Competitions · Darley Abbey Mills
Four courses. Four weeks.
Two players.
The Classic Four. Wentworth, Royal Birkdale, St Andrews and Old Head, one a week for four weeks. Grab a partner, play your round any time that week, and your score goes on the Order of Merit, where only your best three rounds of the four count. Free to enter, and the winning pair takes a £75 American Golf voucher each. Runs Monday 5 October to Sunday 1 November.
Four weeks, four classics
One course. Every week.
Each course is live for its full week, 6am to 11pm, every day. Play whenever suits you.
Round 01
Wentworth, West Course
Mon 5 Oct to Sun 11 Oct
Week prize
£25 gift voucher, from Darley Abbey Wines
Round 02
Royal Birkdale
Mon 12 Oct to Sun 18 Oct
Week prize
2 free haircuts, from Mood Barbers
Round 03
St Andrews Links, Old Course
Mon 19 Oct to Sun 25 Oct
Week prize
2 free classes, from Hotpod Yoga
Round 04
Old Head Golf Links
Mon 26 Oct to Sun 1 Nov
Week prize
2 tickets and 2 pints, from Derby Rugby Club
Best 3 of your 4 rounds count.
Miss a week or have a shocker? Drop it. The Order of Merit only takes your best three.
The clocks go back on Sunday 25 October, right in the middle of St Andrews week. The final round finishes on Sunday 1 November.
Our sponsors
The prizes
Win real prizes.
1st place
£75
American Golf voucher, each
2nd place
£50
Eagle Bay credit, each
3rd place
£25
Eagle Bay credit, each
Hole-in-one? A year’s membership.
Make an ace during your Classic Four round and a free year of membership is yours.
Plus, win your week
Top of the leaderboard in any single week? Your pair takes that week's sponsored prize.
Round 1
£25 gift voucher
from Darley Abbey Wines
Round 2
2 free haircuts
from Mood Barbers
Round 3
2 free classes
from Hotpod Yoga
Round 4
2 tickets + 2 pints
from Derby Rugby Club
Only your best three rounds of the four count towards the Order of Merit, so one bad week won’t sink you.
The Order of Merit
The Classic Four.
Four of the most famous courses in Britain and Ireland, played indoors on TrackMan, one course a week for four weeks.
You play in a team of two, as a scramble: you both hit every shot, pick the best ball, play on. No handicaps and nothing to qualify for, it is the same test for every team, and because you always play on from your team’s best shot, complete beginners slot straight in. One attempt per team each week, and only your best three of the four rounds count, so missing a week doesn’t kill you.
It runs at Darley Abbey Mills only. It is free to enter, there is no cap on how many teams take part, and it is open to anyone. Members, regulars, first timers, complete beginners.
On the in-bay TrackMan menu it appears under its official name: Classic British & Irish Courses
Four steps
How it works.
01
Find a partner
You play in twos. Bring a mate, your other half, your dad, anyone. You both need to be there for the round.
02
Get a free TrackMan login
You both need a free TrackMan account so your scores go on the leaderboard. It takes two minutes on the sim or the app, and you don't need to have played a single round before.
03
Enter, book a bay, play
Join the league with the Enter button on this page, or find it on the in-bay TrackMan menu. Then pick any slot in that week's window, 6am to 11pm every day, and play that week's course. One attempt per team, per week.
04
Watch the Order of Merit
Your result goes on that week's leaderboard and the running standings. Your best three weeks count, so missing one doesn't kill you. We post the standings every Monday.
No catch, no small print
Free to enter.
Entering The Classic Four costs nothing. There is no entry fee, no sign-up fee and no cap on places. Playing a round is a normal bay booking, same as any other visit. You pay for the bay, not the competition, and one bay booking covers both players.
Entry
Free. Always. No fee to take part and no limit on how many teams enter.
Playing
A normal bay booking. £25 an hour off-peak, £30 an hour peak, pay as you go.
If you are a member
Nothing extra. Your rounds come out of the hours in your membership.
Teams of two
Bring one person.
