Walton Heath (New) – Golf Course Review

Location: Tadworth, Surrey
Played: June 2026
Course Type: Heathland
Key Words: Sky | Heather | Tradition

Golfer’s Tips

There is a driving range, but it is a long way away from the clubhouse. If you are planning on having a hit before your round, build plenty of time in for the walk there and back.
The first hole is a short par four playing around to the left, tempting you to attack. I would argue that unless you can move it significantly right to left then the chance of leaving yourself a chance of finding the green or even a simple shot in is fairly minimal and not to be advised.
Check the course planner or your GPS app carefully – many tee shots are blind and owing to turning fairways finding the right start line take some thought at times.

Signature Holes

3rd – an excellent, classical heathland par four – a beautiful driving hole with a large bunker that sprawls across the fairway, and the long green is partnered by a long coffin bunker left, and one pot bunker right among manicured run off areas.
8th – a fine par five that turns right to left at the point that another heathered mound interjects the fairway at around 290 yards. From there the challenge is to avoid the bunkers dotted short of the green into a super raised green with subtle run off areas all around.

A defining characteristic being “an abundance of sky” has never been as apt than at Walton Heath, and the New Course (which in fact is an unchanged layout, unlike the Old) continues the most traditional heathland golf one can enjoy in England.

The first hole is a gentle and slightly curious opener, very short but turning right to left, and although the second also looks slightly squeezed in amongst the start of the Old holes, once on the tee it is actually a nicely framed and delightfully tricky little downhill par three.

The course really hits its stride at the third, which is a wonderful traditional heathland driving hole complete with a cavernous bunker sprawled across the fairway, and the consistent quality doesn’t significantly alter from this point on. The presence of interjecting obstacles is definitely more of a feature on the New course, as are semi-blind tee shots owing to raised tees and turning fairways obscured by heathered mounds, so there is plenty of thought needed as you navigate your round.

There is a nice set of par threes on the New, as there is on the Old, and after the short second the sixth is a fine hole with the stretch of dense heather between tee and green, two perilous pot bunkers short right and a large but dramatically-sloped green.

The greens are phenomenal surfaces – typically they undulate subtly and, along with the heather, they form the major defence on the New. Hit it straight and the course feels gettable, but at the same time it doesn’t feel like there are many flat putts.

The back nine is longer, including two of the three par fives and several 400 yard par fours, and provides some interesting driving holes. The fourteenth snakes downhill from right to left and then back again, making the selection of a starting line relatively taxing, and the follow-up fifteenth returns back up the hill and banks gently left to right. Both are scoreable with a well-directed tee shot, but dense heather awaits anything awry.

The finishing hole runs parallel to, and is indeed very similar to, the fine closing hole on the Old. A mid-length par four played to a generous fairway running away from you, with a heathed mound providing a barrier to the approach into a

Overall the New course is yet another classical heathland layout on historic, hallowed golfing turf, and provides a very pleasant blend of challenge and strategy yet is playable, particularly if you are straight off the tee. Possibly needs a few more standout holes to be ranked higher, but the consistent quality is enjoyable and well worth a visit.