Upon returning from Scotland

We’re back on terra firma here in Canada after our 9-day trip to Scotland. It was a great trip that saw us criss-cross the country spending 3 days at the Ayrshire coast in Prestwick/Troon area, 4 days in St. Andrews which included 2 rounds at the Old Course and a 36 hole day playing the New and Jubilee as well as 2 days trekking into the Scottish Highlands with visits to Carnoustie, Cruden Bay and Royal Dornoch. (I’m second from the left in the photo as we prepare to tee off at the Old Course at St. Andrews) I’ll get on more of the details over the coming weeks, but here are a few highlights:

• We were successful on the ballot at the Old Course twice on consecutive days, the highlight of the trip for me was getting to play the course for a second time and having a general idea of what to do and where to play my ball. Our 4 days in St. Andrews were pretty windy in general, but I think that added a little to the charm
• Our entire group loved Cruden Bay, it is a stunningly beautiful course with a wonderful topography winding its way around a series of massive dunes on the Scottish Northeast coast. The view from the 10th tee out over the back 9 was unbelievable.
• Prestwick proved to be a wonderful home base for the first part of our trip, providing easy access to Troon, Western Gailes, and a road trip to visit Turnberry. But we were left somewhat unwhelmed by the course. Maybe it was an unusually busy day at the old Prestwick links, but the course felt very cramped. Particularly the (newer) holes close to the clubhouse. It was neat to see golf how it used to be played (holes like the Alps and Himilayas were very different than anything you see here in North America) but in some ways this felt the most like the course that time forgot.
• Carnoustie was wonderful, and a little bit surprising in that it is a very straight forward course. No doubt this course would be bear on a tough weather day, but we enjoyed the course immensely as it was straight ahead, what-you-see-is-what-get kind of golf. Fairways were generously lined with plenty of heavy rough, gorse, out-of-bounds (including the famous par 5 6th hole – Hogan’s Alley) and plenty of sod-walled pot bunkers – but it was delightful in that there was no tricks. If you hit the ball well you could have a good round. It was interesting in seeing the (Van de Velde) 18th hole too – it looked very different and much more nondescript without the stands as we have seen in the British Open highlight films from 1999.

All in all it was a wonderful trip – good weather weather – plenty of golf, 11 rounds in 9 days for me including St. Andrews (New, Old, Jubilee), Prestwick, Western Gailes, Glasgow Gailes, Carnoustie, Stonehaven, Cruden Bay and a final day trek up to wonderful Royal Dornoch (but a very long drive). Hopefully I don’t have to wait too long to do it again…