Around the world tour concludes: reflections on 5 famous Scottish courses

[JBovay]

This concludes a series of posts I started back in June. I close my tour with a single post on five courses I played in Scotland. They are so well documented and much discussed that I refrain from detailed commentary or anything approaching a full course tour.

Hope you enjoy the photos and commentary!

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Kingsbarns:

Kingsbarns must be considered in a different light from most other courses in Fife and certainly from all the others I played on this trip. Located within sight of Crail, it's many, many miles away in terms of its fully realized design, a truly 21st century links-style course with stunning views (like Crail) but without its character.

It's well known that Kingsbarns was built mostly on old farmland and not pure links soil. [It's the only time in Scotland I ever found mud on my ball.] If one pays attention, one sees that rather than playing through dunes, the holes are routed along terraces between dune-like ridges, and there's enough separation between each of these little amphitheaters--and climbing between greens and tees--that I could have sworn riding carts were in regular use on the course. I found that there was significantly less visual ambiguity at Kingsbarns than at most, if not all, the other courses I played on my trip, and while this straightforward presentation is probably appreciated by many a visiting golfer, this didn't feel like a real Scottish golf experience to me. (Given how straightforward it is, caddies should be of no assistance except as bag-toters.) By the same token, the greens were pretty mild, evidently to accommodate a faster Stimpmeter reading.

A few specific comments:

On two of the par 5s, 9 and 12, I found that small diagonal dropoffs that propel balls forward were angled so that a play along the aggressive line could carry the drop, while a ball hit the same length but on a safer line might get kicked forward by the slope. This had the effect of mitigating any strategic advantage from playing closer to the trouble, given a certain carry distance, at least.

I found some of the detailed shaping features to look glaringly artificial [as on the 10th] and some of the central features that might potentially result in a funny bounce [as on the fifth and eighth] were really just an odd kind of eye candy, being so far short of the green.

10th green approach:



The fifth, from the fairway:



Lastly, regarding the 18th hole, which seems to have generated some controversy for its requiring an aerial approach: when I saw the green from the clubhouse, I figured it must have been a par 5, with the second shot a layup short of the burn. But, playing from the "proper" tees (as advised by the scorecard), I found that the approach was entirely manageable.

The 18th, from 150 yards out:



From closer in:



Additional photos:

The first:



The second:



The twelfth:



The fifteenth, from the human tees, with a caddie tending the flagstick:



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North Berwick:

North Berwick's West Links is renowned for its thrilling start along the Firth of Forth and its "quirky" and bold finishing stretch, but for me, the middle stretch of holes, 4-12, were surprisingly beautiful and compelling, also. Again, I'll just go over the highlights and surprises.

First and 18th holes: much like the Old Course, the first and home holes share a wide fairway with no bunkers. The 18th has its own Valley of Sin short right of the green, and replacing the Swilcan Burn on the first at North Berwick is a large dune that leaves the player with a blind second shot from the fairway [often, if not always]. I was intrigued to learn recently that the first hole used to play to the 17th green, which would have been blind only for shots played from the right side of the fairway, correct? I suppose there may be some merit in taking on the dune with a driver, rather than hitting 6-iron, 9-iron as I did. To me the strategic ambiguity, the multitude of options, makes the first a great hole.

First fairway, view over the dune to the aiming pole behind the green:



First green, viewed from near the second tee:



18th green, viewed from the clubhouse. It was so baffling when we walked up onto the manicured fairway/park that separates the town from the course.



The unheralded par 3s are a truly strong set, with the long and narrowing green on the fourth (from behind):



the deceptively deep green on the short 6th:





and the 10th green set on the inland side of the dune on which the tee is positioned. During the inland stretch of holes, 4 through 9--which aren't truly inland, always within sight of the sea--I commented that I felt I was playing through a beautiful park that just happened to have a golf course in it.

The 7th is a terrific short par 4 where one could easily feel foolish. The fairway slopes significantly downhill toward a burn from about 200 yards off the tee, and a wedge must be played with care as the green continues to slope away from the player:



The wall in front of the 13th green is rightly famous and nearly unique, but it took me some time after playing to realize what an exceptional hazard it is: to hit a ball at the green is an all-or-nothing, risk-reward shot, despite that the wall is not a hazard marked with stakes. End up on the wrong side of it and too close to it, and you'll have no chance for a par. Playing safely away from it, you'll have a chance for a heroic up and down. Can you imagine playing a short pitch over the wall with a niblick? (As an aside to those who haven't played it, the hole really has teeth into the wind: I had to hit driver, 6-iron despite the yardage on the scorecard.)







