Northern Scotland courses

[Niall C]

I could also give a (very) honourable mention to Duff House Royal (MacKenzie course with some fantastic greens), Elgin, Forres, Granton on Spey and Nairn Dunbar of those that haven't yet had a mention. All of which are a step up from the courses in my previous post.

If you are looking for some 9 holers to finish the day then suggest the following;

Ballindalloch - relatively new course by Tom MacKenzie with two sets of tees if you're keen for a second go round. Has one terrific par 3 and some nice (but small) greens. Just up the road from Boat of Garten and Granton on Spey and close to Castle and distillery if you like that sort of thing.

Covesea - redesigned nine hole course in cove along from Old Moray. Wonderful if bonkers. Take plenty of balls.

Jon Wigget's course - not played this one but looks like a treat from the pictures. Located near to Dornoch. Hopefully Jon will chip in and give more info.

Niall

[Brent Hutto]

FWIW I had multiple rounds at Brora and Royal Dornoch plus a round each at  Golspie and the Dornoch Struie course during a week there several years ago. I've no regrets for not playing additional courses and in fact had I been in the area another couple days I would probably have played additional round(s) at Brora and one or both of Royal Dornoch or Golspie. Brora in particular is a place I could play a couple rounds a day for a week and not feel bored or tired of the course.

[Brad Isaacs]

I find threads such as this informative and very helpful. Thanks guys I really appreciate it!

Brad I

[Mike Hendren]

Niall, thank you for the comments.  To combat a vicious attack of the Scotland Golf Bug I took a leisurely lunch at the desk today and followed Google Earth along the shoreline from Aberdeen to Brora just to see what I could see.  A man could do worse than traveling that route over a couple of weeks and periodically stopping to play along the way.

A few pictures of Cullen from their web-site:

From the sublime:


To the ridiculous (13th tee then looking back):





Also liked this photograph of the 14th at Inverallochy:



Does anybody by chance have a photograph of "Clivet" at Royal Tarlair?

Bogey

[Michael George]

With limited time over there, what are everyone's thoughts on these questions:

You have 2 rounds - Dornoch twice or Dornich and Brora?
You have 2 rounds between Moray Old, Castle Stuart and Nairn?
Carnoustie or Kingsbarns (even though I will likely play both - not that excited about Carnoustie for some reason)
Gullane or Renaissance?

I plan on not travelling to the west coast on my trip, instead going to the Highlands.  Anyone think that I am making a mistake.  Just think Cruden, Aberdeen, Dornoch, etc.. are better than Turnberry, Troon, Prestwick and Western Gailes (don't have time to travel out to Machrihanish).

[Sean_A]

With limited time over there, what are everyone's thoughts on these questions:

You have 2 rounds - Dornoch twice or Dornich and Brora?
You have 2 rounds between Moray Old, Castle Stuart and Nairn?
Carnoustie or Kingsbarns (even though I will likely play both - not that excited about Carnoustie for some reason)
Gullane or Renaissance?

I plan on not travelling to the west coast on my trip, instead going to the Highlands.  Anyone think that I am making a mistake.  Just think Cruden, Aberdeen, Dornoch, etc.. are better than Turnberry, Troon, Prestwick and Western Gailes (don't have time to travel out to Machrihanish).

1. Dornoch and Brora
2. Moray Old & Caste Stuart - based on not being over-impressed with Nairn
3. Kingsbarns - based on not being impressed with Carnoustie
4. Renaissance - based on not being impressed with Gullane (mind you, Ren is meant to be changing soon so perhaps Gullane is best for now)

I don't think you are making a mistake for going north and east.  These are different areas and one can't see it all in one go unless his name is Kyle.

