Best golf courses in Scotland

Not a lot can be said about the Old Course that hasn’t been said already. It’s a pioneering destination for the game, stooped in the richest of history dating way back to its establishment in 1552. Some of the finest golfers to play the game will tell you that St Andrews is the golfing mecca and that you must experience the magic of the Old Course.

The 30-time Open Championship host is at the top of every golfer’s bucket-list and if you’d like to play this course on your next golf vacation, then just follow our guide for getting an Old Course tee time.

St Andrews Old Course facts

• Location: St Andrews, Fife
• Length: 6,670 yards (back tees), 6,037 (front tees)
• Par: 72
• Architect(s): Daw Anderson (1850s), Old Tom Morris (1865 - 1908)
• Founded: 1552
• Course type: Links

The Championship Course at Royal Dornoch is one of the truest forms of links golf in the world and is perhaps the best course in the UK never have hosted an Open. Given its isolation in the Scottish Highlands, Royal Dornoch is perhaps not as well known as it should be. However, five-time Open champion Tom Watson famously once said that it was the most fun that he’d ever had playing golf, and we’re inclined to agree!

Strongly considered one of the top 10 courses in the world, Royal Dornoch will not disappoint, even when the famous Scottish showers are around.

Royal Dornoch course facts

• Location: Dornoch, Scottish Highlands
• Length: 6,799 yards (back tees), 5,296 (front tees)
• Par: 70 (men), 76 (ladies)
• Architect(s): Old Tom Morris
• Founded: 1877
• Course type: Links

The high standard of links golf in Scotland just doesn’t seem to relent. Over 100 years old, the Ailsa Course at Turnberry regularly appears in the top 20 best golf courses in the world on a variety of rankings. As with a lot of courses in this list, Turnberry is a former Open Championship venue and was the home of the Duel in the Sun in 1997 – an epic battle between Jack Nicklaus and Tom Watson.

Recent renovations and modifications made by Mackenzie & Ebert have seen the already world-renowned Ailsa Course somehow get even better. 2015 concluded one of the biggest transformations in recent golf history and has brought Turnberry up to date with the modern standard of the game.

Turnberry Ailsa Course facts

• Location: Girvin, Ayrshire
• Length: 7,489 yards (back tees), 5,406 (front tees)
• Par: 71 (men), 74 (ladies)
• Architect(s): Willie Fernie, Mackenzie Ross (1951)
• Founded: 1901
• Course type: Links

For many, the home of the Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers is the finest course on the Open Championship rotation. And it’s easy to see why. Intelligently designed, Muirfield Golf Course is a challenging but fair layout that arguably doesn’t possess a weak hole in its number.

It has certainly found favor with many of the game’s greatest players down the years with the likes of Jack Nicklaus, Lee Trevino, Tom Watson, Nick Faldo, Ernie Els, and Phil Mickelson all clinching the Claret Jug on this celebrated East Lothian links.

Serious golfers will appreciate the layout and challenge of the course, as well as the thrilling opportunity to recreate the shots that have defined many careers and hallmarked championship history.

Muirfield Golf Course facts

• Location: Gullane, East Lothian
• Length: 6,245 yards (back tees), 5,983 (front tees)
• Par: 71
• Architect(s): Old Tom Morris, Harry Colt (1925)
• Founded: 1891
• Course type: Links

Situated just 10 minutes along the coast from Muirfield sits one of the quirkiest layouts in this list, North Berwick’s West Links. Founded in 1832, this charming test of golf requires your a-game and is a regular Open Qualifying course when the tournament is hosted nearby.

The layout has become synonymous with its views looking out to the North Sea and the Forth estuary, and its beautiful set of fun, unique, and eccentric holes. Easily accessible from the A1, the West Links is well worth the journey and is perfect for a Scottish golf tour along the golf coast.

North Berwick West Links facts

• Location: North Berwick, East Lothian
• Length: 6,509 yards (back tees), 5,775 (front tees)
• Par: 71 (men), 74 (ladies)
• Architect(s): Charles B. Macdonald, Seth Raynor
• Founded: 1832
• Course type: Links

The Championship Course at Carnoustie Golf Links is another links classic and is an easy addition to our best golf courses in Scotland listing. Golf was reportedly first played here in 1527. In 1842, Allan Robertson laid out a 10-hole routing before Old Tom Morris completed the full 18-holes just 15 years later.

