Destination Golf Scotland 2021
Trump Aberdeen
Royal Aberdeen
The 6th oldest golf club in the world and a beauty it is , too . Spend some time in the clubhouse and enjoy the history . Balgownie Links , as it is also known , is a traditional out-and-back layout , with a highly regarded front nine . The 1st hits down towards the North Sea , where oil tankers lounge in the water , while the next eight holes slide through the seaside dunes . There are wonderful twists to fairways – the approach to the 1st green sets the tone – although the landing zones are somewhat smoother and more generous as a result . Still , it is a battle of wits . The back nine sit on a higher level inland and are more exposed to the wind as a result . The views may be better , but the golf is tougher . This is a truly classic links with velvet greens begging for bump and run , and delicious pothole bunkering .
Trump Aberdeen
Martin Hawtree , the designer , had the budget and space to do whatever he wanted and he has created something that is pictureperfect . Holes move in a north-south orientation , flowing in almost complete isolation between the biggest dunes on the Menie Estate . It gives the holes an almost ethereal quality . Fairways are wide but the bunkering is omnipresent and penal . The 18th hole has 18 bunkers so if you think you can avoid the sand for the entire round , think again . The course opened in 2012 , and , given its proprietor , no expense has been spared . There are six tees … so choose yours wisely and embrace the scale of the place .
Newmacher ( Hawkshill ) There are two golf courses here , a few miles inland and to the north of Aberdeen , and both were designed by Dave Thomas . The Hawkshill , with its heathland flourishes , receives the greatest plaudits and it is the bigger and more challenging of the two . Water hazards appear on several holes – including the 1st – and these add beauty and danger to a course which really comes to life amid the flanks of Birch trees and Scots Pines . Thomas has a reputation for strategically bunkering courses and Hawkshill is as good as it gets , squeezing greens to ensure there is no let up in pressure . Holes are tight and tree-lined with a manicured American flavour , but that only serves to emphasise the quality of a course regarded as one of Scotland ’ s toughest inland courses . Great facilities and an impressive clubhouse .
Peterhead ( Old )
Play on this linksland began in 1892 , when Willie Park Jr laid out nine holes . It was later extended to 18 but that spirit of natural links golf remained … and has done to this day . The course is laid out to the north of the River Uige . Indeed , a bridge over the river takes you to the clubhouse . Peterhead starts gently and it is only when you climb higher , to the 5th tee , that you appreciate the startlingly natural dunescapes yet to come . These slip away to the sea and fill the middle of the round , reaching out to the farthest point . There are no better examples than the par four 7th , named ‘ Valley ’, with a green sternly surrounded by pot bunkers , and the long par four 9th ( Index 1 ) which glides through a dune created hollow . Fifteen holes play north to south so the wind is always going to challenge you .
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