Ciao

[Phil McDade]

Bogey:

You just made my day (week, month, ....) -- a photo of the criminally unknown Inverallochy, a nifty little out-and-back 18-hole links , quite near Fraserburgh, that reeks of history. This course, to me, represents what Scottish golf is all about. The story behind this course is fascinating -- a tiny fishing village, where the locals decided to build a course on a small spit of land, and who became well-known throughout the UK for their skill as golfers. They were even invited to play a match at the famed Sandwich course in southern England, where the golfers and club members there -- fearing they would lose the match to the "wild men" of the North -- got them drunk during the middle of the match, whereupon the famed "fisherman golfers of Inverallochy" lost the match. A brief history of the club here:

http://www.inverallochygolfclub.co.uk/history.html

True to the traditions of the game, and adhering to the conservative nature of Scots in this particular region of the country, the golfers of Inverallochy were among the last to give up use of the gutty in exchange for the modern rubber-core ball.

Here's the best picture I could find of Clivet, the 13th at Royal Tarlair, near MacDuff, which raises the age-old question: Is it worth the green fees to play one hole? A wonderful drop-shot par 3 with a green that hangs on the cliff edge. The scene of a wonderful double-bogey by yours truly -- failing to judge the wind correctly, I hit 7-iron and sent one straight into the North Sea. Re-loading, my 8-iron shot dropped no more than 3 feet from the hole -- alas, I missed the putt.

[David_Tepper]

Michael George -

I agree with Sean Arble's rec's of Dornoch/Brora and Moray Old/Castle Stuart.

When are you planning to visit the Highlands?

DT
 

[jeffwarne]

With limited time over there, what are everyone's thoughts on these questions:

You have 2 rounds - Dornoch twice or Dornich and Brora?
You have 2 rounds between Moray Old, Castle Stuart and Nairn?
Carnoustie or Kingsbarns (even though I will likely play both - not that excited about Carnoustie for some reason)
Gullane or Renaissance?

I plan on not travelling to the west coast on my trip, instead going to the Highlands.  Anyone think that I am making a mistake.  Just think Cruden, Aberdeen, Dornoch, etc.. are better than Turnberry, Troon, Prestwick and Western Gailes (don't have time to travel out to Machrihanish).

1. Dornoch and Brora
2. Moray Old & Caste Stuart - based on not being over-impressed with Nairn
3. Kingsbarns - based on not being impressed with Carnoustie
4. Renaissance - based on not being impressed with Gullane (mind you, Ren is meant to be changing soon so perhaps Gullane is best for now)

I don't think you are making a mistake for going north and east.  These are different areas and one can't see it all in one go unless his name is Kyle.

Ciao

agreed on all 4(for exactly the same reasons)

[Jud_T]

Sean,

Besides a possible lack of charm, what's not to like about Carnoustie?

[David Kelly]

With limited time over there, what are everyone's thoughts on these questions:

You have 2 rounds - Dornoch twice or Dornich and Brora?
You have 2 rounds between Moray Old, Castle Stuart and Nairn?

I agree with Sean but I would do everything possible to play at least 36 at both Royal Dornoch and Castle Stuart.

If you leave having only played RD once you will spend your whole flight home saying to yourself, "Why did I only play Royal Dornoch once?"

[Mark Pearce]

Carnoustie or Kingsbarns (even though I will likely play both - not that excited about Carnoustie for some reason)

Elie or Crail.  More fun, better value. 

[Sean_A]

Sean,

Besides a possible lack of charm, what's not to like about Carnoustie?

Jud

For one, I thought the course was too hard.  Too much harsh rough, too much harsh bunkering, too long.  There seems to be a break between those who like the course also liking more difficult courses and those looking for more holiday type golf while on holiday.  

2. The course wasn't aesthetically pleasing.  Even if one doesn't enjoy the course he can always enjoy the scenery - not so at Carnoustie.  

3. Carnoustie is expensive.  I know folks from the US think playing these championship courses for under $250 or $300 is a good deal, but when one sets his sights much lower on places like Brora it is hard to then be asked to pay at least double, often triple.  In truth, after reading Finegan's latest take (after some changes were made) on the course I wonder if I too gave it short shrift, but I won't pay £140 to find out.  There are only two big gun championship courses in GB&I in the same general region of green fee that I am willing to pay; Prestwick and TOC.  I am happy with been there and done that for all the others except for Sandwich (especially because it is the definitive English links), Deal and Co Down (and Portrush if the rough is cut back)  It is harsh to walk away from these courses, but there is plenty more fish in the sea.  

