Holyhead

Handily placed for Holyhead station, the course was built by the railway company, to offer travellers the chance of a game before the trials of the sea crossing to Dublin. Lloyd George and Herbert Asquith were among the early golfers to smack their gutties into the wind.

The course is quite short by modern standards at 6060 yards. The par 71 starts benignly with a generous short par 4. It shows its teeth with the challenging short second, often rated the best hole on the course, and the long third (SI 1).

Fine sea views, no trees and an incessant wind are typical of the links game; but the terrain itself is heathland, with gorse, blackthorn bushes and rocky outcrops hemming in the narrow fairways. In this frost-free coastal region the course is open and in good condition all the year round, and the greens are usually excellent.

Best Hole The long third (SI 1), which takes golfers over the brow of a hill in to the teeth of the wind.

Address: Trearddur Bay, nr Holyhead, Anglesey

Green Fees: £19 a round/£25 a day (weekdays), £25/£29 (weekends)

Restrictions: None

Tel: 01407 762022