Scotland Golf Bible

A guide to green fee value for money

Category: Heathland (Page 3 of 7)

160. Ladybank. 21 Aug 22.

January 15, 2023 /

One of Scotland’s highest rated heathland courses.

Round £120. Par 71. Course Rating / Slope Rating (white) 73.6/133. Value (out of 5) – 3.5

Moly’s score – 97

Fife has some of the world’s greatest links golf courses, but at Ladybank, only 15 miles west of St Andrews, you will find a heathland golf course rated in Scotland’s top 50. Used as a final qualifying venue for The Open, when hosted in St Andrews, Ladybank is a great test of your game.

The green at the first at Ladybank, a good par 4 of 373 yards, lets you know what you are in for.

The course is in an area called the Howe of Fife, a low-lying strip of land that follows the course of the River Eden towards St Andrews. This flat piece of land was mostly marshland and peat bog before 1800, and the village was originally named Lady’bog’ by the monks of Lindores Abbey from Newburgh.

The par four 5th, so characteristic of Ladybank.

For some unrecorded reason the railway station, built in the 1840s, was called Ladybank, after which time the village adopted this name. So the golf course can trace its name to a railway station.

The 10th at Ladybank, a par 3 of 172 yards, with the beautiful heathland terrain on show.

Unlike the station, which is one of the most unchanged in Scotland, the golf course has undergone an evolution. In 1879, 6 holes were laid out by Old Tom Morris, who being 58 was past his golfing peak but golf course design was becoming much called for. The course became 18 holes only in 1962, designed by Laurie Auchterlonie (son of Open Champion Willie Auchterlonie), but you wouldn’t be able to choose which was the most recent 9, because the course flows so well.

Kilsyth member Ian Carstairs driving at the 14th, a very strong par 4 over 400 yards.

It’s a classic low-lying heathland setting. Flat terrain, fast running sandy turf, set amongst pine and silver birch trees, with great natural drainage. The club’s emblem is a red squirrel, the heathland setting providing an ideal habitat.

April Carstairs hits her second shot at the par 5 13th hole.

I can understand why some people find such heathland settings a little repetitive , with most holes being tree lined, obscuring any surrounding landscape. In Ladybank’s case, this is more than overcome by spectacular greenside design, a number of subtle dog leg left and right holes, genuine par 5s and a strong set of par 3s. This is the type of course better players will have to choose which side of the fairways to avoid being short sighted into the green. It deserves the high slope rating of 133 from the white tees.

The 3rd, with its brilliant green, a difficult par 4. Leaving it a bit short was a good result.

Fran and I played in the Mixed Pairs event, one of several open competitions held at Ladybank each year. Open events are a great Scottish tradition, which started in the mid 1800s, at the embryonic time of golf’s domestic growth. We paid only £60 per pair, incredible value. The full rate for a round of £120 is, I believe, starting to price out most Scottish peripatetic golfers, hence the growing popularity of open competitions. We were paired with Kilsyth members, couple Ian and April Carstairs, and we had a great time playing in their company.

The 9th, so characteristic of Ladybank.

We played well collectively, with a better ball 68 (3 under), finishing 27th of 70 pairs. The course was suffering from the recent dry spell with fairways burnt and incredibly fast running. The greens were firm and very fast. Despite the abundent trees, they were well managed and balls could easily be found. If I was to play again I would take more notice to the distances to the flags, as there was quite a lot of dead ground, which coupled to the length of greens could make 2 or 3 clubs extra needed to what a shot might look like.

Worth playing Ladybank, a great open venue.

Facts:

Course Type: Heathland

Par 71  (3 par 5s, 11 par 4s, 4 par 3s)

Distance (white): 6616 yards

Moly’s Gross score: 97

Moly’s individually kept scorecard of 97, which contributed to Fran and his net 3 under for the Mixed Pairs Open at Ladybank.

157. Balfron Shian. 18 Aug 22.

January 6, 2023 /

Quintessentially Scottish

Round £25. Par 72. Course Rating / Slope Rating (yellow) 68.5/124. Value (out of 5) – 5

Moly’s Score – 92

Balfron is a substantial village of over 2000 people in West Stirlingshire, only 16 miles north of Glasgow. Surrounded by the Campsie Hills and the Trossachs, I can’t sum up the golf course better than the clubs own promotional video;

“Scenic, secluded, special“.

Typical August day in Scotland? Moly putts out on the 12th one of the easier par four holes at Balfron’s Shian course.

The first Balfron golf course was established in 1905, but returned to agricultural use in 1939 to support the war effort. In 1991 a group of villagers founded the Balfron Golfing Society and a 9 hole course was finally established in 1994, no doubt after a great deal of hard work. The course was extended to 18 holes in 2001. The Balfron Society named the course “Shian”, which in Gaelic means peaceful.