The course is often referred to as ‘Carnasty’ due to its brutal finishing stretch of holes, particularly when the wind is up. The 8-time Open host has seen some of the most memorable championships in the tournament's history, most notably Frenchman Jean Van de Velde’s meltdown on the 72nd hole in 1999. Most recently (in 2018), Francesco Molinari bested Rory McIlroy and a rejuvenated Tiger Woods to take home the spoils in another eventful affair!

Carnoustie Championship Course facts

• Location: Carnoustie, Dundee
• Length: 6,945 yards (back tees), 5,610 (front tees)
• Par: 72 (men), 71 (ladies)
• Architect(s): Allan Robertson, Old Tom Morris
• Founded: 1867
• Course type: Links

The stunning links at Kingsbarns was not built until 2000, but you’ll soon marvel at how it displays an extraordinary sense of maturity. Although not on the Open rota, many argue that the perfectly crafted links is on par with some of the more famous nearby courses in St Andrews.

Golf fans can witness Kingsbarns in all its glory on the annual Alfred Dunhill Links Championship on the DP World Tour… you will instantly fall in love with this modern phenomenon.

Kingsbarns Golf Links facts

• Location: St Andrews, Fife
• Length: 7,226 (back tees), 5,231 (front tees)
• Par: 72
• Architect(s): Kyle Phillips
• Founded: 2000
• Course type: Links

As with Kingsbarns, Castle Stuart is a dramatic, modern links course that has received nothing but plaudits since its inception. Despite only opening in 2009, Castle Stuart has gone on to host the Scottish Open four times and was even voted the Best New Course for 2009 by Golf magazine.

The links is the personification of contemporary architecture with each hole almost falling into the surrounding terrain. All that is supplemented by captivating views of the iconic Inverness coastline in the Scottish Highlands.

Castle Stuart Golf Links facts

• Location: Inverness, Highlands
• Length: 7,009 (back tees), 5,179 (front tees)
• Par: 72
• Architect(s): Gil Hanse
• Founded: 2009
• Course type: Links

Situated just 10-minutes north of Aberdeen, the Balgownie Links at Royal Aberdeen Golf Club is another critically acclaimed former Scottish Open host (2014). It’s a traditional out-and-back links, with dunes and spectacular views prominent throughout. Meandering through the humps, the front nine is arguably one of the best opening sides in Scotland. Coming home alongside the North Sea is not a disappointment either, with a host of splendid holes and the backdrop to match.

In addition to the Scottish Open, Royal Aberdeen was also home to the 2005 Senior British Open and 2011 Walker Cup – a testament to the sheer quality of its design.

Balgownie Links facts

• Location: Aberdeen
• Length: 6,918 (back tees), 5,199 (front tees)
• Par: 71 (men), 73 (ladies)
• Architect(s): Archie Simpson, Robert Simpson
• Founded: 1780
• Course type: Links

Trump International Golf Links, Trump’s latest Scottish exploit, adds to the impressive collections of layouts in and around Aberdeen. The course was opened in 2012 on one of the most impressive pieces of links land, offering spectacular views and holes shaped by gigantic dunes.

It’s not for the faint-hearted either, with many challenging par 3’s and risk and reward Par 4’s. This is an absolute treat and a must-play for anyone who is looking to base themselves in Aberdeenshire.

Trump International Golf Links facts

• Location: Balmedie, Aberdeenshire
• Length: 7,428 (back tees), 5,211 (front tees)
• Par: 72
• Architect(s): Martin Hawtree
• Founded: 2012
• Course type: Links

The host of multiple Open Championships, Royal Troon has proudly retained its position as a major venue despite such strong competition throughout the UK & Ireland. Solid throughout, with the back nine presenting the more arduous side of the round, the Ayrshire course has been dominated by American professionals who have won the last six Opens at Troon.

