Nestled near the Campsie Hills north of Glasgow, the Allander course at Hilton Park Golf Club offers a rich blend of history and natural beauty. Opened in 1928 and designed by James Braid it represents a good example of Braid’s artistry of balancing challenge and fun.
The approach to the first, presents a typical view of this Allander course.
Set within an area of beautiful scenery of rolling hills and lush heathland greenery, full of flora and fauna, the course is nice just to walk around.
The par fours 5th on the Allander course, fully justified as the Stroke Index 1 hole.
I was particularly impressed by the friendliness of the PGA Pro, Ewan Grimes, who went out of their way to make me feel welcome. His knowledge and welcome were second to none, along with his stories.
Moly teeing off at the 15th on the Allander course at Hilton Park, a mid iron par three.
The course was in good condition. However, the drainage seemed poor, which was unexpected given the heathland conditions. Given the conditions there were several winter greens in play, which was a disappointment.
The tree lines framed many holes, but in fact the fairways were quite generous. Here at the par three 17th.
One of two courses at Hilton Park, the Allander is very much the secondary, shorter course. It would be worth playing though on in a fine summer day.
The Allander 18th hole, a mid length par four, with the impressive clubhouse.
So what do I think of using AI? It created a very bland and flowery draft, which was frankly difficult to take seriously. Clearly influenced by Golf Club websites, full of standard phrases ‘course for all all abilities’, ‘challenge for all’, etc etc, after editing it left me with no more than 4 meaningful sentences.
Price £45.
Discount: Golf Now, £15, against the Winter rate of £30.
Tough South Lanarkshire Council course in perennial danger of closing
Value – 4/5
Hollandbush Golf Club near Lesmahagow was founded in 1955 as a 9 hole course, later extended to 18 in 1963. Web searching “Hollandbush GC future” though will return articles about council funding woes; it’s highly likely this blog becomes redundant in future after the course closes. This will be a great shame, as Hollandbush represents a great example of a Scottish municipal course.
The free course planner, a surprising addition at this municipal course, worth playing
South Lanarkshire council operates 6 courses, in addition to Hollandbush, the other 18 holes layouts are Biggar, Langlands and Torrance House, plus two nine hole courses of Larkhall and Strathclyde Country Park.
The 17th at Hollandbush, a drivable par four, but with well positioned protective ditches
Hollandbush also has an independent golf club, providing members with competition and social benefits. This is a common feature of municipal courses in Scotland. This ‘club’ costs £115 annually.
The well maintained ditches shown here at the difficult par 4 12th hole.
Golf pricing is interesting. Annual golf membership for one of South Lanarkshire’s 18 hole municipals is £475, but for just £32 more you can play all 6 courses for £508. If you can make sense of that price differential, good luck! A green fee in peak season is £25, but the winter senior rate I paid was only £9, incredible value.
The 14th at Hollandbush, with one of the relatively few bunkers at this course.
The course is well designed; with constant changes of direction, the undulating fairways, regularly interspersed with well maintained ditches, provide a tough challenge. The slope rating of 129 from the yellow tees testifies to that, albeit it was a fairly generous course from the tee.
The greens were good at this municipal course, here seen at the 10th hole, a long par 3, one of the best holes on the course.
The course was well presented, especially given the wet conditions. I saw no-one else playing and the car park had only one other car, possibly owned by the clubhouse attendant. I think the council could reasonably consider “honesty” box payment to reduce its costs.
The second was one of several card wreckers at this well designed golf course.
I played pretty well, scoring 88, but with 4 blobs. I actually beat the course ‘1 up’, something which is a good measure of your game,
As to the name ‘Hollandbush’ it remains a mystery for me despite my efforts to find it’s origin.
It’s worth playing Hollandbush, a course I hope continues operating.
Little did I know as a member of Landsowne Golf Club in Bath in the early 2000s, how influential the Lansdowne name was for one of Scotland’s finest golf properties – Blairgowrie.
First tee at the 1970s designed Lansdowne Course. A difficult and long par 4. Designers Peter Allis and Dave Thomas didn’t provide an “easy James Braid opener”.
All three courses at Blairgowrie Golf Club have at one time been called ‘Lansdowne’ after the Dowager Marchioness of Lansdowne who initially leased land to the Club.
Fran playing into the par 3, 5th, green which was in great condition for a Winter’s day.
The current Wee Course, is where the original 9 hole “Lansdowne” course was. This was extended to 18 holes in 1927, but lasted only 3 years, when in 1930 another 9 holes were built and the new “Landowne” course opened, with the remodeled original 9 hole course becoming the Wee Course. In the 1970s, another 18 hole course was built, which became the current “Lansdowne”, with the1930s course renamed “Rosemount”, which is considered the “main” course.
The 10th, with well placed bunkering, a strong feature on this strong Lansdowne layout.
The history of how the three courses evolved in detail is brilliantly assessed by James Boon on Golf Club Atlas here. The initial designer was founding member, Major (Ret’d) Peter Chalmers, who had fought in Crimea in 1854 and was later wounded in action; he sought advice from both Old Tom Morris and Tom Dunn of the Dunn dynasty. A combination of Alister Mackenzie and James Braid did the late 1920s work, with Peter Allis and Dave Thomas creating the latest course. What is the collective noun I wonder for golf course designers? – ‘A bunker of architects?”
