Links, Parkland & Championship
Royal Birkdale
The Open Championship venue. Southport's crown jewel — the willow-scrub dunes, the par-3 12th, the art deco clubhouse. Your driver positions on Waterloo Road while you walk the same fairways as Nicklaus, Watson and Padraig Harrington. From Liverpool: 35 min. Manchester Airport: 60 min.
Royal Liverpool (Hoylake)
The Open 2023. Tiger's 2006 masterclass. Hoylake links on the Wirral coast — the internal out-of-bounds, the wind off the Irish Sea, the 18th green in front of the clubhouse. From Birkenhead: 15 min. From Chester: 30 min.
Formby Golf Club
Pine-lined fairways between Formby Point and the dunes. One of England's finest members' courses. Asparagus fields and red squirrels border the 15th. From Liverpool: 25 min. From Southport: 10 min.
Hillside Golf Club
Royal Birkdale's neighbour. Final qualifying venue for The Open. The back nine through the dunes is among the finest 9 holes in England. From Liverpool: 35 min.
Caldy Golf Club
Wirral's most scenic course — Dee estuary views from every hole. Links-parkland hybrid on the peninsula's western coast. From Heswall: 5 min. From Chester: 25 min.
Cheshire Courses
Mere Golf Resort (Knutsford), Delamere Forest, Portal Golf (Tarporley), Prestbury. Parkland golf in the Golden Triangle. Corporate golf days from Manchester Airport: 15–25 min to any Cheshire course.