The 8th green, known as the Postage Stamp, is renowned for being the shortest hole on the Open rotation, where only the most precise shot will find the green. Arnold Palmer described the 11th as being the most dangerous hole in the world. He did, however, play it brilliantly throughout his triumphant performance in 1962, and successfully avoided the treacherous railway line on the right side.

Royal Troon Old Course facts

• Location: Troon, Ayrshire
• Length: 7,208 (back tees), 6,108 (front tees)
• Par: 71
• Architect(s): George Strath, Willie Fernie
• Founded: 1878
• Course type: Links

Located just minutes down the road from Royal Troon sits Prestwick Golf Club, one of Scotland’s most significant golf destinations. For anyone with respect and passion for the history of the game, playing Prestwick is something of a pilgrimage. Many people would naturally assume that The Open Championship was born in St Andrews, but it was actually on this old Ayrshire links that golf’s oldest major originated.

The Open was contested at Prestwick on 24 occasions before infrastructure requirements saw it disappear from the rotation in the 1920s. That is highly regrettable as this old course remains one of the finest and most interesting in all of Scotland. It oozes character and charm and has an intriguing variety of holes and many quirks that will satisfy all levels of golfer. If you are looking for a quintessential links experience, Prestwick is among the best.

Prestwick Golf Course facts

• Location: Prestwick, Ayrshire
• Length: 6,908 (back tees), 5,571 (front tees)
• Par: 71
• Architect(s): Old Tom Morris
• Founded: 1851
• Course type: Links

Situated on the southernmost tip of the Kintyre Peninsula is the remote, but memorable, old links at Machrihanish. Unique and thoroughly exciting to play, it may be the most enjoyable and purely thrilling course on this list.

There is a natural authenticity to the holes, which roll seamlessly together with enough twists and turns to exhilarate all players. The most famous of them is unquestionably the opener, which has achieved legendary status courtesy of a daunting and dramatic tee shot that has to be played across the corner of a beach and the Atlantic Ocean. A hook is not your friend here. However, Machrihanish is much more than just one swing. It is an unforgettable experience.

Machrihanish Golf Course facts

• Location: Machrihanish, Mull of Kintyre
• Length: 6,226 (back tees), 5,196 (front tees)
• Par: 70 (back tees), 72 (front tees)
• Architect(s): Charles Hunter, Old Tom Morris (1879)
• Founded: 1876
• Course type: Links

While golf was rumoured to have been played on this prestigious piece of links land in the 18th century, Cruden Bay Golf Club was formed some 100 years later by Old Tom Morris and Archie Simpson. It is an absolute masterpiece, with a figure of eight layout, panoramic scenery, and a combination of blind tee shots, short par-4s, and epic par 3s.

Despite not being the most famous course on this list, Cruden Bay is a real cult classic and has characteristics reminiscent of North Berwick. It is not long on the scorecard, it is incredibly fun to play, and has several quirks throughout. A must-play that golfers will thoroughly enjoy.

Cruden Bay Golf Course facts

• Location: Troon, Ayrshire
• Length: 7,208 (back tees), 6,108 (front tees)
• Par: 71
• Architect(s): George Strath, Willie Fernie
• Founded: 1878
• Course type: Links

Situated in Fife, just 25 minutes south of St Andrews, sits the latest edition to Scotland’s golfing landscape – Dumbarnie Golf Links. Esteemed architect Clive Clark crafted Dumbarnie on 350 acres of prime links land and makes full use of the natural contours to offer elevated tees and stunning views overlooking Largo Bay. Like any good links course, golfers can expect run-off areas, varying pot bunkers, and sand-scraped areas.

Despite its early age, Dumbarnie has already established itself on the world scene. Some of its honors includes the 2021 Best Scottish Golf Experience (Scottish Golf Tourism Awards), 2021 Best New Golf Course (World Golf Awards), and it even hosted the 2021 Women’s Scottish Open.

Dumbarnie Links facts

• Location: Leven, Fife
• Length: 7,620 (back tees), 5,296 (front tees)
• Par: 72
• Architect(s): Clive Clark
• Founded: 2021
• Course type: Links