colt was called in to redesign and expand this Derbyshire course. It is now a tree-lined layout which, from the back tees, plays to a testing par of 71. There are three par 5s at the 3rd, 4th and 13th, and the course covers a large, undulating acreage.
Three of the four par 3s play uphill, including the very tough 12th, and there is a cracking finishing hole where you play down into a valley and then over a pond. The club's very active, competitive and friendly membership gets to enjoy a strong Colt design that's not as well known as it should be.
Longniddry
- GF: 18 holes: £105wd, £130we
- W: longniddrygolfclub.co.uk
Longniddry, which celebrated its centenary five years ago, is perhaps a less well known club in the treasure chest of golf along the East Lothian coastline. Although later changes were made by the likes of James Braid and Philip Mackenzie Ross, this is very much a Colt design.
Unusually, and very pleasingly, it has since evolved into a rare blend of both links and parkland golf, with neither really holding sway over the other. Without a par 5 on the card, long two-shotters prevail, with no fewer than eight in excess of 400 yards from the back tees.
Trentham
- GF: 18 holes: £90-£120
- W: trenthamgolf.org
Not far from the M6 in Staffordshire, this former Open Qualifying host was extended from nine to 18 holes in 1904, before Harry Colt oversaw a full redesign in the 1920s. In recent times, a major bunker refurbishment has significantly improved both the strategy and visuals.
This has led to a course that is capable of testing players of all abilities, with every hole a new and different challenge. It is also now a real treat on the eye, aided by the gently sloping terrain, mature but never intrusive trees and excellent conditioning.
