Royal St George's Golf Club

Host to 13 Opens and scheduled to host the 2011 Open Championship. Visitors can play on Tuesday, and should make a point of playing this course. It opened in 1887, initially designed by W. Laidlaw Purves, and later revisions by Alister MacKenzie and Frank Pennink. It got a bad rap for the 81' and 85' Opens due to its level of difficulty, but I believe the conditions assisted in heightening the already challenging course. You will need a caddie as there are a number of blind shots as the course is routed over and through the massive dunes along the coast. The front nine is more dramatic with one especially 3 story deep bunker appropriately named "Hell", while the back is just long and tough. The course was running fast when I played, the greens were as true as they could be, quality shots were awarded while mistakes were penalized. Some of the holes that were impressive were #6, par 3 about 170 yards called the Maiden for its strategically placed bunkers, #8, the 410 yard par 4 that’s dubbed the hardest on the course and #'s15-18. I think these holes are some of the toughest closing holes in golf! The course is in Sandwich, about 2 hours east of London on the coast.