Walton Heath Golf Club

Walton Heath Golf Club is a golf club in England, near Walton-on-the-Hill in Surrey, southwest of London. Founded in 1903, the club comprises two 18-hole golf courses, both of which are well known for having heather covering many of the areas of rough. The Old Course opened in 1904, and (as of 2009) has a championship length of 7,406 yards (6,772 m). The New Course opened as a 9-hole course in 1907 and was extended to 18 holes in 1913; its championship length in 2009 was 7,199 yards (6,583 m). Both were designed by Herbert Fowler, who later designed numerous courses in the United Kingdom and United States. Walton Heath has had a long association with royalty and politics, with Edward, Prince of Wales having been the club's first captain in 1935, and former United Kingdom Prime Ministers David Lloyd George, Winston Churchill, Bonar Law and Arthur Balfour all having been members. The club has also only ever had four club professionals, including five time British Open champion James Braid who held the post from 1904 until 1950. Both courses at Walton Heath have been consistently rated in the UK's top 100 courses, with the Old Course also being rated as one of the top 100 in the world.