Moly gets ready to tackle the par five 15th, his only birdie of the day.

The herculean efforts of the society has resulted in a really fine golf course, which feels more mature than it is. With outstanding views, lush moorland and the “honesty box” wooden clubhouse this is quintessential Highland Scottish golf.

The quaint clubhouse where Fran and Moly enjoyed an ‘honesty’ cuppa and chocolate bar.

When Fran and I played on a cloudy day in mid August, there was only one other two ball game on the course. It was certainly ‘secluded’ and we, in turn, felt ‘special’, playing that beautiful game of ‘millionaires’ golf that occasionally comes your way.

Fran tees at the 9th, amidst the scenic ‘blooming heather’ West Stirlingshire surroundings.

It’s certainly worth going out of your way to play The Shian course. At only £25, it is excellent value, since the course in no way feels a “self help’ set up. The greenkeeper Kevin Wilkie and his small team are doing a great job, with teeing grounds and greens both first class. There is excellent use of the natural surroundings and good use of the burn that runs through the 15th and 17th holes, these two holes being the stand out architecture, reminiscent of the great architectures of Braid or Alastair McKenzie.

The burn running towards the 15th green, the par 5 of 513 yards.

The course designer has done well to seamlessly join the original nine and the newer holes. Plus, the greens are worthy of note, being both undulating and at times bemusing. Thankfully, it’s also an open driving course, with almost no fairway bunkers, therefore the slope rating of 124 reinforces the trickiness of the remaining features.

A typical aesthetically pleasing hole at Balfron Golf Society’s Shian course. The approach to the par four 8th hole.

All in all, this is great fun golf. To top it off, do plan to have an ‘honesty” tea and snack in the delightful clubhouse. This is the sort of course that visiting tourists playing the established courses should take time to discover.

The long par 4, 17th hole, a challenging hole. Don’t you just hate when you reach a long par 4 in two to then 3 putt for a bogie.

With only around 300 or so members paying under £400, its critical for visitor income to ensure courses like The Shian survive.

On the day, I played solidly for a 92 and 32 stableford points.

Facts:

Course Type: Heathland

Par 72  (3 par 5s, 12 par 4s, 3 par 3s)

Distance (yellow): 5859 yards

Moly’s Gross score: 92

Moly’s 92, a decent round on this delightful course

156. Airdrie. 17 Aug 22.

January 4, 2023 /

This true “Hidden Gem” is an absolute joy.

Round £30. Par 69. Course Rating / Slope Rating (yellow) 67.5/118. Value (out of 5) – 5

Moly’s Score – 97

When deciding to play all Scotland’s golf courses, I had no idea of the joy I would find from learning about Scotland’s geography and local histories, plus on the few occasions I would find a course that overwhelmingly surpassed my expectations. Airdrie is such a course.

Airdrie’s far reaching views, on show here at the 8th, a difficult par 3, played slightly uphill.

Scottish football fans are well aware of Airdrieonians, the club with the distinctive red ‘V’ embossed on its white football top. However, I would never have played golf in Airdrie, a town of some 40,000 people in the central part of Scotland, had it not been for my golfing ambition.

The pristine 10th tee at Airdrie, a 320 yard par four.

Along with neighbouring Coatbridge, this collective municipal ‘working class’ area is called “The Monklands”. As the name suggests, this land was used by the monks of Newbattle Abbey in West Lothian, who were granted charter over the land by King Malcolm in 1160.

The beautiful short third, “Virtue Well”, at only 130 yards, requires enough club, despite the drop from the tee, to avoid the visually hidden front burn. Clever design.

Dates can be both clues and conundrums. Airdrie is regarded as one of James Braid’s courses, albeit it was founded in 1877 when James was only 7 years old; no record could be found who laid out the original course.

Good use of internal OOB at the seventh, to the left of this dog leg left hole of 363 yards. The green is visible through the trees.

The golf course sits high over Airdrie which already lies 400 feet above sea level. The 14th, “Arran View”, tells its own story – Arran is 50 miles away to the east. Despite the altitude, there is surprisingly no “heathland” feel to the course, which I consider a “parkland” venue, albeit the club describe it as “woodland”.

The dog leg right 17th, at around 400 yards, presents a tough driving challenge – keep the ball left, to avoid the left to right sloping fairway taking the ball OOB.

The course is relatively short – it has one par 5 (the 9th) and four par 3s, but still has variety in abundance through the undulating layout, a number of dog legs (both right and left) and deceiving gullies. This course suits a player who understand their yardages. My gross 97, for 25 stableford points, suggests I need to get back on the driving range to assess my distances!

Moly playing into the par five 9th hole at Airdrie, which the club considers a “woodland” layout. Regardless of classification, this course is a beauty.

