Boat of Garten is without question worth a trip. It's one of Braid's finest designs, and although there is some debate about Scotland's best inland course, BofG is part of that discussion.
Today's big hitters might look down their noses at the course, as it plays from the tips at just under 5,900 yards. But with only two par 5s, and routed tightly through a silver birch forest, it plays longer than its card length -- accuracy off the tee is a major component of the play here. What I really like about the course is that Braid, within the tight confines of a course squeezed in between the old rail line and the River Spey, created 18 holes of terrific variety -- there is rarely a hole there that doesn't make you at least think about how to approach playing it. Greens are generally on the small side, so playing from the fairway and accurate approaches into the targets is a big part of the strategy. And there is some neat quirk, notably the 307-yd Gully on the back nine where one traverses a deep pit.
A fun course, but a challenge as well. Having spent some time hanging around a clubhouse with some fine junior golfers in Scotland several years back, one of them asked where I was headed next. I told him -- Boat of Garten. His reply: "Tough course -- good luck."