I can't possibly contribute anything valuable to the discussion about the Redan after Bill Brightly's recent thread, except to brag that three of our tee balls found the green using three different tactics:





The 16th green is phenomenal and--as far as I know--absolutely unique, like an asymmetrical, diagonal Biarritz. I'd imagine that, unless the wind conditions were favorable and you were able to hit a sand wedge in, the rear portion can be accessed only with a perfectly judged or lucky shot, and judging it would take quite a bit of experience. From the wrong portion of the green, a bogey is almost certain. What a golf hole!







I wish I'd had time on this trip for multiple rounds at North Berwick, and very much hope to return one day. Along with the remarkable golf holes and stunning coastal scenery, it's a very pleasant place to spend a few hours walking around, and seems like a terrific town in which to spend a few days.

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Carnoustie:

The afternoon we played Carnoustie, 4 cm of rain had been forecast, so I did not bring my phone to take photos. Just a few comments from my limited experience:

After the opening holes move through what is, to me, pretty interesting terrain, the rest of the course was over some of the flattest golf terrain I saw in Scotland. Thus, to maintain interest, the course's architects created an unusual number of bunkers above the grade of the fairway. Not that there's anything wrong with the creation of artificial hazards, but I did feel that the degree and extent of construction that deviated from the natural landscape was unique among the old links courses I played.

Perhaps it was the weather conditions the day we played--the rain didn't fall on us, but had soaked the course earlier in the day--but I also felt that the placement of hazards created a form of target golf. Rather than having an infinite variety of strategies and playing angles available, Carnoustie presented a challenge more like, "hit it between the bunkers and as close to the green as possible." Like at Royal Aberdeen, the greens at Carnoustie are relatively flat, which does provide some necessary relief upon finding the putting surfaces. I wonder if the greens at Balgownie were influenced by Carnoustie, or vice versa, given their common architectural heritage in the Simpson brothers and James Braid.

As a man who grew up and has played 80-90% of my lifetime golf in a town that suffers an absence of any breeze, the famously clever routing of Carnoustie to change direction with respect to the wind at every tee box didn't do much for me; playing in the wind is enough of a challenge. This routing does, of course, help defend the course against the kinds of low scores that might be possible at the Old Course if the wind happened to be blowing from the south for two hours and then stopped.

All in all, Carnoustie is a great test of golf, but not necessarily a fun one. The caddie for another guy in my group at Kingsbarns is a member at Carnoustie, and he said it's simply too discouraging to try to play the Championship course all the time.

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Cruden Bay:

So much has been written on this site and by members of this site about Cruden Bay that I made a visit there a priority for my first trip to Scotland. As with North Berwick, I was delighted to find several surprises about the course and the property, and on those I focus here.

The surprises started with the stunning view from the new clubhouse, which opens to the ocean, dunes, ruined Slains Castle, the St. Olaf course, and several holes from the main course. It's especially remarkable given that the condos along the entry road (on the route we took) reminded me and my father of those around Bodega Harbor (a familiar reference for those of you in Northern California). From there, more surprises abounded. I knew much about the strong stretch of holes through the dunes going out (3-8) and the quirky stretch through them again on the way home (14-16). I realized only shortly before we played that the iconic view overlooking the dunes and some of the holes is actually the view from the 9th tee, not shot from a helicopter or glider. (Given their spectacular setting, the ninth and 10th holes are just about the most bland holes possible, and though I've said it before elsewhere, I commend Frank Pont on his proposal to strengthen them so their potential can be fully realized.)

Aside from the first and last holes, the entire course is laid out over remarkable terrain. Even on the mildest holes, the features are really astonishing. So, just to focus on the other features of the course that really took me by surprise: the second green is raised so high above its surrounds on three sides, and with OB left, the only possible play is a high and soft approach that lands on the green. While the green doesn't require the precision of the 14th at Pebble Beach, the penalty for missing is severe.



I found an additional subtle difficulty in missing long: while most of the area behind the green was mown to fairway height, a small strip of rough discouraged me from playing my go-to hybrid shot.



Another of the most inland holes, the 17th, features a huge mound right in the landing area that presents a final, unique, challenge of the course.



The fourth green is almost as severe as the second in its placement above the fairway below. Thought I'd seen this picture countless times, I failed to realize the elevation change: here, my low 4-iron landed between the bunker and the front edge, on line with the center of the green, but it still didn't have enough momentum to get up onto the green and instead rolled back down the slope some 50 feet.



The fifth is a monster par 4 through the dunes, but what surprised me most about the hole besides the length was the depth of the green, seen here from behind.



