The history of Whitehaven golf club could well read with the by-line "triumph over adversity". First built in 1992, sprawling over 163 acres of open-cast land by the Coal Board, above Whitehaven, the course was ill-maintained and allowed to turn to jungle, until Craig Hamilton sacrificed his job as the club pro at Keswick to take over it in 1998. Consequently, the fortunes have been spectacularly reversed, the club is prospering and the course continues to flourish.

The par 4 third is best played as a par five, as it is a hole riddled with hazards. Water dissects the large fairway in three places and a bunker guards the approach to the green on the left, so there is no room for over-ambitious, heroic shooting.