With brilliantly named holes, the course was in superb condition, especially the teeing grounds that made it feel higher quality. The greenkeeping staff are doing a great job.

Fran putts at the 11th, a par three, played downhill, with a “haa haa” fronted green. The beatiful greens on show.

Airdrie is a delightful golf course and, at £30, almost defines 5 star value. I paid only £20 through a Golfnow discount. There is something for everyone at this course, that is worth travelling to Airdrie for other than football.

Airdrie was in excellent condition, that this view of the 1st green and 2nd teeing ground shows.

Facts:

Course Type: Parkland/Heathland/Woodland?

Par 69  (1 par 5s, 13 par 4s, 4 par 3s)

Distance (yellow): 5530 yards

Moly’s Gross score: 97

Moly’s 97 at Airdrie, wasn’t great, but his enjoyment gained despite this score, is perhaps the greatest testament to Airdrie’s “Hidden Gem” status.

152. Forfar. 9 July 22.

November 8, 2022 /

Incredible and possibly unique golf course.

Round £50. Par 69. Course Rating / Slope Rating (yellow) 67.2/119. Value (out of 5) – 5

Forfar is an incredible golf course. Although I’m a native Dundonian and played football in nearby Forfar many times, I had never actually played the golf course – I had no idea what I’d been missing all those years. Whenever I’ve mentioned Forfar to my non-Scots friends, I always get “Forfar four, East Fife five!”. It should be famous for its golf course.

The 4th, ‘Cat Law, a tough par four, with Forfar’s terrain on show.

Having read many reviews of Forfar golf course, I was struck by the number of writers commenting on the unusual terrain – “it’s an ‘inland links'” said many.

The majestically bunkered 17th hole – this is typical of the views playing Forfar.

The geology is very marked. It has hummocks and undulations with so much similarity to a links. Look at the fairways, and it could be Scotscraig, near St Andrews. Look at the numerous Scots Pine, with the hilly surrounds, and it could be Boat of Garten in the Highlands. The wonderful heather and bunkered green surrounds, would make their way easily onto Lanark, Edzell or any number of the great heathland courses.

The blind tee shot at the par four 2nd hole.

I’ve played over 200 golf courses throughout the world, from the Monteray Peninsular, through the championship layouts of South Africa and Australia. Ryder Cup parkland courses and Open Championship links. Asian tour venues. Forfar is both like none of them and yet like all of them, simultaneously.

The green complex at the fifth, a challenging long par 3.

On land influenced by the remnant boulders of the last ice age, Forfar sits only 15 miles north of Carnoustie and 15 miles south of Glen Clova in the Angus Glens. The golf course has a lengthy history, claiming to be “the 4th oldest 18 hole course in the world and is the very first Club to have an 18 hole course from inception and inauguration”.  This latter comment is carefully contructed, since there are many earlier 18 hole courses, for example the Lundin/Leven Links (blog here) 18 holes dates to 1868, 3 years before the creation of Forfar.

The approach to the seventh, the par four, ‘Quarry’, SI 2 hole. Play long and right, if you can hit the green in 2.

The course was designed by Old Tom Morris, at a time when no major earth moving was done in course construction. So all that you walk on is natural. The green surrounds are at times genius, which makes sense since James Braid carried out a redesign in 1926, but the majority of the holes remained the same. Overall, its a beautiful golfing challenge.

The tricky 18th green to find from a blind approach shot. I was lucky to choose the right club, to get my 3rd birdie of the day. Very unusual for me!

Despite having a few weaker holes, notably the par three ninth, there are many that are memorable. When we played on a calm, July day, the course was in great condition. The fairways were dry and fast running, the turf was firm, the greens slick, the bunkers consistently first class and the teeing grounds all excellent.

The wonderful 12th hole, the SI 1 hole on the course. A par four of 422 yards (yellow).

Value for money is undoubtedly 5 star, at the £50 mid-week rate; we paid only £20 through a Golfnow ‘hot deal’ for a Saturday twilight time. In fact, unbeatable golfing value.

The 10th, a mid length par 4, where storms had left their mark with a loss of trees.

If I had to select only 10 courses that collectively represented the range of golf in Scotland, Forfar might just be be my number one pick, it is that unique. As to its overall ranking, it regularly appears in the “Top 100” Scotland courses, typically around 70th place. This doesn’t do it justice for me, I think it’s easy to justify a top 50 placing.

I can’t recommend Forfar high enough.

Facts:

Course Type: “Inland Links?”

Par 67  (1 par 5s, 13 par 4s, 4 par 3s)

Distance (yellow): 5754 yards

Moly’s Gross score: 84

Moly’s Forfar scorecard – a commendable 84. 3 birdies and 3 triple bogies!
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