Royal Lytham & St Annes is one of the most testing Open Championship venues – a brutally honest course set in an unusual setting, just inland from the Lancashire coast. It doesn’t offer the scenic drama of other Open links, but it makes up for it with unrelenting challenge and world-class layout. There are 174 bunkers on the course, many of them steep-faced and punishing. Fairways are narrow, and the rough is heavy. The opening hole plays away from the clubhouse through a suburban housing boundary, which only adds to the unique character. Don’t be fooled by the flat appearance – the routing is clever, the winds are tricky, and every shot matters. The back nine features the famous par-4 17th, where Seve Ballesteros hit a now-iconic drive from the car park en route to victory. From Bobby Jones to Ernie Els, champions here have always been tacticians, not bombers. You’ll walk off Royal Lytham knowing exactly what your weaknesses are – and admiring every inch of the test.