Le Touquet is a famous holiday town that was already attracting visitors from London and Paris by the late 19th century. Golf was growing in popularity and it was decided to create the first course here, La Foret. Horace Hutchinson was a very successful golfer who won the Amateur Championship twice and had three top-ten finishes in The Open, but he never turned professional. He designed the course in 1904, with the nine-holer Le Manoir added soon after. Edward VIII, then Prince of Wales, was a frequent player.
As demand grew, Harry Colt was engaged to design La Mer. This runs over land closer to the shore and it opened for play in 1931. The course is surprisingly different from La Foret, with trees rarely coming into play but instead serving as a backdrop or to separate the holes. The landscape is rumpled and so easy-walking, but with sufficient changes in elevation to test club selection and create even better views.
This story is from the June 2023 edition of Golf Monthly.
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This story is from the June 2023 edition of Golf Monthly.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
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