Lantern Point, hole by hole

Lantern Point is One Fairway's second course: a links on a headland running out into the sea, at golden hour in the evening. Firm fairways roll between dunes held by marram grass, gorse flowers on the slopes, dry-stone walls cross the holes, and a whitewashed lighthouse stands at the end of the point. It's 18 holes and par 72, with four par 3s, ten par 4s and four par 5s.

Use this guide before a round, or before a daily challenge on Lantern Point. Every hole is free to play now.

The wind

The wind is the course's main defence. It blows off the sea, mostly from the west, at 8 to 22 mph, and it changes from round to round. Everyone in the same match, and everyone on the same day's daily challenge, plays in the same wind. The game shows it before every shot.

The holes go out and back, so the wind turns the course around:

• Holes 1–4 head out along the south shore, into the wind.
• Hole 5 crosses a cove at the point, with the wind across.
• Holes 6–11 come home along the north shore and run on beside the estuary, with the wind behind.
• Holes 12–18 turn back inland over the heath and home. Most of them play into the wind or across it; only 12 and 17 have it partly behind.

Into the wind, take more club or play the punch shot, which flies lower and loses less distance. Downwind, the ball flies and runs a long way on the firm ground.

The scorecard

Every hole is played in a straight line from tee to green. Most tees are raised above the dunes, so the height change is mostly the drop from the tee. "Usual wind" is how the prevailing westerly meets the hole; on the day, check the wind the game shows.

How links golf plays here

• Firm ground: drives run on after they land, and the ground around the greens is firm and closely mown. A low running shot along the ground (a bump-and-run) is often as good as a pitch, and you can putt from just off the green.
• Marram grass lines the fairways. It's deep rough, so the next shot comes out slower and shorter.
• Gorse: a ball that comes to rest in it is dropped clear, with a one-stroke penalty.
• Pot bunkers are small, cut into the ground, and only 2 to 3 feet deep, so a sand wedge gets you out.
• The sea, the estuary, the tidal creeks and the burn on 18 are water hazards: a ball in them costs a penalty stroke.
• Dry-stone walls are solid. A ball that hits a wall below its top (about 3½ feet) comes back off the stone; one that's higher goes over. The old harbour wall by the 10th green plays the same way.

The front nine

Hole 1 · Marram · Par 4 · 403 yards

A wide, gentle opener between low dunes, straight into the wind. There's a fairway bunker on the left around 250 yards. Two pot bunkers sit short and left of the green, at about 350 and 370 yards, so the second shot is best played to the right half of the green, running in along the ground.

Hole 2 · Long Haul · Par 5 · 525 yards

A three-shot par 5 into the wind. A fairway bunker on the right at about 235 yards catches the tee shot, and gorse rises on the left. A dry-stone wall crosses the fairway at about 300 yards, so plan your second shot to stay short of it or clear it. The green has a bunker on its right.

Hole 3 · Pot Luck · Par 3 · 161 yards

A short par 3 to a small green ringed by five pot bunkers: two at the front corners and three around the back and sides. The tee is raised, but the wind is in your face. Club choice is everything; a shot that comes up short or wide finds sand.

Hole 4 · Shore Road · Par 4 · 424 yards

The hardest hole on the course (stroke index 1): long, into the wind, along the shore, with the lighthouse ahead on the point. A pot bunker sits in the fairway, just right of centre, at about 255 yards, waiting for a good drive. The green has a bunker on each side. Par is a good score here.

Hole 5 · The Lantern · Par 3 · 189 yards

The cliff-top par 3. The tee is high above a cove, and the shot carries the sea all the way to about 145 yards. The green sits beneath the lighthouse, and the sea runs down the left side to the green. The wind usually blows across. There's one bunker well right of the green. Short or left is wet, so take enough club.

Hole 6 · Keeper's · Par 4 · 391 yards

The turn for home, now with the wind behind. A fairway bunker on the left at about 245 yards catches a drive that hangs left, and there's gorse off both sides. A bunker short and right of the green catches an approach that drifts.

Hole 7 · Temptation · Par 4 · 314 yards

The drivable par 4. Downwind and slightly downhill, a big drive can reach the green, set among the dunes. A pot bunker in the middle of the fairway, at about 240 yards, punishes a drive that's only nearly good enough. Bunkers guard the front left and right of the green. The safe play is an iron short of the pot bunker and a wedge.

