Scotland Golf Bible

A guide to green fee value for money

Category: The Kingdom of Fife (Page 1 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.

150. Pitreavie (Dunfermline). 7 July 22.

October 21, 2022 /

Foreshadows of Augusta at Dr Alister MacKenzie’s only Fife creation

Round £30. Par 70. Course Rating / Slope Rating (yellow) 68.8/134. Value (out of 5) – 5

Paul Brookes, the professional at Pitreavie GC asked me, “Name an architect that has three courses consistently in any list of the world’s top 100 courses?”. He was, of course, speaking about the courses Augusta National, Cypress Point and The West Course at Royal Melbourne, all creations of Dr Alister MacKenzie. Paul could even rephrase the question to be “in the top 10 or 20 best courses ever built”, such is the regard for these designs.

The ‘camoufleur’ skill of Alister Mackenzie on show at the par three 3rd hole. A brilliant golf hole.

You could spend a lifetime, and a fortune, trying to play all of these top 10 world courses; however, you can get a glimpse of MacKenzie’s skill by playing Pitreavie in Dunfermline for no more than £30. Pitreavie is one of only three courses in Scotland fully designed by MacKenzie, the other two being Hazlehead Municipal in Aberdeen and the Eden course at St Andrews.

Moly tees it up at the fifth hole, one of the more scoreable par 4s on Pitreavie.

Born of Scottish parents, MacKenzie was in fact a Yorkshireman. His Scottish name must have been handy though in the early 20th Century US golf growth period, at a time when many of the great Scottish designers, such as Donald Ross (Pinehurst) and Tom Bendelow were making great advances.

The very wide and narrow 12th green at Pitreavie, a downhill par 3 of only 135 yards. A great hole. The entrance is from the right of this picture.

After two par fives to start, the third is the first real glimpse of MacKenzie’s skill. A long par three, it is the stroke index 2 hole, with a teeing ground almost 65 yards long giving many distance options. But looking at the hole you can’t readily see how hazardous it is. Medical army doctor MacKenzie had specialised during the Boer war and then WW1 to become a camoufleur, a specialist in camouflage. He was to later note the similarities between camouflage and golf design. At the 3rd, there is a hidden burn running across the front and up the right of the long multi level green. It is a formidable ‘camouflaged’ hole, as your eye is drawn naturally to the green tiers.

The third, the most beguiling of par 3rd at nearly 200 yards. I can imaging even low handicap players playing as a 2 shot hole.

This clever use of the burn is brought into play on several more holes, notably the par threes 6th and 12th holes, and most cunningly at the par four 13th hole, the Stroke Index 1. When you play Pitreavie, keep in mind the use of Ray’s Creek at Augusta, especially at the front of the 13th green. It’s the symmetry between both 13th holes, at Augusta and Pitreavie, that adds to the story.

The wonderful par four SI1 13th hole at Pitreavie. Have a close look at the course map (top right) at how the burn cuts into the green, but is completely unseen from the approach (bottom right). You can see my ball in the top left picture!

Another feature of the course is the undulating terrain. This gives rise to the question about how closely did MacKenzie follow his own 13 principles of course design published in Golf Architecture (1920). “The greens and fairways should be undulating, but there should be no hill climbing”, also “There should be a minimum of blindness for the approach shots”. Whilst there are several blind tee shots, there are indeed no blind approach shots; however, I’ll leave readers to find out about how tough a walk it is in places!

I met up with local members, father and son, Ian and Dean Black. Ian on the left here, with both shown playing into the 17th green.

The course was in great condition when I played. The sand in the bunkers was perfect, often an overlooked part of parkland maintenance. There are also outstanding views from several tees, towards the Queensferry Bridge.

The fairways were fairly open, which reinforces the difficulty of the green surrounds that contribute to the slope indices well into the 130s for both white and yellow tees.

I met up with local members Ian Black and his son Dean, and we enjoyed a few holes together, and I listened to how they were very happy with the course and how good value the membership was.

The beautiful 18th green at Pitreavie, adhering to Alister MacKenzie’s design principles.

I played well, shooting 89 for 34 stableford points, with only one blob/disaster at the 10th, where I took an 8 at one of the few dog leg holes.

As to value, although there are a few weaker holes, to be able to experience some of MacKenzie’s genius at no more than £30 (I paid only £17.99 on Golfnow) means 5 out of 5 for me. This is outstanding value and highly recommended.

Facts:

Course Type: Parkland

Par 70  (2 par 5s, 12 par 4s, 4 par 3s)

Distance (yellow): 5781 yards

Moly’s Gross score: 89

Moly’s Pitreavie scorecard – 89 for 34 stableford points.

140. Canmore. 20 May 22.

August 4, 2022 /

‘Municipal’ feel course, with an Amen Corner worth playing

Round £25. Par 67. Course Rating / Slope Rating (yellow) 65.9/124. Value (out of 5) – 3.0

When you look at the economics of Scotland and its number of golf courses, it’s little wonder that courses have closed regularly over the year. Put simply, there is not the GDP to sustain the highest number of courses per capita in the world (for countries with more than 200 courses).

The par four 5th at Canmore, a typical looking hole at this Dunfermline course.

Canmore, is one of those courses that over time is at threat, in my opinion. Sited in the Headwell area on the north of Dunfermline, there are about a dozen courses within a 10 mile radius, a number of which are much better, such as Pitreavie. Although competitively priced with a headline rate of £25 for a peak season round and with Golfnow rates available, I paid only £16, other than a few holes it was a rather forgetful experience.

The green at the difficult par four 10th hole.