Again, not wanting to give a full course tour of a course widely known in these parts, that's all the commentary I'll offer. But I decided to post a few photos from the Hawklaw:

[JBovay]

The Old Course:

Playing the Old Course was the best golf experience I've ever had in my life, the fulfillment of 20 years' anticipation that in every way met and exceeded my expectations. My only regret is that I didn't build a few days into the trip where no golf was scheduled, so that I could have walked up and played it multiple times.

So, here follow my reflections on the Old Course as a first-time player in 2014, and why it was such a terrific experience.

For starters, the links are a public resource, shared by the residents of St. Andrews and shared with the world. There's no exclusivity about it, nobody sternly enforcing rules like at some high-end U.S. courses ("no push carts allowed!") and no snobbery. Teeing off between the town and the beach, amongst pedestrian onlookers, joggers, and dogs, on one of the world's greatest golf courses, is such a unique thrill.

To our motley crew, the staff members were extremely accommodating from the get-go, and when on the course at a few different points, marshals--recognizing that we didn't have caddies--helped direct us on lines of play. The yardage books handed to us when we checked in were among the best I've ever seen, and essential for a first-time player without a caddie. (The diagram of the 17th was so accurate that I was able to pick out my line for the tee shot using it.) The requirement that visitors play from the yellow tees, at the same yardage used in the olden days, benefits everyone from improved pace of play and from the enjoyment of shooting lower scores. All of these features, which of course have little to do with the golf course, really did enhance my experience.

The Course itself was extremely enjoyable, and as I said, I only wish I had played it more than once. The width allows so many different playing options and strategies, partly depending on the wind and hole locations, but also simply because of the random placement of hazards. My dominant strategy was to avoid the obvious hazards: bunkers and out-of-bounds. (I'm good at hitting hooks.) I did end up in two bunkers, but because I was trying so hard to avoid them, I hit my driver only 7 times during the round. In terms of both distance and lines of play, there are so many options that one could probably keep playing the course for a year before determining the optimal strategy, before even accounting for wind and changing weather conditions. The pin positions, too, dictate play. On the 12th, for example, I found that the front hole location seen in the photo below was inaccessible unless the approach was played high and soft--my mid-trajectory wedge from 80 yards landed short of the green and rolled onto the second tier, and my playing partners who had a closer view of it, having hit drivers, said I played it as well as possible. Here, playing a driver and taking on the bunkers might have been a better play.



I must note here that, even if it's been considerably narrowed in recent years, the Old Course still plays incredibly wide. The 14th fairway, for instance, looks as wide as two ordinary fairways from the tee. I do agree with the consensus opinion that the narrowing of the 14th hole around the Hell Bunker and growing in rough left of the Principal's Nose have been mistakes. (As a footnote, recall that the Old Course was once much narrower. It was really neat to see the old boundary stones marking Golf on one side and Cheape's grazing land on the other.)



Other recent changes to the course were imperceptible to me, as a first-time player in 2014, even as well studied as I am. For instance, there are still two significant mounds short left of the 4th green that complicate play from the left half of the fairway:





I definitely got the impression that my drive on the 7th bounded left and into a hollow after landing (leaving the vantage below), but perhaps I'm wrong.



My father couldn't believe it when I told him that the 11th had recently been flattened; it's still remarkably sloped by modern standards.



I didn't notice any out-of-character mounding beyond the Road Hole Bunker (work scars are visible here, but I don't know what's changed...)



Evidently, the Old Course employs a full-time grounds crew of only 9, which I find really amazing for a course getting that much play. I suggest that great growing conditions help reduce the need for diligent care, and the uniformity of the course's features must also have something to do with it.

I close these short thoughts by noting three terrific and unique features of the Old Course that left an indelible impression on me: the mounds at the front of the second green, which stunned me each and every time I walked the course, both before and after I tangled with them; the bunker not far from the 12th tee, which has no function on the modern, anti-clockwise layout but obviously came into play when playing the 11th as a par 4 from the 12th green; and seeing local players tee off at 6 PM and finish at 9:45, by which point the fog had (only) reduced visibility to about 150 yards.

The amazing second green, with my ball on the edge:



And the new bunkers guarding the right side:





A few additional photos:





The flatness of the ninth green, with 7, 8, 10, and 11, in the background:



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I want to thank the members of this forum, collectively, for putting Cruden Bay and North Berwick on the map, for making them obvious choices for a trip to Scotland. I'm also grateful for the collective wisdom here that led to me playing Crail and the Eden course at St. Andrews. It's obvious that my itinerary was a common set of choices--Bill Brightly has just made almost the same trip--but I really think it's only among GCAers that these courses would be such obvious picks.

