Machrihanish Dunes

[Ally Mcintosh]

Thanks for the response Kris,

It's between Ugadale and Ardshiel in town at present... I am sure the cottages are lovely and most of the time I would gravitate towards them... But there's something about being back in Scotland with my old friends that makes me yearn for the local fish and chips and a late night lock-in at the comfy snug in town... More "real".... Luxury is for trips with the wife, business or golf conferences... I'll phone MD / Ugadale again and work out the comparitive costs... Can't rule that aspect out either...

We won't take caddies and we'll be playing greensomes round Dunaverty... I've no intention of missing it

[Kris Shreiner]

Ally,

Sounds like a great trip! Your gang should have a ball down in the Mull.

Cheers,
Kris

[Howard Riefs]

New option for lodging when visiting Machrihanish.

http://golfweek.com/news/2012/mar/02/ugadale-hotel-reopens-machrihanish/

[Eric Smith]

Ally,

Eric Smith and I are doing the same trip in September - we are throwing in Shiskine and the Machrie as well. When are you going? We're staying in the cottages at a crzay good rate. After driving up from London I don't want to risk uncomfortable beds.

Cheers
Brian.

Brian,

Now that Messrs Csigo and Whitaker are meeting us here we should have a fair # of friendly matches going! Spending the weekend in one place with both courses at our door step has me as excited about visiting Mach Dunes as anywhere on this trip. Plus, the Old Clubhouse Pub looks and sounds perfect. We truly may never want to leave!

[Ally Mcintosh]

Ally,

Eric Smith and I are doing the same trip in September - we are throwing in Shiskine and the Machrie as well. When are you going? We're staying in the cottages at a crzay good rate. After driving up from London I don't want to risk uncomfortable beds.

Cheers
Brian.

Brian,

Now that Messrs Csigo and Whitaker are meeting us here we should have a fair # of friendly matches going! Spending the weekend in one place with both courses at our door step has me as excited about visiting Mach Dunes as anywhere on this trip. Plus, the Old Clubhouse Pub looks and sounds perfect. We truly may never want to leave!

Hi Brian, Eric,

I am going in the first weekend in June. We are staying in the refurbished hotel which I hope (?) is opening on time.... I am determined to get in Machrie as well as I've never seen it. I know Shiskine well.

[Adam Lawrence]

Ally - if you mean the Ugadale it opened a couple of weeks go according to a press release from Southworth (and coverage in the local rag).

[Niall C]

Its also offering deals on a second night and the golf if you go before the end of April.

Niall

[Eric Smith]

Thanks Ally. I hope you have a great time in June.

There are a couple of blogs with fairly recent posts about the course, one of which is the course manager's: http://machdunes.blogspot.com/

He posts a few gorgeous shots of the golf course including this one, which really reminds me of Ballyneal:



A few more:









These are from another blogger's visit back in November:

[Anthony Gray]

  I know you're going to have a great trip Eric

[Chris DeNigris]

Eric,

Thanks for posting the pics...it brings back terrific memories of my only visit there a couple of years ago. Sunday afternoon on the old and Monday am on the Dunes was a fantastic way to start my 2nd (and hopefully not my last) Scotland golf trip. I really wish someone would post a photo essay of MD so there can be some discussion on the course in toto. It's been awhile and I forget half the holes.

With the new hotel and the cottages completed the Mull of Kintyre is capable of becoming a really great golf destination. I would go back in a second.

[Eric Smith]

Thanks, Anthony. I'll tell you all about it at the FISH BAR.

Eric,

Thanks for posting the pics...it brings back terrific memories of my only visit there a couple of years ago. Sunday afternoon on the old and Monday am on the Dunes was a fantastic way to start my 2nd (and hopefully not my last) Scotland golf trip. I really wish someone would post a photo essay of MD so there can be some discussion on the course in toto. It's been awhile and I forget half the holes.

With the new hotel and the cottages completed the Mull of Kintyre is capable of becoming a really great golf destination. I would go back in a second.

Chris,

Definitely looking forward to talking to you about your trip when I see you in Nebraska this summer.

