[Dan Boerger]

Fellow GCA'ers -

I am planning a trip to Scotland next Spring - fluid at this point, exact dates TBD. Knowing that this board is full of some very well informed people, I am seeking advice on courses and areas to consider. A friend of mine is a member at Royal Dornoch, so I may gravitate towards that area, depending upon other courses to seek out in and around there. If it matters, this will be a small group - only 4 of us (two from America, one from England and one from Ireland, so we'll be able to share driving duties pretty easily).  Any and all thoughts appreciated!

[Ross Tuddenham]

Hi, check out the current Tain or Golspie thread for some more tips in Dornoch area;

http://www.golfclubatlas.com/forum/index.php/topic,53875.0.html

So already you have Dornoch, Brora, Tain and Golspie and maybe castle stuart if you are up for a bit of a drive?

Do you know where you will fly into and how you plan to get from there to Dornoch?

How long (roughly/ideally) would you like the trip to last?

[Brent Hutto]

If you have an option to play one or more rounds anywhere on a member's invite, give that opportunity first priority. No other aspect of golf travel is as rewarding in my opinion as sharing a round or two with a friend who lives there.

I spent a week in Dornoch and played RDGC as well as Brora and Golspie. Those courses alone could suffice for a satisfying visit of almost any length. So don't be too eager to trade off days in the Highlands in favor of hit-and-running multiple distant courses. But an exception would certainly be The Old Course, especially if arriving and/or departing from Edinburgh rather than Glasgow.

On my visit we made our way straight to Dornoch and stayed there several nights. Then I played one course nearer to Glasgow on my way there for departure at the end of the week. That seemed very low-stress and satisfactory. I am not familiar with the Edinburgh airport option as that was not easily available in my case.

[Bart Bradley]

Dan:

I have lots of suggestions.  So many that I can't type them all.

 But just from your opening post, I'd be very clear with the car rental agency that each of you intends to drive.  It will actually cost you a bit more to add all 4 on the insurance, but absolutely a must if you all plan to participate in driving.

Getting a vehicle large enough for 4 golfers, clubs and bags can take some doing.  Booking the car should be a fairly early priority, especially if an automatic transmission is required by any of the drivers.

I loved the renovated Dornoch Golf Hotel...literally steps from the 1st tee of Royal Dornoch.  The dining room has a lovely view of the course and the sea.

For non-golf activity, my family and I loved the Culloden battlefield and newly opened museum.  A very well done presentation for anyone interested in history.  Just outside of Inverness.

Feel free to send me an email or private message and I'll help anyway possible.  Have a great time.

Bart

[Greg Gilson]

Hi Dan, there are lots of ways of approaching this fun adventure. However, the first question i ask people heading to Scotland (or England, or Ireland , or .....) for the first time is:

"Is this likely to be the only time you ever visit Scotland or is it the first of what will be many visits?"

The reason this is so important is that:

...if its likely to be the only time you visit, i would recomend you target the "Must Play" courses (I am sure you have your own list but i can help if you like!) and that means moving around quite a bit

....if you are likely to be making return trips, i recomend you spend a minimum of (say) 4 nights in any one location and truly soak up the experience a bit more. That may nean you visit 1 or 2 locations this trip but "do them properly". You then return to different locations next time & "do them properly" as well.

Please feel free to IM me if you like and i would be pleased to help whatever way you need. Enjoy the planning!

[David_Tepper]

"I loved the renovated Dornoch Golf Hotel"

Bart -

I presume you are speaking of the Royal Golf Hotel.

http://www.royalgolfhoteldornoch.co.uk/

It is a little on the pricey side.

DT

[hhuffines]

Take Bart's advice.  Contact him and or his son, Matt directly.  Nuff said...

[Dean Stokes]

Dan, I just returned from a week in Scotland where we had a great experience. We played Royal Dornoch which is just wonderful.....a must play. Next we played Castle Stuart 36 holes in a day.....I am so glad we did as I enjoyed the afternoon round so much more once I knew where I was going. Then we played Nairn which was always on my list of courses to play. I would recommend all three of those.....and if I get round to it I will post some of the photos.

