I’m very fortunate to have played a lot of great golf courses. Visitors from overseas or down south often ask me what Scottish links courses I’d recommend they play. My answer is always the same. If you want the quintessential traditional links experience – strategic, quirky, bouncy, perplexing, frustrating, thrilling and rewarding in equal measure, three courses stand out above all others.
The Old Course
Firstly and most obviously, the Old Course at St Andrews. It needs no introduction. Its where all the greats bar Hogan have been. It’s an endlessly fascinating course. I’ve been round it hundreds and hundreds of times and each time is a joy. The landscape itself is fairly non-descript: gently undulating and apart from at the loop, you barely see the sea (and then not at all when the tide is out in the estuary). But what a course – the ultimate strategic test where holes can be played in a variety of ways depending on a players skill, appetite for risk and the elements on the day. And the walk up 18 is the best in the game.
North Berwick
Secondly, I’d suggest North Berwick (the “w” is silent) in East Lothian where you can have the most fun imaginable on a golf course. It’s in a beautiful setting on the southern shores of the Firth of Forth: the course hugs the sea in the opening holes. Like at St Andrews (and for the cognoscenti Lossiemouth where Old Tom Morris laid out the Old Course for Moray Golf Club), the course starts and finishes in the town. It epitomises quirkiness (we like quirkiness!) demanding you hit over walls; play blind shots (the approach to the 14th is a cracker) and putt on some funky greens (you’ll not have experienced a double plateau like the 16th). And you’ll get to play the original Redan. Absolute heaven!
Prestwick
Finally, you’ve got Prestwick. Birthplace of the Open Championship in 1860, it is an enchanting place and matches North Berwick for quirkiness. A railway line, a burn, blind shots, drivable par 4’s , Sahara and other vast and unforgiving bunkers together with some crazy, crazy greens make for a joyful experience. And then there’s the clubhouse – you can almost smell Old Tom Morris’ pipe smoke lingering as you’re taken back in time. Lunch at Prestwick is not to be missed.