Appleby

This is a moorland where at least some of the greenkeeping is carried out by the sheep who call the course their home.

A fixture in our Fun Top 100, Appleby is so natural and minimalistic that you almost can’t see it from the road – the A66 east-west moorland route that links Penrith and Scotch Corner.

The minimalist design was produced by 1883 Open champion Willie Fernie, and he left a handful of bunkers, all of them greenside, but the real defences here come with the contours of the land and the ever-present breeze up on Brackenber Moor.

The greens are roped off to keep the grazing livestock away and the turf is a delight to hit from.

At a fraction under 6,000 yards, Appleby is not long but with no par 5s it plays longer than you might anticipate. Factor in the wind and the frequent changes of elevation and the scorecard gives you very little idea indeed of what to expect.

The highlight can only be the par-3 15th, which reminds one of the famous Dell – the 5th at Irish links Lahinch.

In much the same way, the green is concealed from the tee, hidden in a fold between two hills. This hole, though, is much longer and there is also out of bounds to contend with.

There is a stick to guide you and the smart play is to aim a little left of it, from where the contours will take your ball down on to the green.

So Appleby is full of fun holes, but it also has more exacting challenge, such as the 7th.

Here, you start at the foot of the hill and must drive on to a plateau that you can’t clearly see. From there, it takes a really good iron shot to flight it up to the next level where the green is.

Situated 10 miles south-west of Penrith, there is way more going on than you might first think as you survey the surrounding moorland.