[Bryan Izatt]

Almost three years ago, post BUDA at Littlestone and Rye, my traveling companion and I headed way north to Scotland.  Amongst other courses we had a round at Turnberry Ailsa.  It has taken me a long time to get to it, but I took a lot of photos and I thought I'd share them since this course doesn't get a lot of attention around here despite it's high ranking.

As most will know the course was significantly changed in 2015 by Martin Ebert.  The major changes to holes 9, 10 and 11 are well known.  But it is fair to say that Ebert touched every other hole in some way or other and in a small way or on some, a major way.  I had played Ailsa some 15 years before with my son and remembered almost all the holes.  Many of the changes were quite noticeable and by and large improved the course in my opinion.  One of the design briefs was to enhance the course to be challenging to the professionals in an Open championship.  Although obviously I'm not anywhere near that quality of player, I'd say that that aim was achieved, although it is not clear that the Ailsa will host an Open in the near future.

Turnberry Ailsa is a relatively modern course having been rebuilt after WW II by Phillip Mackenzie Ross.  And, of course there was the major renovation in 2015.  Rather than rehashing the history of the course or going over the changes made in 2015, I'd refer you to Martin Ebert's 80 page Proposal for the changes to the Ailsa course.  It is a fine piece of work describing both the history and the design changes and can be found at:

http://www.mackenzieandebert.co.uk/TrumpTurnberryBrochure

The new Turnberry Ailsa is a very good "championship" golf course, better than it's predecessor in my opinion.  I cannot however recommend it given the current ownership and egregious pricing.  I cannot suggest enriching an owner who has threatened the ruination of my country and declared us a national security threat to the United States.  Perhaps at some future time, under different ownership, and at a more reasonable fee it would be well worth a visit.

The iconic hotel has certainly dominated the views looking inland since the early 1900's.  The new clubhouse is modern and typically posh if that turns your crank.

Although the course is thought of as a links course, it really is not a natural links.  Much of it is on a rocky cliff and a lot of the internal mounding was apparently man made after the war using parts of the concrete runways as fill and using an imported soil mix.  Nevertheless it is now a fine, challenging seaside "championship" course.

We were lucky to get a decent Scottish weather day to play, apart from a typical squall coming in off the Irish sea on the 18th hole.  The photos for holes 1 through 4 are from after the squall when I went out and walked the holes to get pictures in very benign conditions.  From holes 5 through the 18th the photos are from before the squall in decent conditions.  I played the course from the yellow tees at par 71 and about 6100 yards.  My playing companion played the whites at about 6500 yards. There are back black tees listed at almost 7500 yards for the big boys.  The actual playing length of the course is, of course, often affected by the wind blowing in off the Irish sea predominantly from the South West.  On this day it was a relatively light wind.  On this day I scored well for my abilities while my playing partner had a tough day.  I'm not sure if the latter was a result of the course being significantly harder from the 6500 yard tees, or he just had an off day.

The Ailsa is in a very aesthetically pleasing place with the Ailsa Craig offshore, the lighthouse on the point and the sea and wind pounding the cliffs as can be seen from the new 10th green. You'll be able to click through some of the photos to get a larger version.

[Bryan Izatt]

Hole # 1



The first four holes run alternately south and north to the south of the clubhouse.  The first used to be a mundane shortish par 4 legging a bit right.  It has been lengthened and is now more of a dogleg and some very nasty razor edge bunkers have been added around the green.

Strangely the fairway bunkers are natural looking while the green-side bunkers are sharp edged pots - some visual dissonance there. 

The embankment around the green is I think new, but doesn't quite hide the houses.  They appear to have planted gorse on the embankment; I hope the bushes don't get away from them.

From the left tee the fairway bunkers are all visible while the hole angles away to the right over some gorse bushes.  From the right tee the dogleg is considerably sharper.



From near the right fairway bunker there is a view of the green and an indication of the pots.



Closer in look at the pot bunkers, the green contours and runoffs - looks like the green complexes will be interesting.  The course was in immaculate condition although I would imagine the pots will deteriorate over time.

[Bryan Izatt]

Hole #2

The 2nd hole parallels the 1st but heads in the opposite direction.  It is a shortish par 4 that is slightly uphill with the prevailing wind and legs a bit to the left.  While the 1st suggested a fade off the tee, the 2nd suggests a draw of the tee.  The main challenge, I think, will be off the tee and and finding the fairway while avoiding the one bunker to the right and the three bunkers down the left.  From the tee the white flag can be seen poking just above the gorse bush on the left.





From near the right bunker it becomes obvious that the last two bunkers on the left are actually in the fairway to complicate hitting the fairway with the drive.





From nearer the second last fairway bunker you can see the contours of the green and the greenside bunkering.





A closeup of the green from the front and then looking back from behind shows the interesting contouring.