Ciao  

[Brent Hutto]

I would probably talk myself out of it if/when I make my next trip but after just a few visits I'm coming around to Sean's point of view about costs. I adore Royal St. George's so much that whenever I get a chance to play there I'd probably pay almost any fee they care to charge. But that's just about the extent of my list of courses "worth" more than say 100 pounds or so.

When I think about the days I played Formby, Brora or Huntercombe for just a fraction of what the big boys charge per round, I can not really convince myself that I was shortchanged at all. A few other courses fall in the same category where for my game and my preferences something in the 40, 50, 60 quid range buys me all the value I can possibly extract from a round of golf.

Sandwich is in another league for me as is The Ocean Course stateside. Either of those I would feel let down if I missed out on an opportunity to play just because the fee was too steep. And there are also a couple of courses I wouldn't miss for anything that do not charge hundreds of dollars per round, those are just win-win situations!

[Jud_T]

Sean,

I agree that if you're going to pay up for Open courses I'd take TOC and Prestwick every time, but those are 2 of my all-time favorite courses.  I found Carnoustie surprisingly playable compared to some other really tough championship tracks, and I'm sure you're giving me a couple a side...

[Jim Nelson]

Sean,

I agree that if you're going to pay up for Open courses I'd take TOC and Prestwick every time, but those are 2 of my all-time favorite courses.  I found Carnoustie surprisingly playable compared to some other really tough championship tracks, and I'm sure you're giving me a couple a side...

I think it would be hard to fit these into an itinerary for Northern Scotland.   

[Brian Freeman]

So let me re-phrase this question a bit.  What would be your best/dream itinerary for Northern Scotland?  We have a least a solid 7 days on the ground and are planning mid to late August.  Thanks for giving this some thought.  We are already starting to salivate.

If I ever get back to Northern Scotland, and had 7 days to spend, I would base out of the Aberdeen area for a couple of days to play Cruden Bay, possibly even twice, or another go at Royal Aberdeen or Fraserburgh, which I have not played but looked up based off reviews from others on this site and it looks like potentially a hidden gem.  The remainder of the trip I would base out of Dornoch and possibly make a side trip or two to Brora, et al if the mood struck, and possibly catch Castle Stuart on the way since I haven't seen it yet.  But I would have a great week in Scotland just playing RD and CB.  I know it's tough to pass up courses you haven't seen, but I could spend the rest of my life playing those two courses and not feel like I missed a thing.

[Mark Pearce]

I played Carnoustie once, in torrential, pouring rain for all 18 holes, with my wife.  The course killed me (I didn't break 100) and both of us were sodden to the bone when we came off.  We went straight back into the pro-shop to see if there was a chance of going back out again, immediately.  Sadly there wasn't.  It was a long time ago, and I have played a lot more top quality golf courses since, but I had an absolute ball at Carnoustie and would go back tomorrow.  However, I love Muirfield and fall into that category of people Sean identified who don't have a problem with getting beaten up by difficult courses.

[Anthony Gray]

  I would play Cruden Bay last because after that every thing else will be a disapointment.

  Anthony

[Jim Nelson]

So let me re-phrase this question a bit.  What would be your best/dream itinerary for Northern Scotland?  We have a least a solid 7 days on the ground and are planning mid to late August.  Thanks for giving this some thought.  We are already starting to salivate.

If I ever get back to Northern Scotland, and had 7 days to spend, I would base out of the Aberdeen area for a couple of days to play Cruden Bay, possibly even twice, or another go at Royal Aberdeen or Fraserburgh, which I have not played but looked up based off reviews from others on this site and it looks like potentially a hidden gem.  The remainder of the trip I would base out of Dornoch and possibly make a side trip or two to Brora, et al if the mood struck, and possibly catch Castle Stuart on the way since I haven't seen it yet.  But I would have a great week in Scotland just playing RD and CB.  I know it's tough to pass up courses you haven't seen, but I could spend the rest of my life playing those two courses and not feel like I missed a thing.

