Day five of the HOG World Tour trip to Scotland had two courses on the menu. We called to find a slot on the Jubilee Course and the only available one was in 15 minutes. What to do when you’re a 20 minute walk to the course? Book the time and walk fast! We made it.
The Jubilee Course (first photo below) is right next to the Old Course and New Course. It was designed by Old Tom Morris in 1897. Many say it is the toughest course of the three. We had a fabulous time on this great links course. I had some serious pressure to overcome as I had forgotten to reload my bag with golf balls. After losing a coupe of balls to the gorse monster, I found myself with one remaining ball on the 9th tee. I’m proud to say I managed to finish the round despite a 3-club wind.
The afternoon round was at the newest course in town, the Castle Course (photo below). Not a local favorite probably due to cost and it not being a “natural” design, we have never found the Castle to be overly crowded. The incredible dunes, elevation changes, and views of the north sea make it one of the funnest rounds of golf one could have in St Andrews.
At the end of the day, the 5th day mind you, we had walked over 18.4 miles, the equivalent of 89 flights of stairs in elevation change, and 43,319 steps!
In the evening our group stayed in our rented flat (more later on that) and cooked up a carb-rich spaghetti dinner and enjoyed some wee glasses of red while conteplating the day’s golf.
Now that I’ve confirmed the pending third HOG World Tour trip to St Andrews, Scotland, I can’t help having Scotland on my mind. It is a magical place. Sadly 99.999% of the courses in the United States do not play like true scottish links courses. Scottish golf is a natural, hard style of golf I far prefer to the overly-soft, over-watered, too green, over-manicured courses here in the USA.
One thing most golfers who have not been to there don’t realize is that there are a ton of courses in the town of St Andrews, not just the Old Course. That’s why I’m always giving people grief when they refer to the Old Course as St Andrews. “Hey have you played St Andrews?” they ask. I say, “which course?” St Andrews is the name of the town, not the course(s). In the town itself the other courses besides the Old Course include the New Course, Jubilee Course, Eden Course, Strathtyrum Course, The Dukes, and the Balgove Course. All but the Balgove are within walking distance. In a few minutes by car one can find even more courses: Castle Course, Torrance Course, Kittocks Course, Saint Andrews Bay Course, and Kingsbarns Golf Links.
The closest course to the Old Course is the New Course. While the Old Course dates back to around 1400, the “New” Course opened in 1895. Yeah, that’s “new” alright. The New is literally next to the Old. You can miss a fairway on the Old and the ball may end up on the New, and vice versa. I don’t recommend that though, because the New is out of bounds if you are on the Old and vice versa.
New Course Overview
Old Tom Morris is the architect of the New Course. The new is a par-71 course which tips out a 6,625 yards, short by modern standards. The new has many very similar designs and feels as the Old does, but is a little more straightforward and less quirky.
The course rating is 72.8 with a slope of 127 from the tips. For those of you in the UK, the standard scratch score (SSS) is 73. The rating would make the New just a tiny bit tougher than it’s next door neighbor, the Old.
Tee
From the tee, the new presents some great challenges. The course can be a wee bit (as they say in Scotland) tight. Errant tee shots will be penalized by bunkers, deep rough and in the worst case, gorse. If you don’t know what gorse is count yourself lucky. Gorse is a very nasty dark green bush with thorns which feasts on a strict diet of golf balls and the occasional golfer. Going into the gorse after a ball is usually not a good idea, unless you like scratching the hell out of yourself and ripping your fine golf apparel to shreds.
Some tee shots can be intimidating
Given the shorter nature of this course and the typical hard ground, driver is not necessary on many of the par-4 or even par-5 holes. The longest par-5 is 518 yards. Once again, distance isn’t the most important part of the tee shot at the New. Accuracy is.
Fairway
The fairways can be tight on the New Course, but fairly flat in most places. If the golfer has managed to avoid the pitfalls mentioned in the tee description, the approach from the fairway is fairly straightforward.
Left rough approach on the 18th hole
If the golfer misses the fairway but avoids bunkers and gorse, the rough can be very thick and inconsistent. Difficult lies in the rough may be tempting for the golfer to hit the hero shot, but it is often wise to be more conservative and get the ball back into play.
Green
The greens at the New are quite different than the Old. They’re considerably smaller and less undulating but still guarded well via bunkering and adjoining gorse and rough areas.
Because of the smaller greens, the hard ground, and the ways the greens are protected by bunkering or natural obstacles, I find the greens at the New fairly hard to hit. This puts a premium on short game. A green reached in regulation is not an overly difficult two-putt proposition like the gigantic greens on the Old.
Amenities
The St Andrews Links Clubhouse is a very spacious and large facility featuring the pro shop, Swilcan Restaurant and lockers with showers. I’ve enjoyed a few meals in the Swilcan Restaurant and knocked back some refreshing beverages while overlooking the 18th green. Such a great spot.
