Royal Birkdale in May: Course Conditions Two Months Before The Open

I drove past the Royal Birkdale gates this morning on the way back from Marshside. The grounds staff were already out. Ten weeks to The Open and the place is clearly in preparation mode. If you're planning to play the course before July, or you're just curious what it'll look like when the world turns up, here's what I'm seeing.

What the course looks like now

May on a links course is one of the better times of year. The grass is actively growing, the fairways are firming up from winter softness, and the rough is starting to establish proper height and density. At Birkdale, the willow scrub is in full growth by mid-May. Anyone who played it in March will recognise a meaningfully different course now.

The greens will be getting quicker as the weeks go on. By the time The Open gets here, championship setup means stimpmeter readings that humbled professionals don't find comfortable. Right now, visitors playing in May are getting the course in good condition but not yet at the extreme end of tournament preparation.

Getting on before July

Visitor access at Royal Birkdale tightens significantly as The Open approaches. The club will be restricting visitor tee times in the weeks immediately before the championship to allow preparation work and practice rounds. If you want to play Birkdale this summer, May or early June is the window.

You still need a handicap certificate and you still need to book well in advance. Current green fee is £320. It will not be available on casual notice. Call the club directly rather than expecting online booking to show availability.

After The Open: a different equation

Post-Open, the course will have been subjected to 250,000 spectators and championship conditions. Recovery time is significant. The R&A and the club manage this carefully, but the Birkdale you play in September 2026 will not be in the same condition as the one you play in May. Something to factor into planning if you're specifically chasing peak condition.

The wider Sefton Coast in May

The other courses are in excellent condition right now. Hillside is in good form and visitor access is far more straightforward than Birkdale. Southport and Ainsdale, which hosted the Ryder Cup and is consistently underrated, is playing well with reasonable green fees. West Lancashire, the most raw and elemental course on the coast, is worth considering if you want to see what links golf looks like when it hasn't been prepared for a television audience.

May is a genuinely good month to be playing on the Sefton Coast. The days are long, the weather is better than its reputation, and the courses are in form. If you've been thinking about a links golf trip, the window before Open preparation locks things down is now.