6406 yards • Par 72

 It is nothing but a great shame that Royal Porthcawl does not have the infrastructure required to host an Open Championship. Indeed, the closest it has ever come to staging a world-renowned event was when it hosted the Walker Cup in 1995. Then, the American team, which had Tiger Woods as its main weapon, were blown away, quite literally, by the course. Wind is a constant factor here due to the fact that there are no high dunes or trees that might form some sort of defence - it's just you against the elements. With the closing hole playing towards the sea and into the wind, there is perhaps not a single course in British golf that can produce as finer, more dramatic finish. The sea is visible from every hole here and, while the first three holes run alongside the beach, many of the others climb high above sea level to afford panoramic views of the Bristol Channel and across to Exmoor.

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