Thanks.  That seems to be the way we are leaning.  Hard to get to Inverness from the West Coast.  Aberdeen isn't much better but doable.  Cruden Bay, Royal Aberdeen, maybe Trump (there I said it, let the howling begin) then over to Dornoch/Inverness and play RD, Castle Stuart, Brora and Golspie and others.  Trip is coming together.  Thanks to David Tepper and others for the info.  Keep it coming.

[Niall C]

I played Carnoustie once, in torrential, pouring rain for all 18 holes, with my wife.  The course killed me (I didn't break 100) and both of us were sodden to the bone when we came off.  We went straight back into the pro-shop to see if there was a chance of going back out again, immediately.  Sadly there wasn't.  It was a long time ago, and I have played a lot more top quality golf courses since, but I had an absolute ball at Carnoustie and would go back tomorrow.  However, I love Muirfield and fall into that category of people Sean identified who don't have a problem with getting beaten up by difficult courses.

I'm also a member of that particular club I've played Carnoustie and yet to get to the last few holes with any kind of score going. One day perhaps........

Niall

[Niall C]

Bogey:

You just made my day (week, month, ....) -- a photo of the criminally unknown Inverallochy, a nifty little out-and-back 18-hole links , quite near Fraserburgh, that reeks of history. This course, to me, represents what Scottish golf is all about. The story behind this course is fascinating -- a tiny fishing village, where the locals decided to build a course on a small spit of land, and who became well-known throughout the UK for their skill as golfers. They were even invited to play a match at the famed Sandwich course in southern England, where the golfers and club members there -- fearing they would lose the match to the "wild men" of the North -- got them drunk during the middle of the match, whereupon the famed "fisherman golfers of Inverallochy" lost the match. A brief history of the club here:

http://www.inverallochygolfclub.co.uk/history.html

True to the traditions of the game, and adhering to the conservative nature of Scots in this particular region of the country, the golfers of Inverallochy were among the last to give up use of the gutty in exchange for the modern rubber-core ball.

Here's the best picture I could find of Clivet, the 13th at Royal Tarlair, near MacDuff, which raises the age-old question: Is it worth the green fees to play one hole? A wonderful drop-shot par 3 with a green that hangs on the cliff edge. The scene of a wonderful double-bogey by yours truly -- failing to judge the wind correctly, I hit 7-iron and sent one straight into the North Sea. Re-loading, my 8-iron shot dropped no more than 3 feet from the hole -- alas, I missed the putt.

Phil

Royal Tarlair - I only paid something like £10 to play the course and overall I thoroughly enjoyed it. I suspect that I would appreciate it more second/third time around because at first it looks quite barren however there's more to it when you look closer. The Clivet I loved and because I was virtually alone on the course I went back to beside the previous green and hit towards the Clivet green. Its a longer shot with more of the bay to carry, great fun.

Niall

[David_Tepper]

Has anyone here ever played Nairn Dunbar? I cannot recall ever reading any comments about or seeing any photos of the course here. Is there anything there worth seeing?

Just found this photo tour of the course:

http://www2.skyalbum.com/album2/2011/201106/20110623/NairnDunbar_2011/4e030c17090/myalbum.swf

Does anyone know how close the course gets to the water?

[Niall C]

David

I played it this year and while its abit uneven in parts I really was quite impressed and thoroughly enjoyed it. Quite a few of the holes more than stand comparison to the West Course. no photos unfortunately.

Niall

[Sean Leary]

I am with David Kelly here on Dornoch. I would make sure to have RD scheduled on 2 separate days to make sure I upped my chances on getting a decent weather day. Perhaps 36 one day at RD and 18 another along with another course is what I would do.

I spent 3 days there and don't regret it. The biggest regret of my golfing travel life is a hit and run at Royal County Down. Make sure you get to truly appreciate Dornoch.