Best Golf Courses in Devon for a Social Round

Golf Is a Four-Hour Conversation Disguised as a Sport

Here is the thing about golf that non-golfers do not understand: it is barely about the golf. Yes, you are hitting a ball. Yes, there is a scorecard. But what you are actually doing is spending four hours walking through beautiful landscape with friends, talking about everything and nothing, with just enough competition to keep things interesting and just enough frustration to generate material for the pub afterwards.

No other sport gives you this. Football is ninety minutes of running. Tennis is an hour of trying not to embarrass yourself. But golf — golf is a full afternoon of unhurried conversation, broken up by moments of triumph, disaster, and the kind of elaborate excuses that only golfers can produce with a straight face.

Devon happens to be an extraordinary place to play. The county has everything from championship links courses carved into sand dunes to parkland courses set among ancient oaks, clifftop tracks with views across the English Channel, and moorland courses on the edge of Dartmoor. Whether you are a single-figure handicapper or someone who plays twice a year and loses a dozen balls, Devon has a course that will make your day.

This is our guide to the best golf courses in Devon for a social round — the kind of day where the quality of the company matters more than the quality of the swing. For each course, we have included green fees, difficulty, the setting, and the all-important 19th hole verdict. Because the best round of golf is always the one that ends with a good meal and a proper debrief.

The Local Favourite: Exeter Golf and Country Club

Green fees: £45 to £55 for 18 holes | Par: 69 | Yardage: 6,023 | Type: Parkland | Buggies: £30

If you live in or near Exeter, this is your home course. Set among ancient oaks, limes, redwoods, and horse chestnut trees just minutes from the city centre, Exeter Golf and Country Club is a beautiful parkland course that plays shorter than its yardage suggests but demands accuracy off the tee. The mature trees that line the fairways are not decorative — they are very much in play.

The course is par 69 and 6,023 yards, which makes it accessible for higher-handicap golfers while still offering enough challenge to keep single-figure players honest. The greens are well maintained year-round, and the elevated position means it drains well in winter — a genuine advantage in Devon, where some courses become mud baths between November and March.

For visiting golfers, tee times are available at selected times throughout the week. The club is popular with golf societies, and their events organiser coordinates group visits. If you are organising a fourball with friends or a larger society day, this is a well-oiled operation.

The 19th hole: The clubhouse has a proper restaurant and bar with views across the course towards Haldon Hill. The spa is also open to non-members, so if anyone in your group would rather skip the golf and spend the afternoon being pampered, that is an option too.

Verdict: The most convenient quality course near Exeter. Ideal for a regular social game or a society day without the travel.

The Resort Experience: Woodbury Park

Green fees: £45 to £50 for 18 holes (Oaks Course) | Par: 73 | Yardage: 7,314 | Type: Parkland

Woodbury Park sits on the Woodbury Castle estate about fifteen minutes east of Exeter, and it offers the most complete golf day out in the area. The Oaks Championship Course is a proper test — 7,314 yards from the back tees, par 73, with rolling fairways, European-standard greens, lakes, and mature trees throughout.

This is a bigger, more demanding course than Exeter GCC. The lakes come into play on several holes, and the length from the back tees will test even low-handicap golfers. But the forward tees are sensibly positioned, so higher-handicap players can enjoy it without losing a ball on every hole. The nine-hole Acorns Course (par 32, 4,582 yards) is a good option if your group includes someone who wants a shorter round or is newer to the game.

Visitors are welcome every day, which is a significant advantage — some of Devon's better courses restrict visitor access to specific days or require handicap certificates.

The 19th hole: Woodbury Park is a full resort with a luxury hotel, spa, gym, and pool. The bar and restaurant overlook the course, and the food is a step above standard clubhouse fare. If you want to turn your golf day into an overnight stay, the hotel rooms have views over the fairways.

Verdict: The best "golf day out" near Exeter. Play the Oaks in the morning, have lunch at the clubhouse, and use the spa in the afternoon. Ideal for a birthday or a reunion.

The Championship Links: Saunton Golf Club

Green fees: £50 to £140 for 18 holes depending on season and day | Par: 71/71 | Yardage: 6,703/6,422 | Type: Links

Saunton is Devon's finest golf course, and one of the best in England. Set in the Braunton Burrows sand dune system on the North Devon coast — a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve — it has two championship links courses, the East and the West, both of which regularly appear in top-100 lists.

The East Course is the headline act: 6,703 yards of classic links golf with rolling fairways through towering sand dunes, firm fast greens, and the kind of wind that can turn a straight drive into an adventure. If you have ever wanted to experience links golf at its finest without travelling to Scotland, this is it. The West Course is slightly shorter and marginally less demanding, but still a proper championship test.

Green fees reflect the quality. Weekday rates for the East Course range from around £100 to £140 depending on the season, with the West Course slightly cheaper. Weekend rates run £105 to £135. Twilight golf after 2:30pm offers reduced rates. A £20 per person non-refundable deposit is required at booking, with the balance payable on the day.

A word on logistics: Saunton is about an hour and a quarter from Exeter, so this is a day trip rather than a quick round. But the drive through North Devon is beautiful, and you could easily combine it with a stop in Braunton or Croyde on the way home.

The 19th hole: The clubhouse has panoramic views across the course towards the coast, and the food is solid. But honestly, the real post-round experience is driving ten minutes to Croyde and finishing the day with a drink overlooking the beach.

Verdict: Devon's premier golf experience. Not cheap, but if your group appreciates good golf, this is a day you will talk about for years. Book well in advance.