[Marty Bonnar]

Once more with the mixed bunker styles.
Personally, I said PERSONALLY, I’m not a fan. To me, it’s a bit like looking at a Constable landscape with Dali watches sliding off the side of the Haywain.
Love Turnberry though but won’t be back until it’s under new ownership.
F.

[Bryan Izatt]

Hole #3




The 3rd hole reverses direction yet again and heads south.  It provides a nice panoramic view from the tee.  It is a medium length par 4 into the prevailing wind unless you move to the tiger tee from where it is a daunting 496 yards.  This hole bends to the right and is somewhat downhill but is a relatively straight forward driving hole complicated a bit by some reverse camber in the fairway.  The group I was following seemed to have some trouble missing the drive to the left.  From the tee the green is hidden behind the gorse bushes to the right.





From the left rough the green sits in a nice dell in the dunes.  There is a hint of the nasty pots lurking by the green



From the gorse  and rough left of the green and finally the approach from the middle of the fairway.





An interesting bunker left of the green that is not very visible from anywhere.



And, a look back up the fairway with the clubhouse in the distance.

[Bryan Izatt]

Hole #4



The 4th hole takes you down to the seashore and from here through the 11th the course will follow the shore generally going in a northerly direction.  The graphic in the yardage book looks more attractive than the reality of the waste area - I would imagine that it'll be grown over in relatively short order. Counter intuitively the back tees are closer to the water but provide a line slightly more away from the water.  The hole is moderately long on the card, but will play somewhat shorter with a quartering helping wind.



The green is large and long  with somewhat less undulation than the preceding greens.  When the wind is up and across, the hole will no doubt be more challenging.  From the right front of the green  with the Irish Sea and the Ailsa Craig looming in the back ground.



And long putts from the back of the green.

[Bryan Izatt]

Hole #5




The 5th hole is a shortish par 5 following the coast but separated from it by high dunes.  There is a tall dune just to the right of the 4th green that has one of the forward tees for the 5th on it.  One wonders if it is natural or is really just WW II runway detritus.  The regular tees are around the other side of the dune and further back - no doubt to find some extra length for the hole.  I imagine that this hole would play as a par 4 if the Open Championship ever returns.  This hole bends to the left with fairway bunkers left and right at distance that seem more oriented to longer hitters.  With a helping wind I imagine that the longer pros could carry the second left bunker to carry the corner. 


The hole as seen from the left of the dune.  The tee is further to the right.





The second shot as seen from out by the second left bunker.





From closer in you can see the green benched into the dunes with the left side approach protected by multiple bunkers.







A view looking back from behind the green.  From here the two tier green is evident as is the playing corridor between the dunes on each side.

[Bryan Izatt]

Hole #6



The 6th used to be a long and daunting par 3 over a ravine but now has been shortened considerably to accommodate the new back tees for the 18th.  From the tee on top of the dune there is an expansive view across the sea to Ailsa Craig. 





The green is a tabletop on the other side of the ravine with bunkers built into the face of the ridge that the green sits on.







It's a short par 3, but not without its perils as my playing partner found.







The iconic hotel is visible from many places on the course, including from here looking across from the left side of the green.

[Keith Phillips]

A great tour of one of my favorite courses.  Thanks, Bryan.  And FWIW I'd be very happy to visit Turnberry under current ownership!

[Tommy Williamsen]

I think Turnberry is one of those course you respect and admire the layout but do not love. Thanks for the tour. You have put a lot of work into it.

[Bryan Izatt]

Tommy,


I hadn't been able to get my head around my overall feelings about the course, but in one sentence you've articulated it perfectly. Thanks.


 

[Bryan Izatt]

Hole #7


It is interesting to compare the routing and holes along the seashore from 1930 as compared to today.  The corridors are the same but the holes are completely different, although what is now the 8th green existed out there on the point.





Although the current 7th hole and 5th hole appear similar on paper in the yardage book in that they are shortish par 5's that dogleg left, they play quite differently and the green sites are quite different.  The 7th also has a way back tee, no doubt for the Open Championship.  I imagine this hole would play as a par 5 for the Open, unlike the 5th.




With the tee being up on the dune ridge the drive is a little downhill and a little bit inland and is well laid out before you.  The pin is visible just to the right of the single gorse bush in the left rough.  The temptation will be to try to carry the left corner of the fairway and bunker, but that would be folly for most I would think.






The second shot from the middle of the fairway is substantially uphill but almost reachable for many of us with a modest tail wind.  There is more elevation change on Ailsa than on many rota links courses.  The lighthouse makes for a large aiming point.







From the right front of the green (with a second shot that almost made it) it is evident that the green has a considerable back to front slope.  And from the left side the green looks positively swoopy.  At tournament speeds I imagine this green might be a problem when the wind is up.  Finding pinnable locations might also be a challenge, but a fun green.

