Golfers have got Seascale all wrong – never mind Sellafield, this is one of the most scenic courses in the country

There are four golf courses played on this tour that have a truly industrial backdrop.

But none of them can compete with Seascale’s neighbour. Sellafield is Europe’s largest nuclear facility, covering more than 650 acres.

It is worth mentioning, as I think Sellafield is almost the ‘elephant in the room’ when playing golf at Seascale. With the barbed wire fencing, armed police visible on patrol and the slight unease of looking on at its four nuclear reactors – it isn’t something that can be ignored.  

In 1893, Willie Campbell laid out 9 holes on the site. In 1899, George Lowe was invited to build 9 more. This was the course played until further revisions were made by the great Harry Colt in 1932 – and his intelligent design is entirely evident today.  

Seascale starts slowly, the 1^st a gentle opener and the 2^nd a little bit of bunkering away from being a good boundary hole. The 3^rd is where it really gets going. A dogleg almost 90 degrees around a small turf ‘cop’, a field of grazing sheep beyond it.

The 4^th and 5^th play back and forth over a rumpled ridge system in the middle of the property – the 4^th as a blind drive over the top and the 5^th as a good length par-3 with the green banked into it. 6 and 7 made me wonder if they were contributions of George Lowe, a pair of back-to-back par 5s reminiscent of those at St Annes. The 8^th is a good par-3 but for me, the 9^th must be the highlight of this side. 

ALSO: Links from the Road: Why is Royal Lytham & St Annes a perennially underrated Open Championship venue? 

ALSO: Links From The Road excerpt: What are the best 18 holes in Lancashire and Cumbria?

Seascale Golf Club: One of the most scenic golf courses in the country

There is a tiger tee pushed all the way back on this hole, but if a tee is well selected here, it’s a drive that poses a fabulous question. The fairway kicks quite dramatically from left to right, a significant drop separating the first and second half. If an accurate drive can be played to the end of the higher left edge, it leaves a clear view straight down to the green beyond. The right route requires a proper hit.

The 11^th and 12^th are probably too often remembered for the wrong reasons. They are the pair that play down a cul-de-sac almost into Sellafield itself. I found it to be an odd sensation and happily admit feeling a sense of relief as I putted out on the 12^th green and turned my back on the facility.

On to 15 – somewhat of a curiosity. Shoehorned in between 14 and 16, the tee is banked against the railway line and the drive is back over the 14^th green. It feels as if you’re playing to the 16^th fairway rather than one for this hole.

16 is the pick of the bunch. A long par 4, it stretches over rollicking links land towards a distant green tucked mischievously behind a pair of dunes.

Seascale is a links laid out over three different levels. The opening holes start high, adjacent to the agricultural land, before falling to the middle tier and navigating the beautiful ridges that characterise the middle of the front 9. The section from 13 onwards, the strongest of the course, is on the lowest level. Here, the views that were previously enjoyed over the railway track and out to sea and obscured by the embankment – but the landscape is so rambunctious it feels like a fair trade. 

The home hole completes the climb more gently in overall incline, but with as much movement over the fairway as anywhere else. It really is true linksland and the green at the end of it is as characterful as they come.

I do hate using the term ‘hidden gem’. Every gem is hidden from someone, and I imagine the members of most are happy keeping the courses they love and cherish to themselves. But like Castletown, this is a course that receives less visitor play than might be expected. I’d encourage anyone to pay the £37 late afternoon green fee for what must be one of the best value rounds in England. 

Subscribe to Links from the Road  

This is an excerpt from Volume 2 of Sam Cooper’s Links from the Road journals.  This 18-volume series includes detailed, deep-dive features on every links course in Great Britain. Read the full version of this essay in Volume 2: Fylde Coast, Lake District & Cumbria. It is available to purchase now from www.linksfromtheroad.com for £19.95 with subscription offers also available.

NOW READ: Links from the Road excerpt: Why Royal Birkdale is the most-loved English course on the Open rota

NOW READ: ‘Who knows where I will end up?’ Why this golfer has embarked on a links road trip around Britain

Have you ever visited Seascale Golf Club? What do you think of Seascale Golf Club? Tell us on X!