Hole 8 · Westwind · Par 5 · 510 yards

A par 5 you can reach in two with the wind behind. A dry-stone wall crosses the fairway at about 418 yards, and gorse lines the right side. To go for the green in two you have to carry the wall; laying up means stopping short of it. A pot bunker guards the front right of the green.

Hole 9 · Homeward · Par 4 · 403 yards

Back towards the clubhouse with the wind behind. Everything is on the right: a fairway bunker at about 250 yards, and two pot bunkers beside the right of the green. Favour the left side all the way.

The back nine

Hole 10 · Harbour Wall · Par 4 · 400 yards

The back nine starts downwind along the north shore. There's a fairway bunker on the left around 245 yards and another on the right around 275. The green sits beside the old harbour wall, a ruined stone breakwater on its left; a long approach that runs left can kick off the stones. A bunker sits short and right of the green.

Hole 11 · Saltings · Par 5 · 517 yards

Downwind beside the salt marsh. A tidal creek reaches in from the left at about 295 yards, and a second creek crosses the whole fairway at about 430 yards. Clear the second creek with your second shot and the green is in reach; otherwise lay up short of it and pitch over. Bunkers sit on the left of the fairway at about 370 yards and on both sides of the green.

Hole 12 · Ferryman's · Par 4 · 367 yards

South along the estuary bank, with the salt marsh on the left and the wind behind and across from the right. The green sits near the water, with the estuary about 35 yards off its left side. There's a bunker to the right of the green, so the approach has to be straight.

Hole 13 · The Crossing · Par 3 · 170 yards

The back nine's signature par 3, into the wind. The shot goes over a tidal creek, which crosses the line from about 120 to 135 yards, to a green on the far bank, with bunkers left and right. A wooden footbridge crosses the creek off to the right. Short is the water, so take an extra club into the wind.

Hole 14 · Chapel Hill · Par 4 · 420 yards

The only hole that climbs: about 29 feet up to the green, into the wind, towards the ruined chapel on the hill just behind it. Heather lines both sides. There's a fairway bunker on the left at about 230 yards, and bunkers left and right of the green. Uphill and into the wind, it plays much longer than 420 yards (stroke index 2).

Hole 15 · Heather · Par 4 · 332 yards

The short par 4 on the heath, with a crosswind. The green is ringed by heather and four pot bunkers, two short of it and two beside it. A long hitter can try for the green, but a near miss leaves an awkward pitch from the heather or the sand. It's the easiest hole on paper (stroke index 18), as long as you stay out of trouble.

Hole 16 · Drove Road · Par 5 · 461 yards

West into the wind, along the old drove road, with a stone wall off the left side near the green and heather on both sides. A bunker sits well left of the fairway at about 415 yards, and a pot bunker sits short and right of the green. Into the wind it's a three-shotter for most players.

Hole 17 · Lookout · Par 3 · 210 yards

The long par 3 from the highest tee on the course, with the whole links in view. The green is about 37 feet below you, which takes a club or more off the yardage, and the wind usually comes from behind and the left. A low wall crosses in front of the tee, but only a topped shot finds it. Three bunkers surround the green: one front left, one right and one behind.

Hole 18 · Homecoming · Par 4 · 430 yards

The finishing hole, into the wind and across it, back to the clubhouse. Two fairway bunkers on the left, at about 240 and 270 yards, catch a drive that drifts. A burn (a small stream) crosses in front of the green at about 385 yards, so the approach must carry it. The green has a bunker on each side. A par here is a fine way to finish.

Playing Lantern Point

• Short rounds: a quick three gives you one par 3, one par 4 and one par 5. The front nine or back nine take a bit longer; all 18 is the full test.
• The daily challenge now alternates between Stonepine and Lantern Point, day by day.
• With friends: play it as stroke play, match play or alternate shot. How to play with friends.
• Ranked: Lantern Point joins ranked play two weeks after its release, on 11 November 2026.
• Your handicap is the same on both courses.

Questions

What par is Lantern Point?
Par 72 over 18 holes and 6,627 yards: four par 3s, ten par 4s and four par 5s.

What is the hardest hole at Lantern Point?
Hole 4, Shore Road: 424 yards into the wind, with a pot bunker in the middle of the fairway. Hole 14, Chapel Hill, uphill and into the wind, is next.

Does the wind change at Lantern Point?
Yes. It blows mostly from the west at 8 to 22 mph and changes from round to round. Everyone in the same match plays in the same wind.

Is Lantern Point free to play?
Yes. All 18 holes are free in your web browser, and you can start as a guest.

Play Lantern Point now