Founded, apparently, on its present site in 1902, Canmore is a parkland course at just over 5000 yards long. It actually doesn’t feel that old a course, and without any history on its web site, it’s difficult to find any background context, including its designer.

There is however, a very difficult set of holes around the turn, which are worth testing your game against.

The 9th, a dog leg par four of 371 yards, has a ditch in play for the long drivers and worthy of being stroke index 4.

The 10th, played into the prevailing wind is a more difficult hole (in my opinion), with out of bounds all the way down the left of a sweeping horseshoe shaped hole – keep right at all costs.

The 11th, the signature hole, must be a banker for home matchplay games, with the yardage of the second shot, played over a marker post to a sunken hazard surrounded green, being critical to judge. A bogie is a good score at this SI 2 hole, I really couldn’t work out why it wasn’t SI 1.

The 11th the signature hole, a par 4, at Canmore.

Finally, the 12th, is a really challenging long par 3 (nearly 200 yards), played uphill to semi blind green.

The course was in okay condition when I played, albeit all areas could have been mown, a mark of understaffing on greenkeeping.

The long par three 12th hole, the end of the treacherous stretch of holes

This is not a course that will attract many holidaying tourists, and I wouldn’t be recommending going out of your way to play here. At just over £500 for an annual membership, its probably a decent course if you like your local golf and tend not to travel around.

On the day, I shot 90, for 28 points, and did well to overcome two 7s at the par fours 5th and 6th holes. Plus, I didn’t blob any of the tough stretch which I was very pleased with indeed.

The difficult par three 4th hole, with clubhouse in view.

Other than its Amen corner (9-12), this feels like a standard ‘municipal’ course. I was made very welcome by the staff in the pro shop.

Course Type: Parkland

Par 69 (0 par 5s, 13 par 4s, 5 par 3s)

Distance: 5214 (yellow)

Moly’s Gross score: 90

Moly’s scorecard at Canmore – a 90 for 28 points.

139. Balbirnie Park. 19 May 22.

August 2, 2022 /

One of the top parkland courses in Fife

Round £50. Par 71. Course Rating / Slope Rating (yellow) 69.3/126. Value (out of 5) – 4.0

Most people who live on the East Coast of Scotland, will know of Markinch as a railway station on the main Aberdeen to Edinburgh line. Like me, they may have passed through here hundreds of times, but never stopped.

Markinch actually had its own town sited golf course in the first half of the 20th century, but it closed just after the second world war due to disrepair; however, I understand that the “golf club” retained some sort of existence playing at other nearby courses.

The challenging par four 3rd hole. A dog leg right, of only 327 yards (yellow), yet the SI 6 comes from the hazardous green complex. Par is a very good score here.

During the 1960s the Glenrothes Development Corporation purchased Balbirnie Estate, located between Glenrothes and Markinch, which had been owned by the Balfour family for almost 300 years. They commissioned a golf course, which Markinch GC leases.

The former Balbirnie estate house is now also a 4-star hotel, which is close to, but separately managed from, the golf club.

A characteristic layout, here at the 13th at Balbirnie Park, a shortish dog-leg (left) yet one of the tougher holes, this time dominated by the tee shot.

The current 18 hole course opened in 1984, and is set in a substantial wooded area, in two loops of nine holes, at well over 6000 yards, this undulating course is a tough walk. It is a balanced layout, with trees almost always in play, other than some of the par 3s, with the front nine being slightly shorter mainly due to having only one par 5.

Fran driving at the uphill mid to long iron par three, the best of the short holes at Balbirnie Park.

It has been well designed by Fraser Middleton, a relatively unknown architect, who surprisingly has only 2 other courses I could find on his CV – West Lothian and Hounslow in West London, what an interesting threesome of courses?

The raised green at the par four 9th hole, a strong end to the front nine at Balbirnie Park. You come in from the right here, the left part of the picture is to the first green

The abiding architectural characteristic I picked up on, was that at least half of the holes had either dog legs or blind tee or approach shots – some all three. This necessitates a good appreciation of your yardages and access to a hole planner is useful. It was especially pleasurable, therefore, to play with the same ball, not a common occurrence. This contributed to my decent score of 91, net 75, for 4 over my handicap of 16. A very good score for me on a windy, but warm, day.

The tight tee shot at the long par four 12th hole, the SI 1 hole.

The course was in superb condition, the only note of criticism I could give was the fringes of the bunkering was a little tired. The teeing grounds were delicious.

The par three eleventh green, typical of the rather open par threes, the weakest part of the layout – as can be seen, make sure you play long here.

In a land of Links, Balbirnie Park golf course may arguably be the best parkland course in Fife; albeit the ‘best parkland’ list might also include The Dukes (at St Andrews), Aberdour and Dunfermline (Pitreavie), all great courses.

The rather austere clubhouse at the fine finishing hole at Balbirnie Park. Beware the blind second shot, as the burn in front of the green is reachable for even mid handicaps players. I luckily reached the tree, leaving a simple chip for a birdie chance (missed!)

Nevertheless, this is easily in the top 50 parkland courses in Scotland, and represents good value at £50, but using the great offers on Golfnow I managed to pay just £22, an almost 60% discount, so really 5 star value if you get one of those last minute rates.

Moly’s approach at the 16th, a difficult par four and SI 3.

I suspect the pricing is depressed a little due to the distance Glenrothes is from both the St Andrews area, and Edinburgh. This benefits greatly those going to play here.

Course Type: Parkland

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

Distance: 5957 (yellow)

Moly’s Gross score: 91

Moly’s scorecard at Balbirnie Park – a 91 at one of the top parkland courses in Fife.
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