Winter golf in Britain

Translated by AI

The off-season is the best time to play Britain’s most famous and most expensive courses for as little money as possible.

Plenty of people are reluctant to play golf when the thermometer drops below 12 degrees (about 54°F) and the weather turns unsettled. Then there are those of us who just put on thermal underwear, rain gear, a woolly hat and winter golf gloves and are just as happy.

For the latter group, winter is an excellent time to visit some of the best-known courses in Scotland, England and Wales. Although this week is on the chilly side (with temperatures below freezing over much of Britain), temperatures above freezing are forecast again from next week on.

Many resorts with lots of spare capacity in the off-season tempt visitors with offers of one, two or three nights and one or more rounds of golf at big discounts compared with summer prices.

Another good deal is at the Ryder Cup venue Celtic Manor in Wales (celtic-manor.com). There you can get the “Ryder Cup Two Course Package” with one night and a “full Welsh breakfast” at the five-star Celtic Manor hotel, and a round each on The Twenty Ten Course and The Montgomerie Course, including free use of The Forum Health Club, for £134 (about $175). In September the same package is £196 (about $255).

For those who want to go somewhere a little off the beaten track, there’s always the championship venue Woodhall Spa (woodhallspagolf.com). This heathland course north of Nottingham has been named Britain’s best inland course. You can stay at a nearby hotel, and dinner, a night’s stay, breakfast and a round on each of the courses (Hotchkin and Bracken) cost as little as £148 (about $190) until April 30, 2016. In summer the green fee alone is £78 (about $100) for the Hotchkin and £54 (about $70) for the Bracken.

This article by Kaia Means was originally published in Norwegian on our sister site Golfjournalen.no. It has been translated by AI.