St Andrews Links Clubhouse
Next to the clubhouse is a nice practice green for getting the feel and working on short game. There is no driving range. The nearest range is a bit of a walk or very short drive to the St Andrews Links Golf Academy.
Tip
The St Andrews Links Trust sells a few different great golf packages. I highly recommend purchasing a three-day or seven-day “ticket.” These packages allow the golfer to play unlimited golf in either three days or seven days on the six Links Trust courses other than the Old. In the middle of the summer there is so much daylight that a hardcore golfer could literally play 3-4 rounds in ONE DAY. I’ve done the 3-day twice now and loved it. In one day I played 18 on the the Jubilee, 18 on the New, and a relaxing 9-holes on the Strathtyrum Course.
Final Thoughts
The New is a fantastic links style golf course. It’s a great course on its own and serves as an excellent alternative or backup for times when the golfer is not able to get a tee time on the Old Course. Plus the cost is a fraction of the Old.
I highly recommend experiencing the New Course when traveling to St Andrews to play golf. The New provides a tremendous and satisfying links experience.
Related Links
Kingsbarns Golf Links Review
Balcomie Links Golf Course, Crail Scotland
Fairmont Hotel St Andrews Review
Ardgowan Hotel St Andrews Review
It is with great pleasure that I post to inform HOG patrons of a major HOG World Tour event taking place in July of this year. I’ll be heading to Scotland for a third time and checking out many new courses in the Scottish northeast. Courses on the list for that swing are Fraserburg Golf Links, Cruden Bay, and Royal Aberdeen.
Cruden Bay – Hole #8
Following those courses the HWT will be back in St Andrews for a third time. On the way south we will be stopping to to play Panmure at Carnoustie, then on to St Andrews proper. Courses on that list include the tremendous Kingsbarns Golf Links, the Old Course, the New Course, Eden Course, Castle Course, Jubilee Course, Strathtyrum, and Balcomie Links.
I’m thrilled. Not a day goes by that I don’t daydream about the upcoming July tour. I’m not in golf shape yet. I put on some insulation over this brutally cold and snowy winter. I look forward to getting into golf and walking shape and of course, getting my game ready for real golf. Links golf.
Not far from the Old Course in St Andrews, Scotland is a fabulous, authentic, old-world links course in the town of Crail called Balcomie Links. Balcomie Links is one of two courses on the property. The other course is Craighead Links which opened in 1998. Craighead Links was designed by Gil Hanse, one of today’s most popular golf architects, and the architect of the 2016 Rio Olympics golf course.
Old Tom Morris is the architect of Balcomie Links. Old Tom finished up Balcomie the same year he finished up the “New Course” in St Andrews, 1895. The course plays to a par of 69, and a total yardage of 5,861. If you are a yardage snob you’ll have to adjust a wee bit. Once you do, you’ll truly appreciate the splendor of this course and the overall par and length will matter not.
Fantastic Balcomie Golf Links in Crail, Scotland
Perfectly Understated
The personality of Balcomie Links is fantastically understated. The pro shop has to be the coolest shops I’ve ever seen. I imagine golfers sitting on this bench as children, learning to golf from mom and dad. They grow up sitting on this bench. They grow old sitting on this bench, and life is good for them. I’m envious.
Coolest Pro Shop in the World!
Location
Located a 20-30 minute drive from St Andrews, Balcomie Links is located on an unbelievable stretch of land which borders the North Sea. I can’t think of more than one or two holes which don’t have a view of the North Sea, and most of the holes are right on the water. If this course was in California it would give Pebble Beach a run for its money.
Pebble who?
In fact, the whole time we played the course my group of pals kept playfully looking around and saying “Pebble who?”
Tee
Tee shots at Balcomie Links are so enjoyable and fun. Tom Morris was quite creative with the layout, and there are tee boxes in some very interesting places. Some tee boxes are by old buildings (below), while others cross holes. Some are by mortar and rock OB walls that must be hundreds of years old.
Par-5 2nd Tee – “Ower The Knowe”
Fairway
The fairways at Balcomie links welcome golf shots and don’t provide too much penalty if they’re not perfect. The wide fairways provide an enjoyable walk, but on rare occasions present challenging angles and blind shots if the ball finds the wrong resting place.
Fairway approach to the double green on the 11th
Some fairways, in old Scottish links golf style, cross each other. Keep a keen eye open for other players and rest assured the locals who know the course will do the same for you.
Green
Due to typical high winds, the greens at Balcomie Links only run between a seven to a nine on the stimpmeter. In other words fairly slow. American golfers may be used to faster greens, so it takes a few strokes to get used to whacking putts that hard.
Forced carry to an elevated green with the North Sea in the background. Fabulous!
The greens are not severe, but are tastefully protected via bunkering and other hazards, like the North Sea! A few holes feature some strong elevation change approaching the green.
Crail Golfing Society
The town of Crail is the home of Crail Golfing Society, the 7th oldest golf club in the world. The clubhouse overlooks the links, with the beautiful blue water in the background. Crail Golfing Society was kind enough to allow us to enjoy their fine food and a wee pint following our round. One of the best meals I had on my last Scotland trip was accompanied by one of the best views, as seen below.
