Golf Vacations England – Hillside 7029 yards Par 72

Hillside is widely regarded as the finest British golf course not to have staged an Open Championship and there are those who believe that it presents a tougher challenge than many of the courses on the current rota.

None other than two-time Open champion, Greg Norman, once stated that Hillside’s back nine was “the best in Britain”  Hillside lies a stone’s throw from Royal Birkdale, amid a stretch of sand hills on the outskirts of Southport, and has many of the attributes of its neighbour. The start, like Formby, is dominated by the railway line that runs parallel to the opening holes. The back nine was re-designed in the 1960s and features a series of holes that linger in the mind long after a visit is over. Since the ’60s, Hillside has hosted several major amateur events, including The Amateur Championship and the Ladies’ British Amateur, the course hosted The Amateur Championship again in 2011. It has also staged the 1982 PGA Championship, won by Tony Jacklin, and, more recently, the 2003 English Seniors’ Open, won by Carl Mason.