This is a two-player competition. Not a solo effort, not a big group. Two.
That is deliberate. Two players in a private bay is the sweet spot. You both get plenty of shots, nobody stands around, and a scramble moves at a proper pace. It is also the easiest golf plan anyone ever agreed to. One person, one text, four Mondays sorted.
Ask the person you always mean to play with and never do. Ask your partner, your brother, the bloke from work who keeps saying he wants to try it. Then do it again next week, on a different course.
Either way, you are in
Members play more.
You do not need a membership to enter. But four weeks of golf is exactly what a membership is for.
Not a member
- Entry is free, same as everyone.
- You book and pay for each bay as you go.
- £25 an hour off-peak, £30 an hour peak.
- Four weeks means four bookings.
A member
- Entry is free, same as everyone.
- Your rounds come out of hours you already pay for.
- No per-round decision, no maths.
- Four weeks means four sessions you have already bought.
Peak 8 is £139 a month and gives you 8 peak hours. Those same eight hours pay as you go would be £240. Off-Peak is £99 a month for unlimited daytime play, which pays for itself in four daytime hours. Whichever one fits, the competition is four weeks of reasons to use it.
Find your tier in two tapsQuestions
Everything else.
How much does it cost to enter?
Nothing. Entry is one tap: hit Enter your team at the top of this page and join through TrackMan. Entry to The Classic Four is completely free. You do pay for your bay booking, the same as any normal visit, but there is no entry fee on top.
Do I have to be a member?
No. It is open to everyone. Members play their rounds out of the hours in their membership, non-members book and pay for a bay as they go. Both are in the same competition, on the same leaderboard.
Do I need a partner?
Yes. It is played in teams of two, so you need one other person with you in the bay. One bay booking covers you both.
How is it scored?
Each week is a two-player scramble: you both hit, pick the best ball, and play on from there. There are no handicaps, it is the same test for every team, and because you always play on from your team's best shot, beginners genuinely contribute. One attempt per team per week, and only your best three of the four rounds count towards the Order of Merit.
Do we need a TrackMan account?
Yes, both players, and they are free. Create one on the TrackMan app beforehand or on the sim when you arrive, sign in, and your scores go on the leaderboard. You do not need to have played a round before, there is no qualifying.
When can we play?
Any time inside that week, 6am to 11pm, seven days a week. Week 1 runs Monday 5 October to Sunday 11 October, and so on through to Sunday 1 November.
What if we miss a week?
You keep the weeks you did play, and only your best three of the four weeks count anyway. Missing one week does not knock you out of anything.
What do we win?
First place on the final Order of Merit wins a £75 American Golf voucher each. Second place takes £50 of Eagle Bay credit each, and third place £25 of Eagle Bay credit each. Each week's winning pair also takes a sponsored prize: a £25 Darley Abbey Wines voucher in week 1, 2 free haircuts from Mood Barbers in week 2, 2 free Hotpod Yoga classes in week 3, and 2 Derby Rugby Club tickets with 2 pints in week 4. And if you make a hole-in-one during your competition round, you win a year's Off-Peak membership, worth £1,188.
Can I enter on my own?
You need a second player to record a team score. If you are short of a partner, message us on Instagram or email hello@eaglebay.co.uk and we will do what we can to point you at someone.
Where is it?
Darley Abbey Mills, Derby. The Classic Four runs at Darley Abbey Mills only.
I have never used a simulator. Can I still enter?
Yes. The bay is completely private, nobody is watching, and it is a scramble, so you always play on from your team's best ball, nobody carries the round alone. Plenty of people enter to see what they can do, not to win it.
Do I need my own clubs?
Bring them if you have them, because you will get numbers you can trust from clubs you know. If you don't, we have clubs for right-handers and left-handers on site, free to use.
The clocks go back. Your golf doesn't.
British Summer Time ends on Sunday 25 October, right in the middle of The Classic Four. The final week at Old Head runs to Sunday 1 November, and the season carries on indoors long after that. Darley Abbey Mills · Derby.