 

[Bryan Izatt]

Hole #8



The 8th is either a middle distance or a long par 4 depending on which tees you are playing.  It continues the trend of holes bending to the left and on this hole a reverse camber in the fairway landing area with bunkers on the right to capture errant drives.  Here is my playing partner teeing off some 60 yards further back than my tee.  The arrangement of tees is odd with the forward red tees actually behind the yellow men's tee.




From the right hand side of the fairway the second shot provides an enthralling canvas.  I imagine that the swale might provide a turbo boost for really long hitters with the wind quartering from the left high up here on the point.  Another case in point of the bifurcated bunkering styles on a hole.





The front of the green is wide open to a running shot, albeit a bit uphill.
 I would imagine that this will play firm and fast most of the time being up on an exposed part of the point.





A view of Ailsa Craig with the old fashioned pin out putt.  I wonder if the humps and hollows run off areas around the greens are getting a little overused.





Finally a look back over the green which shows off the reverse camber of the fairway.  From the flag you can tell that the wind was briskly across for the approach shot.

[Bryan Izatt]

Hole #9



The 9th hole, of course, is one of the highly touted new and dramatic holes at Ailsa.  The old 9th was a fine and difficult par 4 high on the point exposed to the wind.  The back teeing ground has been preserved and and is used for the new hole's back tee.  It does not differ much from olden days (photo from Ebert's Proposal).



If you suffer from vertigo you might not want to go out to the back tee in the wind.  The every day tees are enough forward and right that the chasm is not quite so dramatic.  On this day the hole was directly down wind.  Having watched my playing partner dunk one I have developed a theory that the wind comes up the back side of the tee, sweeps across the tee and then dives into the chasm - a high spinny shot to keep the ball in the air seems like a good idea.

As can be seen in the photos, the green tilts right to left and is guarded by large pots left and right.  I managed to experience the bunkers on both sides.  Apparently it is better to be in the left one on your first shot rather than the right one.  Following are three shots, first from the back tee.










From right of the green and looking across the lighthouse, now a luxe (expensive) halfway house, is seen.





Finally, looking back from behind the green.  The back tee is out on the flat spot near the right of the image.

[Bryan Izatt]

Hole #10



The 10th hole plays in the same corridor as the old 10th, but the green has been moved back to the edge of the sea to create yet another shortish par 5 for most of us.  As it is downhill and downwind (most of the time) it should be an easy par or even birdie, although the dramatic new green location will give many a second thought about going for it in two.

The tee shot from the very back tees will be daunting over the rocky sea coast but mostly straightforward from the regular tees.  There is a single centreline bunker in the fairway, but it is a long way out from any tee.  Perhaps it would be a consideration for long hitting pros at 363 yards from the back tee given that it is generally downwind, but given it's a relatively short second shot from down there I'd imagine they'd lay up short of it to take it out of play.  The green is more visible in the second zoomed image.





The large amoeba bunker crossing the fairway will be more of a consideration for resort players than for good players as it's fairly far back from the green,  From left of that bunker the green is nestled between two rocky mounds and hard against the sea behind - a dramatic new green location where the old 11th tee was.




From closer in, the opening to the green invites a long running second shot if the drive was well placed, although the two bunkers look like they will collect lots of errant shots.  From here, it is clearly an infinity green with maybe 5 yards behind the green before disaster.





Looking back across the green to the tees, the lighthouse and Ailsa Craig

[Bryan Izatt]

Hole #11



The 11th is the last of the three new holes along the coast.  The previous hole #11 was an innocuous par 3 going slightly inland and slightly uphill.  The new 11th is also a par 3 but situated on the rocky cliff edge.  As with the 9th the back tee requires more carry over the sea while the other tees provide a less dramatic looking shot.  The back tees make this an almost long hole while the other tees are medium to short in nature especially with the prevailing tailing wind.  I thought this hole was less entertaining than the 9th but a decided step up from the old 11th.

From the tee the green has a bit of a saddle shape to it.  It looks like there might be some challenging pins behind the single bunker, if the slope is not too severe.





The land here is decidedly not links-like.





The green from the right front.  My playing partner does not seem to be enjoying the par 3's as he disappears over the back.




And a lovely view out to sea from the right of the potato chip green.

[Thomas Dai]

Recall Tom Watson during the Dual in the Sun Open hitting a (persimmon) Driver off the deck for his second shot on the 5th. I wonder what club the top players would use for their second shot these days?
The 6th used to be a pretty brutal par-3. Less so now I imagine?
Not convinced by the two styles of bunkering.
Atb

[Bryan Izatt]

Dai,

There is a film by the R&A of the Duel in the Sun at the following address.  I should watch it all to see how the course looked in those days and how the top players played the game.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLzNXu6_6vU

Yes, the 6th is a lot less brutal these days playing at only about 135 yards from the every day tees.  It used to be over 200 IIRC.  The price of extending the 18th.