I'd also like to thank my whole family for joining me on the trip in Scotland, and also the guys who joined me on the first rounds I chronicled here. I'd also like to thank the GCAer who offered to help me get in a second round on TOC. I would have taken him up on it, but I was just too tired after 4 days of golf to add another round. (It was a sore disappointment to find that I don't have the same stamina I did as a junior, carrying my bag for 36 a day in the Florida summers.)

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If I could do the trip again, I would focus on the Old Course. With 9 days devoted to golf in Scotland, I think I would make 3 tee times at North Berwick over 2 days, get a tee time at Elie (which I nearly did this time instead of playing Kingsbarns), and plan to walk on at the Old Course every other day, with the Eden or (either course at) Crail as fall-backs. I would have to save another trip north or a trip to the west coast for another time.

Earlier threads from my trip:

Pasatiempo Golf Club: http://www.golfclubatlas.com/forum/index.php/topic,58052.msg1379095.html#msg1379095

Extremely limited perspective on golf in mainland China: http://www.golfclubatlas.com/forum/index.php/topic,58052.msg1380004.html#msg1380004

Royal Aberdeen Golf Club: http://www.golfclubatlas.com/forum/index.php/topic,58052.msg1386159.html#msg1386159

Balcomie Links, Crail: www.golfclubatlas.com/forum/index.php/topic,59397.0.html

Eden, New, and Himalayas, St. Andrews: http://www.golfclubatlas.com/forum/index.php/topic,59497.0.html

[Jim Nugent]

Excellent series of photo tours.  I'm surprised they did not generate more comments. 

[Jason Topp]

Wonderful commentary!  I need to go back and read the older threads.

[Jeff Taylor]

A splendid recap. Well written and photographed.
Thank you.

[Greg Taylor]

Great pics and thread.

First sight of the new bunkering around the second for me....

What were your thoughts of the 9th and 10th at the Old Course?

[JBovay]

All:

Thanks. I'm glad to be able to share my perspective here, both with those who have seen these courses and with those who are contemplating making their first trip to Scotland.

Greg:

I thought those holes were a nice respite. Both are reachable under the right conditions but penal if you're sloppy. The ninth has a shockingly flat green, but the tenth has enough contour to be tricky. They force you to miss right instead of erring left, which again is a sort of respite and a different kind of mentality is needed. As at other places on TOC, I was intrigued by the bunker about 10 yards beyond the eighth green, which is pretty far out of play on the modern routing but would deserve strong attention if playing to the eighth green from the ninth.

Are they great holes? No. Do they need any tinkering or strengthening? No. If the world's best play them as par 3s, I don't have any problems with that.

JB

[Bob_Huntley]

JB,

Thank you for a wonderful collage of photographs and commentary on some of my favorite courses. It is with a great deal of regret
that  I know  for me, the Old Course can only be played from memory.

Bob

[Jud_T]

Get back on the damn plane and play Prestwick! . Nice tour.  I just realized that the reason I hacked my way, even more than usual, around Kingsbarns may have been from a difference in turf after a week in country...

[Tom_Doak]

J,

Your critique of Kingsbarns' "lack of visual deception" is well stated.  Mark Parsinen told me when they were building it that he believed any contour in the green that would have significant impact on play ought to be discernible by the golfer standing in the fairway.  I think he softened his view on that for Castle Stuart. 

When the Scots say that Kingsbarns is "too American", I think what they are talking about is the visuals and how much it plays to the visuals, more than the conditioning of the course.  It played very linksy in its early years, anyway ... maybe the new management has seen a bit of change.

[Thomas Dai]

Splendid post JB, excellent photos, including some from unusual angles, a enhancement to the usual.

A couple of general Cruden Bay observations from someone who played there quite a lot, although many, many decades ago,......and memories do play tricks over time

2nd green - the bank on the right side was I recall once shaved/semi shaved (no nearby bunker either). The grass on the bank now seems appreciably longer in the photo - would a ball now 'hold-up' halfway up/down the slope (it didn't years ago)? Also, I don't recall over the back of the green being cut to fairway height with a slightly 'hairy' bank. It was just thicker/longer rough everywhere.

5th green - looks different, I'd heard it was going to be altered, maybe it's the mowing stripes, but it appears a much longer green now, less bowl shaped in the centre too.

8th green - I'd heard it was being re-done but have not seen photos. It appears to be more diamond like in shape with the front point of the diamond pointing at the tee. Also the green seems to have more width and be set at a greater height than I recall. Do you have any more photos of this green that you could post JB?