[Kris Shreiner]

This is yet another superb locale that just needs to tie up the loose ends and have folks that understand how to run and market it properly to be successful. The area, Mac Old, Dunaverty, and MD are really special...I soooo hope they get it right soon and are able to sustain and gradually gain some profitability.

Cheers,
Kris

[Ally Mcintosh]

Just back from a 4 day trip to Machrihanish...

I thought the Dunes course was excellent.... As always, there are things that one may have preferred to see (and I tend to agree with Frank's point about returning the nines and his assessment of the quality (and lack-of) in the par-3's) but on balance it offered up a whole load of fun with a very natural feel.... My two main concerns going in were the playability due to deep roughs... Negotiation has clearly taken place with the authorities here because this course is indeed very playable in its current shape: No caddies required and no lost balls in the 36 for me... The other concern was the long walks between greens and tees.... these do exist in a few places (a few 200m walks) but you can live with them... All in all, most wonderful... I'll add some photos over the coming days...

As for Dunaverty, I'd be happy to pick up holes 6, 7, 8, 13 & 14 and place them on any top-100 course in the world....

[Niall C]

Ally

Thanks for the update. Interesting to hear that the rough isn't too brutal. I wonder if thats because its still early in the season. Looking forward to the photos.

Dunaverty - can't believe I decided not to play thsi the first time I went to Machrihanish. Drove up to the hut/clubhouse, no one around and looked out at the 1st hole and decided it wasn't up to much. Bad mistake.

Niall

[Eric Smith]

What can I say - I loved Machrihanish Dunes. The three of us really didn't know what to expect after playing Machrihanish the day before and having the time of our lives soaking up that place. What an incredible golf course the old is. Surely we were in for somewhat of a letdown? No - not in the slightest. Mach Dunes delivers great fun all around on an incredible piece of property. My goodness - the random contours in the fairways here are unreal! Then you have the larger hillocks and hollows providing for - yes - quite a few blind shots, along with some enormous dunes here and there. On a day like we experienced one cannot help but smile and take in the natural beauty of the area, particularly when playing one of the many holes along the beach. The place is truly an idyllic setting for golf.

The course provides endless variety with no two holes remotely similar. The greens varied from good to great, with a few just down right wicked! All enjoyable and nothing I would describe as over the top. It was cool to see a golf course over here that had bunkering like I'm used to seeing on my visits to the Nebraska sand hills. I played 8 different links on my trip and all but this one had revetted bunkering. Not that I don't love them as well, just thought it was a nice change of pace that the architect designed them a bit more natural looking. We also saw a lot more mown out rough along the perimeter of the fairways than there has ever been at Machrihanish Dunes and this must surely be a good thing for the golfer. Even with my pathetic game it was difficult to lose a ball on the day we played.

Our two days in Machrihanish were pure bliss and though I prefer the old course to this one, I can't imagine visiting the Kintyre peninsula again and not playing Machrihanish Dunes. The two courses combine for one heckuva memorable golfing experience. It won't be long before I return, I promise.

Here are a few images from the course. I believe we started on the 10th, but the pro told us they have reversed the nines for a second time so I couldn't begin to tell you the hole numbers.

Splendid tranquility at Machrihanish Dunes




















As others have mentioned, a few longish walks to the next tee, but hardly a reason not to come to Mach Dunes.


Rumbling, tumbling ground all around.

[Garland Bayley]

Pretty cool Eric!

[Marty Bonnar]

We've just booked a weekend in November staying in the cottages. Judging by these pics, I may never come home!
Thanks, Eric.
Yippee,
F.

[Eric Smith]

Ahh, Martin, the cottages are a delight! As is the proximity to the first tee of the old and the fine restaurants in both the Ugadale Hotel and the Old Clubhouse Pub. The cullen skink in the pub is out of this world!

[Bruce Wellmon]

Holy Cow. I have always wanted to play Mach. Now I want to play Mach Dunes also.
Thanks Eric.

[Adam Lawrence]

That is looking really good. When I was there in 2009, the ball eating rough was hard against the fairway edges, and the fairways themselves were full of weeds (inevitable given they were just mowed out of the native grasses). Must get back.

