Top 10 Best Golf Courses in North West Leicestershire

An Underrated Golfing District

Golfers travelling through the East Midlands often overlook North West Leicestershire in favour of better-known clusters in Nottinghamshire or Warwickshire. That is a mistake. The district's terrain — gently undulating, well-drained in places, richly wooded in others, and increasingly shaped by National Forest planting — produces courses with genuine variety and year-round playability.

The golfing landscape here has three distinct characters. Mature parkland courses around Ashby-de-la-Zouch offer classic tree-lined fairways and established greens. Courses on the former coalfield around Coalville and Measham often occupy reclaimed land, giving unusual contours and dramatic elevation changes. And newer facilities near Castle Donington and the airport corridor prioritise accessibility, practice provision and flexible pay-and-play formats for time-pressed players.

The Top 10 Golf Courses and Facilities

1. Willesley Park Golf Club. The district's flagship course, set in heathland and parkland on the edge of Ashby-de-la-Zouch. Sandy subsoil in parts gives excellent drainage and firm winter playing conditions, a considerable advantage in the Midlands. Mature trees, subtle green complexes and a genuine championship pedigree make it the most respected test in the area. The clubhouse culture is traditional but welcoming, and the course consistently ranks among Leicestershire's finest.

2. Ashby Decoy Golf Club. A well-conditioned parkland layout that rewards accurate iron play over raw length. Water features and strategically placed bunkering create genuine risk-and-reward decisions, while the practice facilities support serious improvement rather than just warm-up.

3. Longcliffe Golf Club. On the Charnwood fringe, Longcliffe offers heathland and woodland golf over rugged terrain with rocky outcrops and heather. The elevation changes produce memorable holes and views across the forest, and the course plays quite differently in summer firmness than winter softness.

4. Breedon Priory Golf Centre. Near Breedon on the Hill, this centre combines an accessible course with a driving range and tuition programme. Its strength is welcoming newcomers and juniors without the barriers some traditional clubs present, while still offering a satisfying round for established players.

5. Willow Park Golf Club, Castle Donington. A well-drained parkland course popular with players from the airport and logistics corridor who value quick access and flexible tee times. Generous fairways and fair greens make it a good confidence-building venue.

6. Measham Meadows Golf Club. A course carved from reclaimed land in the southern part of the district, with interesting contouring and young but maturing tree planting. The layout is a good example of how post-industrial land has been successfully returned to recreational use.

7. Charnwood Forest Golf Club. Compact, hilly and characterful, this course demands imagination and club selection over brute power. The elevated positions offer some of the best views in Leicestershire, and the shorter yardage makes it popular with senior and junior sections.

8. Coalville Municipal Golf Course. An accessible public facility that has introduced generations of local players to the game. Affordable green fees, no restrictive membership requirements and a genuinely friendly atmosphere make it a cornerstone of participation in the district.

9. Kegworth Valley Golf & Country Club. Set near the Soar valley, this club combines golf with broader leisure and function facilities. The course features water hazards along several holes and is known for excellent greenkeeping and consistent putting surfaces.

10. National Forest Golf Academy. A practice-led facility with covered bays, short game areas, putting greens and structured coaching pathways. For players wanting measurable improvement, launch monitor analysis and professional instruction, it fills an important gap in the local golfing ecosystem.

What Makes These Courses Distinctive

Drainage is the defining variable in Midlands golf, and it separates courses here more than layout does. Willesley Park's sandier ground and the elevated positions at Longcliffe and Charnwood Forest mean winter golf on proper greens rather than temporaries, which serious members value highly. Lower-lying parkland courses can be heavier after prolonged rain, though modern drainage investment has narrowed this gap considerably.

Tree planting associated with the National Forest has also changed the district's golf. Courses established or extended in recent decades now have maturing woodland framing holes that were once open, gradually transforming their strategic character and visual appeal.

Membership, Green Fees and Access

The membership model has evolved. Alongside traditional full membership, most clubs in the district now offer flexible or points-based options, weekday-only categories, young-adult discounted tiers designed to retain players in their twenties and thirties, and family packages. This flexibility is a direct response to changing lifestyles and has helped stabilise membership numbers across Leicestershire.

Visitor golf is widely available. Booking in advance is advisable at the more established clubs, particularly at weekends, and societies are generally well catered for with packages combining golf and catering. Public and pay-and-play options in Coalville and at the academy facilities keep entry costs low for newcomers.

Coaching, Juniors and Participation

Participation growth in the district has come disproportionately from two groups: juniors and women. Clubs that invested in structured junior academies, taster sessions and shorter course formats have seen the strongest returns. Women's sections have expanded through beginner group coaching and more flexible tee time policies, addressing a historic access imbalance.

Technology has supported this. Launch monitors, video analysis and custom fitting, once confined to elite venues, are now available locally, allowing players of all levels to understand their game with real data rather than guesswork.

Sustainability and Course Management

Golf course management in the district has shifted markedly towards environmental stewardship. Reduced chemical inputs, drought-tolerant grass species, wildflower roughs that support pollinators, wetland creation around water hazards and woodland management aligned with National Forest objectives are now standard considerations. Water use is monitored closely, with rainwater capture and efficient irrigation systems becoming widespread.

These measures are not purely ethical. Healthier ecosystems produce more resilient turf, and courses that manage rough areas as habitat rather than manicured space reduce maintenance cost while improving both playability and biodiversity.

Planning a Golfing Visit

North West Leicestershire suits a multi-course golfing break well. Base yourself in Ashby-de-la-Zouch for its hotels, restaurants and castle, play the parkland and heathland courses within a short radius, and combine the trip with National Forest walking or an event at Donington Park. The road network makes every course on this list reachable within roughly half an hour of the others.

For local players, the range is the real advantage. A championship-standard test, a hilly forest layout, an affordable municipal round and a serious practice academy all sit within a few miles of one another, which is a stronger golfing ecosystem than many far larger districts can claim.