The Dartmoor Showpiece: Bovey Castle

Green fees: £35 to £85 for 18 holes depending on season | Par: 71 | Yardage: 6,303 | Type: Parkland/moorland

Bovey Castle is one of those places that makes you wonder how it exists in Devon. A grand early 20th-century mansion on the edge of Dartmoor National Park near Moretonhampstead, it was originally the Manor House Hotel when it opened in 1929. The golf course, designed by J.F. Abercromby — one of Britain's finest course architects — opened in 1930 and quickly gained national acclaim.

The course is beautiful. Set in the Dartmoor landscape with the River Bovey running through it, mature woodland framing the fairways, and views of the tors in the distance, it is as much about the scenery as the golf. At 6,303 yards and par 71, it is not the longest course in Devon, but the undulating terrain, tight tree-lined fairways, and Abercromby's clever green complexes make it a genuine test.

Green fees vary significantly by season: £85 during peak months (April to October) and £35 to £40 in winter. If you are staying at the hotel, golf is included free — 18 holes on your arrival day, 27 holes on each full day, and 18 on departure. For a golf weekend with friends, the stay-and-play packages represent serious value.

The 19th hole: This is where Bovey Castle really shines. The hotel has multiple dining options, a full spa, and the kind of atmosphere that makes you want to sit in a leather armchair with a whisky and talk about the round for the rest of the evening. It is luxury without being stuffy.

Verdict: The best golf-and-stay experience in Devon. Perfect for a group weekend — play golf during the day, eat and drink well in the evening, and wake up to Dartmoor outside your window.

The Clifftop Classic: Thurlestone Golf Club

Green fees: £55 to £85 for 18 holes depending on season | Par: 71 | Yardage: 6,230 | Type: Links/downland

Thurlestone sits on the cliffs above Bigbury Bay in South Devon, and the views are extraordinary. Designed by Harry Colt — who also designed Wentworth and Sunningdale New — the course runs along the coastline with the iconic Thurlestone Rock visible to the east and Burgh Island and the Avon Estuary to the west. On a sunny day, there are few more beautiful places to play golf in England.

The course is a hybrid of links and clifftop terrain. The holes along the coast are exposed to the wind, which adds a genuine links dimension, while the inland holes play more like traditional downland golf. At 6,230 yards, it is mid-length by modern standards, but the wind, the slopes, and the views conspire to make it play longer than the card suggests.

Green fees run £85 in summer and £75 in winter, with Devon and Cornwall County Card holders paying £35. Visitors are welcome every day.

The 19th hole: The Thurlestone Hotel, adjacent to the course, has excellent dining options and one of the best settings of any hotel in South Devon. The bar terrace looks out over the bay. It is the kind of place where you linger.

Verdict: The most scenic course in Devon. If you are bringing someone who does not usually enjoy golf, the views alone justify the trip. Combine it with a stop at Bantham Beach or Salcombe on the way home.

The North Devon Hidden Gem: Saunton's Neighbours

While Saunton gets the headlines, North Devon has other courses worth knowing about. Royal North Devon Golf Club (also known as Westward Ho!) is the oldest links course in England, founded in 1864. It is a proper old-school links experience with a unique character — the course shares its land with grazing livestock, and the pot bunkers are ancient and unforgiving. Green fees are considerably lower than Saunton.

If you are making a weekend of it in North Devon, you could play Saunton on Saturday and Royal North Devon on Sunday for a genuine links double-header. Our guide to day trips from Exeter covers the North Devon area if you want to plan around the golf.

Organising a Golf Day With Friends

Golf is one of the easiest group activities to organise because the format is built in: you arrive, you play, you eat. Here are a few tips for making a social round work well:

Group size matters. A fourball is the sweet spot — enough people for good conversation, small enough that the round does not take five hours. If you have more than four, book two tee times ten minutes apart and mix up the groups at lunch.

Match abilities loosely. Nobody enjoys being the worst player in the group by a wide margin, and nobody enjoys waiting on every shot. If your group has a range of abilities, consider a course with forward tees and a relaxed attitude to pace of play. Woodbury Park and Exeter GCC are both good for this.

Book the 19th hole. The post-round meal is where the real social value happens. Book a table at the clubhouse or a nearby restaurant so nobody drifts off after the round. The debrief is half the point.

Consider a society day. If you have eight or more players, most Devon courses offer society packages that include green fees, a bacon roll on arrival, and a meal afterwards. Exeter GCC and Woodbury Park both have dedicated society organisers.

Budget guide:

• Casual round near Exeter: £45 to £55 per person
• Premium links experience at Saunton: £100 to £140 per person
• Luxury stay-and-play at Bovey Castle: from £200+ per person including room and dinner
• Scenic clifftop round at Thurlestone: £55 to £85 per person

Why Golf Is Secretly the Best Social Sport

We write a lot about the conditions that create genuine connection — being present, sharing an experience, having time for real conversation. Golf provides all of this, quietly and without fanfare.

A round of golf takes four hours. That is four hours of walking through beautiful landscape, talking about your lives, your plans, your worries, your jokes. You share frustration when the ball finds the trees and genuine delight when someone holes a long putt. You encourage each other, you wind each other up, and by the time you sit down for a drink afterwards, you have spent more quality time together than most friends manage in a month.

Devon gives you an extraordinary setting for this. Whether it is the championship dunes of Saunton, the Dartmoor grandeur of Bovey Castle, the clifftop drama of Thurlestone, or the comfortable reliability of Exeter GCC, every course in this guide offers something worth travelling for.

So pick a course, round up three friends, and book a tee time. The conversation will take care of itself. And if anyone asks why you need four hours on a Thursday afternoon — tell them it is a networking event. Technically, you would not be lying.

For more ideas on getting outdoors with friends in Devon, explore our guide to exploring Dartmoor and the best things to do this summer.