Room With A View – Crail Golfing Society – click for more
Final Thoughts
When trying to come up with words to describe the experience at Balcomie Links the first two which came to mind were “authentic” and “true.” Golf here is authentic, as are the people. There’s nothing gaudy or commercial here. Balcomie Links is about TRUE and traditional Scottish links golf and is uninfluenced by the outside world.
Boy is it a world I’d love to live in.
Related Links
See the whole gallery of Balcomie Golf Links images!
Carnoustie Golf Links Review
Kingsbarns Golf Links Review
Ardgowan Hotel St Andrews Review
Fairmont Hotel St Andrews Review
St. Andrews is my 2nd home. I’m so happy there. The golf, the history, the pubs, the people. No I didn’t mention the food. Four out of five ain’t bad… The “auld grey toon.” There’s no place like it.
Most of St. Andrews’ offerings for lodging, like the Ardgowan Hotel, are very old 2-3 story buildings with cramped space and tough access through tight doors and stairways. They’re just fine, and most are located walking distance from the Old Course.
Fairmont Hotel
The Fairmont Hotel offers something quite different than those old cramped rooms. Space. The Fairmont is a very large hotel a few minutes drive from the Old Course and about eight other courses. The hotel provides extremely spacious rooms and every amenity one might want or need when on a Scottish golf trip.
Fairmont Hotel – St. Andrews, Scotland – As seen from the Torrance Course – click to see full gallery
The hotel is located on the Scottish coast, featuring fantastic views. The property occupies some 520 acres.
Rooms
The Fairmont offers several different types of accommodations: Standard rooms available with four different views, five different suite configurations, two family style rooms, and manor homes.
Even the smallest offering, the standard room, has about 4-5 times the space of the smaller hotels in town. In fact, I’d venture to guess that the bathroom in my room at the Fairmont on my last golf trip to Scotland had more square footage than my room at the Ardgowan.
Warm and comfortable rooms at the Fairmont Hotel in St. Andrews
From the robes to the heated towel racks in the bathroom, the standard room amenities are but a dream compared to the old town’s offerings.
The manor homes, which I’d love to try out the next time I’m in St. Andrews, are stand-alone homes which are over 4,000 square feet. Perfect for a golf group.
Spa/Pool/Fitness
The Fairmont offers full spa treatments and unique packages which would come in handy after a long cold (yes it can be cold in Scotland) day on the links.
Hot tub and pool. I’ll be here next visit to St. Andrews!
I personally found the hot tub and swimming pool to be such a fantastic treatment for all the stiff muscles in my back and my aching lower body, a result of playing some 6-7 straight days of 36-holes. If you’ve never golfed in Scotland, there are no carts (buggies as they’re called in the UK). All golf is walked and the ground is as hard as Interstate 5. Your feet and knees WILL ache after a few rounds. Book it.
Food & Beverage
After a long day of chasing the white spheroid, a good meal and a “wee pint” are in order. The Fairmont has numerous culinary offerings and plenty of great places to enjoy a splash of scotch or a wee pint of Belhaven Best, a local brew I’ve come to love. My group spent quite a bit of time in the Kittocks Den & Bar, celebrating our triumphant shots on the Old Course, and lamenting over the not-so-triumphant ones.
May I help you? “Yes. A wee pint of Belhaven Best please!” Splendid
Each morning the hotel offers a fantastic breakfast buffet fit for a king, or a monarch. Check your Scottish history on that one. The dining area for breakfast was the gigantic atrium area, seen below.
Atrium area… Breakfast buffet
I think I could hit a full sand wedge and not hit the ceiling in the atrium.
Golf
Nearby golf courses include the Old Course, New Course, Kingsbarns, Castle Course, Srathtyrum Course, Eden Course, Jubilee Course, and Balcomie Links a short drive away.
To supplement the property and the great local courses, the Fairmont has two on-site courses, the Kittocks Course and the Torrance Course. I had the pleasure of playing the Torrance Course (pictured below), a wee combination of Scottish and American golf architecture. A mere walk from my room at the Fairmont, the on-site courses feature fantastic views of the nearby sea and the town of St. Andrews.
The Old Town serves as a backdrop for this approach shot on the Torrance Course
Conclusion
The Fairmont offers a different, more luxurious type of lodging and experience than the old salty rooms found in downtown St. Andrews. A far cry from a small room with a bed.
The hot tub alone is worth booking the Fairmont. It was a life-saver on the achy bones, which walked over 100 MILES of golf the last week I was in St. Andrews.
Yes, over 100 miles.
Related Links
Fairmont St. Andrews photo gallery.
Ardgowan Hotel review.
Kingsbarns Golf Links review.
Castle Course photo gallery.
Old Course photo gallery.
New Course photo gallery.
Carnoustie Golf Links review.
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