Michael,
As DT says, there has been plenty on Nairn v. Dornoch and Kris and I have bumped heads a number of times. Without rehashing the comparisons all over again, I'll point you to another thread I started on aesthetics v. substance, and while I'm casting no aspertions against Dornoch, and truly I'm not, Nairn simply doesn't do the aesthetics as well as Dornoch. Its similar to courses like Troon and Southerness in that regard. What you don't get is in your face vistas, dunes and blooming gorse.
What you do get is good old fashioned links golf played on quality turf. Even the flatter holes that DT refers to require some crisp striking, and allowance for wind and bounce and roll of the ball. Others are simply fantastic rolling links with some lovely contoured greens. How the downhill par 3 15th (?) doesn't get a mention when discussing the quirky greens such as those at TOC or NB I really don't know. Hard to describe it, the best I can do is suggest its like an oversized crumpled napkin. Watching several of the matches go through on Sunday it was interesting to see even those that hit the green were scrambling to get their par.
Also as DT says, the routing does switch back on itself a couple of times but as someone who was brought up on a parkland course where the holes ran in parallel, a few switchbacks bother me not one jot as long as the hole I'm playing is a good un. And Nairn has an abundance of good uns.
Tony
You could be right. I just wonder if its a warning shot for top class ladies golf right now, after all you are talking about players who could very well be a the top of ladies golf in a few years time, and yet there seems to be no interest in spotting the stars of the future.
Niall
edited for lapses in spelling