Ron:
The first one-and-a-half holes (#s 1 and the first half of #2), along with 17 and 18, sit on a somewhat flat parcel of land. Machrihanish is a true out-and-back course, and after skirting the ocean with the tee shot on #1, the rest of the hole and the fairway for #2 sit on this land.
But the second shot on #2 takes you up into the dunes (#2 is one of the great greens I've seen), and the rest of the front nine is just terrific golf over, around, and through the dunes. The best comparison is land that looks like a roiling sea.
The back nine is a bit less tumultuous, but still contains many good holes, and the back-to-back par 3s at #15 and #16 I think are quite good. The final two holes are somewhat anti-climatic, because you move out of the dunes land and into the broad flat plane that returns you back to the clubhouse across the street. Still, to me, it didn't diminish the round, and 18 to me is actually pretty fun as a short, driveable par 4 with some trouble along the way.