Re how far players hit it then and now, there is a plaque on the 18th commemorating Watson approach at the 18th on the last day.  It's pretty good distance for a weak lofted 7 iron and balata ball of the day.  I've no idea what today's player would use from the same location under the same conditions.  Today's 8 iron is probably not too far off the specs of a 1977 7 iron.

[Adam Lawrence]

I love the new eleventh. The idea for the hole was hatched several years before the actual project by Martin and the former course manager George Brown. George died a few years ago, and I have always thought that the hole should be named after him.

[Bryan Izatt]

Hole #12



The 12th hole and the rest of the course move away from the coast and play generally back alongside the outward 9 with some changes of direction at 13 and 14.  The 12th is a somewhat pedestrian hole of medium length for most playing back into the wind and a bit uphill.  They have a new back tee to make it 90 yards longer for the pros.  It has a very straight and narrow fairway with little in the way of distinguishing features other than the airmen memorial obelisk to the right of the green.

From the tee the hole is laid out in front of you.  Beware the fields of fescue to the right that was difficult to recover from.  Just left of the bunkers and gorse on the left is the remnants of the concrete runways from WW II.  They're not visible from the course although they are quite close.





From the fairway it is evident the the green is elevated a bit and the shot is uphill







From behind the green and looking back the fescue rough is nicely and attractively brown.

[Bryan Izatt]

Hole #13




This hole is apparently pretty much the same as the Mackenzie Ross version of the hole with a new back tee added and a sand "crater" added on the right side in the rough.  The crater will be a line for the long hitting who think they can hit the narrow fairway.  For the rest of us, I can attest that it is in play.  The hole is not long by today's standards, so placement of the drive will be important.  The drive is a bit downhill and sweeps a bit to the right suggesting a fade off the tee.  I have only one picture of this hole and that's from the tee (IIRC, I was being prodded along by my playing partner at the time). 





The patches of grey between the gorse bushes to the left short of the green are remnants of the WW II runway.  It is really close to this green. 


Perhaps the nicest feature and most remarkable is the green.  It being a Mackenzie Ross original it looks different from most of the other greens on the course.  It is a large green built on a plateau that rises abruptly 2 or 3 feet above the fairway and surrounds. 

[Bryan Izatt]

Hole #14



The 14th is a shortish serpentine par 5 playing into the wind and up a hill towards the point.  There is, of course a new back tee to add some needed yardage for the professional players.  This is the fourth par 5 and all are in the same yardage range for everyday players.  This one will be less reachable being uphill and against the wind. The tee shot will be just inside the left bunker as the fairway jogs left there.





A bit closer look from near the beginning of the fairway.





From closer to the green  where most people will be hitting their third shot to an elevated green.







From the right side it is evident that the green is anything but flat.  It is similar to the 7th green being tilted with a sharper slope in the middle of the green.  I suspect this green would have an issue at tournament speed with the slope being tilted down wind.  Pinnable positions on the green may also be an issue.  By and large though the greens are interesting and challenging and fun.





The always photogenic lighthouse looks good in the sun.  Apparently there are a couple of suites for rent in it, presumably for the jet set crowd (not me )  The black clouds out over the sea are beginning to look ominous.





Finally a panoramic view looking back over the green to the tee and beyond to the bucolic countryside

[Thomas Dai]

Terrific photos Bryan.
Here's a reminder of how Turnberry once was - from a long ago episode of Shells Wonderful World of Golf - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tOS9RZFO4h8
atb

[Bryan Izatt]

Hole #15




The 15th is a longish par 3 especially from the back tee and if the wind is up, quartering into from the right.  At this point it occurs to me that the Ailsa is unusual in championship golf in that it has four par 5's and five par 3's.  This par 3 is on a high point exposed to the wind and plays a bit downhill  over rough and broken ground with a sweeping view towards the hotel.  One wonders if the hole was oriented to put the hotel directly in the distance behind the green.

The strategy is to avoid the rough drop off to the right and the collecting pots left of the green.  Under hard and fast conditions the bunker behind may well see action too.





From the front left of the green you can see the green is tilted from right to left and the bunkers lying in wait.  The bunker style dissonance is also evident, although the back bunker does tie into the hairy mound behind it.





A view from left of the green.

[Bryan Izatt]

Hole #16



The 16th is a longish par 4 that sweeps downhill and turns a bit to the right.  The most notable feature of the hole is the burn that crosses the front of the green and winds along the right side.  I didn't capture a photo from the tee, but this look back gives a sense of the hole.  This is a picturesque and challenging hole, especially around the green.





From short of the burn and the green you can see the potato chip contouring of the green nestled in the ragged dunes.  The burn is indeed very deep and no shots would stick on the bank.  The single bunker protects the left side for those who would give the burn on the right a wide berth.

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