Carnoustie Golf Links
St Andrews, Scotland
Carnoustie Golf Links overview
Carnoustie Golf Links is located in the small oceanfront town of Carnoustie on the east coast of Scotland, 25 minutes by car from Dundee and 45 minutes from St Andrews. Records suggest a basic golf course was laid out at Carnoustie in 1834 with the formation of Carnoustie Golf Club five years later making it the world’s 10th oldest club.
In 1867 Old Tom Morris was chosen to create an 18-hole course which was the foundations of the Championship Course that we know today. The revered James Braid was brought in to upgrade the course in 1926 which lead to it hosting its first Open Championship in 1931, won by Tommy Armour.
Whilst the focus tends to be on the Championship Course there are two other courses at Carnoustie, the Burnside Course which became 18-holes in 1918 and the Buddon Course which opened in 1981. Modern facilities welcome golfers at Carnoustie where Links House was opened in 2018, a new building that includes The Rookery Restaurant which offers wide ranging views of the golf courses, a snack area, the pro-shop and a state-of-the-art golf performance center including 7 golf simulators (there is no driving range at Carnoustie).
Golf Courses
Carnoustie Golf Links offers three courses – the Championship, Burnside and Buddon. Nicknamed ‘Carnasty’ due to its level of difficulty, the Championship Course is a permanent fixture on The Open rota and will be forever etched in golfing folklore due to Jean van de Velde’s collapse in 1999. We recommend playing the Burnside over the Buddon if time permits.
Golf courses at Carnoustie Golf Links
Championship Course
The Championship Course at Carnoustie is widely recognized as world-class. Host of the Open Championship many times since 1931 it has seen winners such as Ben Hogan, Gary Player and Tom Watson. Although not a traditional links course in the sense you rarely can view the sea, it is authentic links land and a classic illustration of a fantastic golf course being built on an unremarkable piece of property. Play here and test your game on one of the toughest courses in championship golf.
Burnside Course
Opened in 1934, the Burnside Course is often overshadowed by its celebrated neighbor but nevertheless offers an interesting round of golf. Characterized by narrow fairways, strategically placed pot bunkers, small but firm greens and the Barry Burn it is a true test of links golf despite the lowly par-68 total. The Burnside Course has been used in the past as an Open Championship qualifying venue.
