Championship Golf Courses

I found it amazing at how many golf clubs advertise their golf course(s) as 'Championship'

Some of my local golf courses are described as this but having played them I'd say they were not!

I am assuming that there is no criteria as to what is a 'Championship' course.

So what does make a golf course a Championship course?

Russ

Having once hosted a tour event of some sort I imagine, is the only criteria you need, for instance i believe that Old Thorns in Liphook refers to itself as a "championship" course on the basis that the Ladies European tour hosted an event there, once, 25 years ago, although to be fair recently it has hosted a couple of Trilby Tour events.

Not sure about this, I have been told a Championship course does not have any internal OOB.

IanH, Liphook is certainly a championship course as it has hosted many championships, athough most would be of the major amateur type.

It is also a great course in its own right.

I know many courses that are worthy, but these days the criteria is usually based on the longest course available for the Pro's, but we have to remember that the majority of the players who play this wonderful game are from the amateur ranks, so why should everything be geared to the Pros.

As to Roberts point about Internal OOB, I have personally never agreed with it, especially as they are usually used to circumvent poor design of the course in the first place.

John, Liphook is indeed a fine old track (not my favourite but pretty decent),  I was however referring to it's upstart neighbour Old Thorn's, which is a corporate hotel/spa/golf thing and can't boast anything like the quality or history of Liphook GC itself.

IanH, of course Old Thorns cannot boast about its history, as it does not have any, being one of the first of the new courses that suddenly energed with the new boom 30 years ago.

Personally I quite like the course, although as you rightly said, it is not a patch on Liphook, but then we have to remember that Liphook was built on heath and heather land that had not been previously farmed.

You will know as well as I do that in the counties of Surrey, Berkshire and hampshire we have a dearth of quality courses that never get mentioned yet are far superior to those where championships are played. St.Georges Hill, Camberley Heath, West Hill, Woking, Worplesdon, The Berkshire, Sundridge Park, Tandridge, just to name a few.

My present club is the 17th longest in this country and a good test, but I would rather play at any of the ones I have mentioned.

Pretty much every club has a club championship but I'd say that doesn't make it a championship course. As with anything, there's an awful lot of marketing hype about nowadays in golf. Many of the clubs that host Euro Pro and Chanllenge Tour comps actually pay for the priviledge of doing so, then use it as a marketing tool to promote their course. There's a modern complex near us that did it in the summer and I'd sooner play the local pitch and putt than pay good money to slog it around there.

Cleveland has a history of top amatuer comps, and has hosted some lesser pro events. Is it a Championship course as it proports to be? The amount of money and effort spent in recent years is seeing it achieve the quality it had 25 years ago + the addition of some tees so far back they're in Lancashire is certainly modernising it.

There's nowhere locally that beats it apart from Seaton Carew (just), although even their green keeper thought our greens were better. And the STRI report compared some facets of it with Birkdale... he must have been in the bar before he went on the course.

But is it really a Championship course? I'll leave that for the experts to decide but I won't be moving on unless they drag me kicking and screaming out the door for the simple reason the greens are "absolutely stunning" - to quote Yorkshire President this year.

I think it is simply down to length and Par.

TheLyth

I thought it was down to organising 'any' professionial championship at a venue ?  obviously this would have all the prerequistes ie champ tees, length etc