Bucket List Diaries: Hankley Common
- Alice Watson
- 3 days ago
- 4 min read
Updated: 10 hours ago
The entrance to Hankley Common Golf Club is so understated that we initially drove past it.
Convinced that a course of this stature would have a grand set of gates or imposing signage on the roadside, we flew by, momentarily confused at the sat nav’s insistence to turn left down what looked like a dusty track.
But it was correct. Doubling back on ourselves, we edged down the inconspicuous lane and were rewarded with a sight of the clubhouse and carpark.
Unsurprisingly, it was busy on a hot summer’s day with blue skies, and we watched people buzzing back and forth from their cars, preparing for or decompressing after their morning rounds.
We parked up and walked into the clubhouse where we were immediately greeted by a friendly face who directed us towards the bar.
Hungry after our drive to Surrey, my dad and I were in search of food before our afternoon tee-time and again, we were given a warm welcome by the bar staff who took our order. They invited us to sit outside on the patio overlooking the 4th green and said they’d bring our lunch to us. So out we headed to the wooden garden tables which provided cool shade under generous beige umbrellas.
The minute we stepped through the patio doors, we knew we were in for a treat - immaculately cut fairways, snooker-table greens, towering trees, and rich purple heather. It looked magnificent.
Suffice to say it was a joy to sit back and admire the views, with a panorama that also took in the 5th and 18th holes.
Two plates of delicious scampi and chips later, and we were itching to get out there.
*
Hankley Common, which hovers around 30th place in the Top 100 UK & Ireland rankings, had been on my bucket list for a while. My friends on the university team had spoken about the club in reverent and glowing terms - “the best club we’ve ever played at”, “the most incredible course” - which had been backed up by the English professional star, Charley Hull, who’d declared it one of her favourite golf courses in the country in a clip I’d seen circulating on social media.
Golf magazines were similarly filled with glossy professional photographs of Hankley Common, described as one of the UK’s finest inland tracks and best-looking golf courses [1]. Sweeping aerial shots gave a sense of its natural beauty and vast scale; the course itself occupies 164 acres of land, but the club owns more than 850 acres of idyllic heathland.
Golf began at Hankley Common with a 9-hole course in 1897. James Braid, the 5-time Open champion and course designer from Scotland, added a further 9 holes in 1922 before the influential English architect, Harry Colt, remodelled it in 1936 [2]. Hankley therefore had humble beginnings but now possesses an illustrious architectural history.
I was particularly excited about the golf course being situated in a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), a formal designation of its high conservation value and protected status, home to a variety of rare and interesting species such as the Dartford Warbler, Nightjar, Adder, and Sand Lizard. I had read that Hankley Common had been praised for the quality of its environmental stewardship, illustrating how golf courses can work in harmony with nature, enable plants and animals to flourish, and provide vital green corridors for wildlife [3].
Behind the mesmerising images of gorgeous links-like terrain and expansive heathland landscapes, then, was important, dedicated work by the club and its greenkeeping staff to deliver a world-class golf experience in an environmentally-sensitive way.
I couldn’t wait.
*
The warmth of the people we met in the clubhouse was matched by those in the pro shop who shared sage words of advice, together with a scorecard and pencil.
After directing us towards the practice area and wishing us well for our afternoon, we stepped onto the first tee and soaked in our surroundings.
It was time to get the round underway.
And what a round it was. From start to finish, it was a complete pleasure and privilege to play.
There were a wide variety of hole shapes, sizes, and elevations which required differently flighted shots, as well as creativity and imagination.
It demanded your full attention without being too restrictive, constantly retaining your interest with beautifully-crafted features and stunning heathland vistas.
Relatively tight fairways commanded accuracy off the tee, despite the overwhelming feeling of spaciousness across the property; otherwise it was into the dense and tangled heather for a hit-and-hope attempt back out to safety. I was quietly relieved not to encounter any adders after a sign by the clubhouse door warned they are often seen nestled amongst the scrub in warmer weather…
Pristine putting surfaces were paired with perfectly striped fairways which wouldn’t have looked out of place at Wimbledon.
I particularly liked the wooden pins with crisp white flags featuring the club’s fox emblem - a logo reminiscent of our Leicestershire & Rutland County mascot which indicated I was at home on the Surrey turf.
Throughout, I used the Hankley Common ball marker my mum had given me for Christmas. It was encouragement to turn dreams into reality by seizing the moment and planning the trip you’ve been thinking about before it’s too late.
I'm glad we took plenty of photos of our time at Hankley Common which now add colour and definition to our memories of the standout day - further confirmation that bucket list destinations rarely disappoint.
[1] Is This The Best Looking Golf Course In England? | Golf Monthly, Fergus Bisset, 5th January, 2022.
[3] Three golf clubs praised for their environmental work – The Golf Business Seamus Rotherick, 19th October, 2011.