10th fairway - the rough to the right of the 10th fairway looks wider and the rough to the left, towards the 11th green and 13th fairway, both wider and much thicker. The fairway is also much more tapered in on both sides near the burn. The 13th fairway also appears more tapered in on the left side as the hole is played both near to and just past the 11th green

Accurate observations and recollections or memory tricks? 

atb

[Paul Gray]

J,

A fantastic series of reviews.

Many thanks.

[JBovay]

Jud:

Believe it or not, I've been wanting to visit Prestwick since I was 11 or 12 years old, but it just wasn't in the cards this time. (An elderly fellow I knew at that time had once lived in Scotland, and told me something like "Prestwick is a great course, but the most unusual one, and never modernized.")

Thomas:

I do have a few additional photos of the eighth at Cruden. I will post them within a couple of days.

Regarding the second: I think a ball could hold up in that rough on the right side, but it's not too thick and you'd be likely to be able to get a wedge underneath it. Great to have your thoughts on the evolution of the course!

JB

[Mark_Rowlinson]

Thank you for sharing these with us. I was particularly interested to see the photos of Kingsbarns which give a player's perspective.

[Bill_McBride]

This really perked me up as I am planning a St Andrews - North Berwick trip for next May.  Unfortunately I got the bad news this morning that my application for a four ball tee time on the Old Course was unsuccessful  so we'll have to try when there via the daily ballot.  That makes advance planning more difficult but we will persevere.  I want son David to play the Old Course with me at least once. 

[JBovay]

Bill,

Too bad about your not getting a tee time at the Old Course. I'm sure you know this already, but there are no advance tee times for Saturday so it will probably be best not to make a tee time elsewhere for the Saturday(s) you'll be there. Also, based on what I observed last May, it should be easy to walk up and play as a single.

Thomas D,

I forgot to mention: The Cruden Bay yardage book (not terribly helpful to me as a player) gives the depth of the 5th green at 61 yards.

Here are a couple more photos of the 8th green:





Also, the Golf Channel's Matt Ginella did a segment on Royal Aberdeen, Cruden, and Castle Stuart not too long ago. They have footage of him playing the 8th hole at Cruden, teeing off on 9, and playing the approach to 14:

http://www.golfchannel.com/media/ginellas-journeys-northeastern-scotland/

[RJ_Daley]

Congrats on great travel and thanks for sharing some of your memories.

[Jon Wiggett]

This really perked me up as I am planning a St Andrews - North Berwick trip for next May.  Unfortunately I got the bad news this morning that my application for a four ball tee time on the Old Course was unsuccessful  so we'll have to try when there via the daily ballot.  That makes advance planning more difficult but we will persevere.  I want son David to play the Old Course with me at least once. 

Bill,

a lot of the hotels and B&B's do stay and play packages which include TOC.

Jon

Edit: those situated in St. Andrews itself.

[Thomas Dai]

JB,

Thanks for the extra photos of the 8th and the Matt Ginella/Golf Channel link. Couldn't help but notice that MG was playing the 8th with a GCA poster.

By way of comparison, here's Kyles' photo of the 8th from 2009 (as extracted from his very fine photo tour).



If your ball is down the bank to the right of the green are you able with the new contouring to putt up the bank onto the green?

One-upon-time, if you were left off the tee, you could bump-n-run it up the left hand side onto the green. Tricky but doable. Is the shot still on as it looks from the photos like the roll-off is now more severe?

An old story - played CB with a fellow once who hit his tee-shot on the 8th miles right up onto the hill. The rough was very long but somehow we managed to find his ball within the 5-minutes. The problem was, we then couldn't find where he's laid down his bag!

atb

[Bill Brightly]

Excellent post, thanks so much for taking the time to post all those photos! As you mention, I just made the exact trip (with Elie, Eden and New thrown in.) I sent a link to this thread to my entire group and they really enjoyed, especially the Cruden Bay photos, since we played it in total fog! I KNEW there was water nearby, I heard it, but never saw it once...

[JBovay]

Bill B,

That's fascinating about the fog. Glad y'all enjoyed the photos! (Check the bottom of my Old Course post for links to a few others from my trip, too.)

Thomas,

Sorry to be late in following up, but I really don't know about those options around the green on #8 at Cruden. I'm guessing that most players would find a pitch to be easier to judge than a putt from the lower right hand side.

JB

[Darragh Garrahy]

Wonderful photos, many thanks.

Would love to see you do same at Prestwick!

Darragh