[David Whitmer]

Dan, three buddies and I are going next spring...April 26 to May 3. We have booked it all ourselves, and all we are waiting on is St. Andrews. Everything else is booked and paid for. Our itinerary, in order of play, is: Nairn (18), Castle Stuart (36), Dornoch (36), Carnoustie (18), two full days in St. Andrews area (hopefully TOC, The New, Kingsbarns, and Crail), Muirfield (36), North Berwick (18), and Gullane #1 (18).

We're spending 3 nights at Nairn Courseview Hotel, 2 nights at a B&B in St. Andrews, 1 night at Greywalls, and 2 nights TBD.

We're flying in and out of Edinburgh.

We decided to play all the typical, touristy courses this time, then hit some lesser-known gems the next time.

This is our first trip to play golf in Scotland, and can't wait. A book that was a nice reference to us was Allan Ferguson's Golf in Scotland.

[Brett Heffes]

Dan,

A group of 8 just returned last month from Scotland.  We played the following courses:  Royal Dornoch, Castle Stuart, Trump Scotland, Cruden Bay, Royal Aberdeen, North Berwick, Muirfield, Western Gailes and Turnberry.  Our itinerary covered four areas (Highlands, Aberdeen, Gullane and Ayrshire).  The major area we did not visit was St. Andrews.

If you already are planning on going to Royal Dornoch, you should catch Castle Stuart on the way back.  It is a very special course, but also modern.  The town of Dornoch is quaint.  Make sure you catch the bagpipes in the town square on Saturday night.  It was/is very special.

My favorite course in the Aberdeen area was Cruden Bay.  I was less enamored with the Trump course and Royal Aberdeen, although the views from the dunes at Trump were amazing.

If you go to Gullane, Muirfiled is a must.  What a great day of golf!  North Berwick (which is right down the road) is a terrific course and has a lot of character including the original Redan par 3.  We did not get to play Gullane, but plan to in the future.

Lastly, I would also highly recommend a visit to the West Coast. Turnberry was spectacular and depending on what days you will be there, you can possibly play Prestwick and Troon (less than an hour away).

Enjoy your travels!

[Anders Rytter]

Dan,
I just spend a couple days in and arround St Andrews and it was very nice.

Only issue. We tried out the ballot for the Old Course 2 whole days and one half as a two ball. without any luck. maybe we were unlucky, but if going there again i would consider "winning" not very likely.

We walked on from the line one day, all 3balls picked up a player from the line, but only 6 got on that way the whole day.

[Mark Pearce]

Anders,

That does sound very unlucky.  When exactly were you there?  There are times of year when the number of slots in the ballot is very limited beacuse of local club (or R&A) competitions.

[Anders Rytter]

Mark,
We tried October 11th, 13th and 15th

[Dan Boerger]

Thanks all for your advice and tips -- and especially those who PM'd me. It's looking like Mid May will be the time, and even then highs in the 50's for the area in and around Dornoch. But 15+ hours of daylight will be great. Really look forward to it.

[Mark Pearce]

Mark,
We tried October 11th, 13th and 15th

The Old Course was either closed (14th) or closed to the ballot (12th)  on the two intervening days.  I wonder if this might have been a factor?

[Anders Rytter]

Yes, course was closed all friday 12th and Sunday 14th. The additional closed day might make might ballot experience a little special. Also monday 15th was the first day with reduced winter greenfee, might also be a factor for some.

[Ken Moum]

FWIW, David Tepper recently posted a link to http://www.dornochfirthgolf.co.uk/dornoch_firth_golf_pass.php here, suggesting that visitors to the Dornoch area might want to take advantage.

The site hasn't been updated in a long time, so I sent them note asking if it would be available in 2013.  I just got a reply indicating that it will be available next year.

K

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