Jeremy Ellwood heads down to the renowned championship links at Burnham and Berrow in Somerset for a stay and play break
Burnham And Berrow Stay And Play Review
On course
Burnham and Berrow
Championship course: par 70, 6,475 yards (Spoon course – each set of tees has its own name)
Channel course: par 70, 5,852 yards (twice round 9 holes)
Oh, we do like to be beside the seaside, us golfing Brits. So it’s great that a number of our top links also offer comfortable, cosy accommodation. This means you can get straight out of bed on to the 1st tee… perhaps preferably stopping off for a hearty clubhouse breakfast en route.
The 1st green on the Championship Course
The Championship course at Burnham and Berrow , ranked 30th in our UK & Ireland Top 100, starts with a narrowish uphill par 4 between the dunes. The 2nd is then just a superb rollercoaster links hole.
Both courses play over gloriously rumpled links terrain (Credit: James Lovett)
You get great views of the Bristol Channel from the elevated 4th tee before tackling a simply gorgeous short par 3. Then it’s on into the late front-nine marsh holes where, unusually for a links, reeds and rushes line the fairways.
The short 5th is a cracking par 3
The 9th, worryingly christened ‘Wreck, is one of a quartet of well-bunkered par 3s at Burnham and Berrow.
Other great links courses with dormy accommodation
Formby
Royal St David’s
Royal Porthcawl
On to the back nine
Don’t forget to ring the eye-catching bell on the blind 9th
You’ll remember the par-5 13th with its long, slender green, and the short par-4 16th, where the green boasts plenty of interesting movement.
Views across the 13th green to the Bristol Channel beyond
The links finishes strongly with the excellent par-3 17th and a testing par-4 finale doglegging round to the left.
The 17th is the last and perhaps toughest of the four par 3s (Credit: James Lovett)
You must also find time for the excellent nine-hole Channel course, which plays very strong second fiddle.
The 9th hole on the Channel course with the 1st fairway to the left
The first four holes hug the watercourse edging the marsh. Coming home you climb up on to the dune ridge from the 6th, with every hole memorable from here to the end.
Off course
The dormy house at Burnham and Berrow – the red-brick building on your left as you enter the car park – offers six comfortable, airy twin rooms.
The dormy rooms occupy this red-brick building at Burnham and Berrow
Those needing to keep up to speed with work or who like to take a photograph or two out on the links will be pleased to know that there is a more than adequate number of well-placed electric sockets, including USB options – something that is most definitely not always the case.
Rooms are comfortable and airy with a good number of electric sockets for the modern traveller (Credit: James: Lovett)
The dormy house has a garden area too, so you can enjoy your own little bit of private space in fine weather.
Don’t miss out on the excellent chipping and short-game green
Before you head for the links, take advantage of Burnham and Berrow’s fine practice facilities. These include a long driving range and an excellent short-game area by the path leading down to the Channel course.