The 13th, where one can see the importance of missing on the right side of the green.
Like all the Blairgowrie courses, the course was in excellent condition, especially for a December day. In particular, the greens were fully in play and running true, meaning I holed most of my putts less than 6 feet. The greens themselves are less undulating than the Rosemount course, the latter being more influenced of course by Alister MacKenzie. The greenside bunkering is of professional layout standard, so best to ensure you stay out of them.
The pine avenue at the 17th on Lansdowne is characteristic of this fine property.
The course is tighter from the tee than its sister Rosemount layout, so consider a hybrid where distance allows. The tree lined fairways are well maintained so anything finding the trees means that balls are usually not lost.
Moly trying to get up and down on the last, a hole that will play more difficult that it’s SI 9 would suggest.
The excellent winter conditions meant the price of £25 is incredible value compared to the high season £140, perhaps it’s Scotland’s best winter discount?
Which brings me to a key question – just who was The Dowager Marchioness of Lansdowne?
Round List Price £140.Actual Paid £25 (Winter rate).
Moly’s Score – 81 for 39 points (off 15)
Course/Slope Rating (winter) 69.0/125
Course Type:Heathland
Par 69 (15 par 4s, 3 par 3s)
Distance (blue): c 5500 yards
Moly’s Lansdowne Scorecard- mats and forward tees, but still it’s an 81
One of the great clubs and excellent value in Winter
Value 3.5/5
Blairgowrie’s Pro explained many members lived quite far from the club, meaning competition days, Wednesday and Saturday, were incredibly busy. Therefore, playing Rosemount on the first Thursday in December, I anticipated a fast round, before finding myself behind one of those 4-balls – you know the kind – those avoiding eye contact!
The 5th, a typical tree lined hole on Rosemount. I was stuck behind a four ball, that steadfastly refused to acknowledge me. They were the rudest golfers I have ever encountered and did nothing to make Blairgowrie feel a welcome place for visitors.
Blairgowrie, or more correctly ‘Blairgowrie and Rattray’, is a twin burgh in eastern Perthshire, and a popular gateway town to the highlands. With a population of 9000, it has some quaint but dated shops. It also has a fine golf club with 3 courses, 2 of which are listed amongst the very best in the UK.
The impressive Blairgowrie clubhouse behind the difficult 400 yards plus 18th on Rosemount.
The Rosemount course (originally called the Lansdowne) is regarded by many as the jewel in the Blairgowrie crown; designed by the Yorkshireman, Dr Alister MacKenzie, in the 1920s, with further developments by James Braid and Donald Steele. Blairgowrie’s newer 18 hole course, with the inherited Lansdowne name, was designed in the 1970s by Peter Alliss and Dave Thomas. Both courses have been further updated by Scottish Designer, Graeme Webster.
The strong 17th hole, a par 3 of 163 yards; although not as “Plateau’d” as the holes name would suggest. Easy to three putt on this very large green.
‘Lansdowne’, was in fact the original name of the current 9 hole ‘Wee Course’, blogged here. This was the founding 1889 course at Blairgowrie, named after the Dowager Marchioness of Lansdowne, a local aristocrat. It is often cited as one of the best 9 hole courses in Scotland.
The 11th tee, a typical tee shot at this course, so much so I can understand why it could be considered monotonous.
The two main18 hole layouts are championship standard and the Rosemount course hosted the European Tour in the 1970s and 1980s. It was the venue of Greg Norman’s first European tour victory in 1977 with The Martini International on 11 under par with the South African Simon Hobday in second place.
The wonderful bunkering at Rosemount, seen here at the 2nd, a short par 4 of 340 yards, and one of the good birdie chances.
Set in a large tree encrusted heathland property the courses are easy walking, and more forgiving off the tee than what meets the eye. Many of the holes feel similar and with the forested surrounds, there are limited views. Depending on the time of year, this landscape could even feel like California or Portugal.
The course is a highly attractive amateur Open venue due to the ever increasing summer green fees, which are now £140 (2023), whereas the Winter fees are less than £40. Although I played off mats and forward tees, the greens were in play. Given the greens are part of the magnificence of the course, this represents excellent Winter value golf.
The 15th “Wee Dunt”, a lyrical, and potential ryme, for this tricky par 3.
I played very well, scoring 81, and therefore I may have to thank the four ball that slowed me down. Maybe that’s the secret – taking time and concentrating.
In summary, if you are looking for a golf course that combines history, beauty, and challenge, then you might want to visit Rosemount in Blairgowrie. Especially on a nice winter’s day.
Round List Price £140.Actual Paid £30 (Winter rate).
Moly’s Score – 81 for 37 points (off 14)
Course/Slope Rating (winter) 68.8/121
Course Type:Heathland
Par 68 (14 par 4s, 4 par 3s)
Distance (yellow): c 5500 yards
Moly’s 81 on Rosemount off their winter tees, but full greens