[Simon Holt]

Wow.  It looks like the place has really come on in the year since I played.  Good to see and hear.  Love the area.

[Marty Bonnar]

Sounds great, gents.
We've played Mach 'Old' a couple of times - even once in the company of a certain ex-GCAer - and had a great time playing Dunaverty in the past. So very much looking forward to the 'Dunes' experience. The deal is all-you-can-golf, nice accoms and great food. Sounds idyllic.
Just pray we don't get an early winter in the west! Might even Post 'live' from the peninsula!
 
F.

[Niall C]

Well, after a few days in the company of Americans, I took it upon myself to do that crazy thing they do which is on the spur of the moment to drive for 3 hours, play a round of golf and then drive 3 hours to get home. Never having played the course before, this was my first visit to Mach Dunes. Some random comments;

1 - after a few rounds at Renaissance it was nice to be able to open the shoulders and have a blast (insert irony emoticon here). Having read all the comments about the course being a ball swallowing monster it was a very pleasant surprise. Very playable. I should add that I played by myself, didn't have a caddy (naturally), and while I bought a strokesaver I didn't actually open it until I was home 7 hours later.

2 - I chose to play off the white tees (no idea of the mileage) which was perfectly manageable in a lightish breeze. Indeed I imagine it would still be manageable in a good going wind albeit you obviously wouldn't have scored as well.

3 - fairways were quite generous and the rough had recently been mowed so very little time was spent looking for balls. As a consequence with the blind and semi-blind shots the round took on something of an adventure. A complete throwback to good old fashioned holiday golf where the idea of  fairness is something to be scoffed at.

4 - the greens were terrific in shape if not in terrific shape, if you know what I mean. Not the biggest as Simon said in an earlier post but then many of them gather or are punchbowl in character. With the course being fairly quiet at that time of day I was able to drop a few balls and try out the different chipping options. I'm not sure I've ever played a course with so many hole locations with back stop slopes to play the ball off. It brought to mind that quote of MacKenzies in the Spirit of St Andrews regarding the nature of the original Machrihanish greens.

5 - Walk - towards the end of the round I was fairly tired (round took three and a half hours with me hitting 2 balls most of the way). The earlier comments about the wlak between holes might hold some water however I suspect its more the up and down nature of the terrain that tires you out more. Or perhaps it was the previous 3 days golf, who knows.

6 - Routing - without sitting down and considering a plan of the course I can't make comment on whether there might have been a better way to do things as Frank suggests in another post. I would however suggest that maybe flipping the nines again might not be a bad idea. The present back nine is slightly tighter than the front nine although given the present mowing regime thats not an issue. It just seems to me that the last few holes in the back nine would be better off in the middle of the round where they wouldn't feel as much of a slog.

Overall it was an excellent experience, and one I'd hope to experience again in the near future.

Niall

[Robin_Hiseman]

What a brilliant day out Niall. Very envious. That's about the equivalent for me of waking up and deciding i'm going to Kington, or Brancaster...and I am going to go to Kington as soon as I can.

Glad to hear the rough is manageable now. It was even more fierce than Renaissance when I played it which coupled with the plethora of blind shots and no forecaddie made it a stressful test after a while.

When I played the 1st hole played towards the sea from atop a hill to the north of the clubhouse, before turning south at the 2nd.  Is that the 10th now?

[Niall C]

Robin

Exactly, they have switched nines. As I said I do think it would pay to switch them back rather than have a tough finish which I don't think the course needs.

One other thing I didn't mention was the bunkering which I loved. Given the nature of the ground the bunkers really do play a small part and are I think used quite sparingly. If I had a look through my strokesaver I could probably tell you how many there are but as I haven't I'd take a guess and say circa 30. That as aspect of the bunkering apart, the other thing I loved about them was the unique form of each bunker with plenty looking though the faces had been hacked and gouged out the turf. A lot of bunkers on other courses that have had the frilly edge look just look too neat with what looks like a thin layer of turf draped over a regular faced hole in the ground.

Niall