Category: Loch Lomond, The Trossachs, Stirling & the Forth Valley (Page 2 of 3)

119. Aberfoyle. 5 Nov 2020

February 16, 2022 / Moly McMillan

A wonderfully understated golf course

Round £25. Par 66. Course Rating / Slope Rating (yellow) 64.1/115. Value (out of 5) – 5

From the endearing conversation with local members, to the beautifully crafted use of space and to meeting the challenge of some excellent holes, Aberfoyle golf course is an absolute joy, set in the magnificent surroundings of the Trossachs area of Scotland. It’s a must play and incredible Scottish golfing value.

**The 6th tee at Aberfoyle, with the typical scenic views of he Trossachs countryside.**
**Bend that right leg Moly!**

The course was established in 1890 with 9 holes and only extended to 18 holes in the 1980s, albeit it’s a difficult job trying to guess the original 9. It’s short in length, at well under 5000 yards from the yellow tees most people will use, but still has a slope rating of 115 despite only having 8 bunkers.

**My favourite hole at Aberfoyle – the short par four 4th, with tricky thin green from front to back.**

Set among the glens, the wind may make some of the longer par 3s and par 4s difficult to reach in regulation. Particularly so, for those holes played into the prevailing wind; the long par three 5th and par four 14th, well deserving of their stroke indexed 2 and 1 ratings.

**The approach shot into the first at Aberfoyle, is the first of several blind shots played at this course.**

The highlight of my playing was actually a bogie 4 at the 5th, after pulling a 3 wood tee shot into the heath on the left of the green and getting the ball miraculously onto the green with my second. It’s not always birdies that get remembered.

The most memorable hole, however, was the gorgeous short par four 4th hole. Again, played into the prevailing wind, it has a delightful thin green from ‘front to back’. The local guide, excellently displayed on the good club website, is well worth reviewing before play, with the advice on the 4th not to be tempted to go for the green from the tee, but rather play conservatively left with a mid iron, or hybrid, to leave an easy pitch up to the green.

**The lovely par three 10th hole at Aberfoyle**

The recent weather when I played had been horrendous and I was amazed at the great condition of the course, testament to the natural drainage and mindful greenkeeping. I can imagine the joy of playing Aberfoyle on an early or late Summer evening.

It is a tough walk tough, with several blind shots to encounter (the 17th was the most striking in this regard), so a yardage device is also recommended. There are also some holes that cross each other, something typical of the late Victorian courses. Some amalgamation golf course guides cite James Braid as the designer, but I didn’t get any confirmation of that on the list of courses on the Braid association guide. It would be interesting to know who the designer of the original 9 holes was.

**The beautiful scenery at Aberfoyle, displayed here at the 11th**

Golf is such a game of “what if’s” – on the day, mine were a triple bogie 7 on the 16th followed by an even worse 9 on the par four 17th having lost 2 balls. Other than those holes, I played pretty well.

It’s a great course Aberfoyle, well worth the journey. One trivial point – having paid £15 on-line using the clubs booking system, I turned up to find a sign on the closed clubhouse door saying “From 1st Nov, only £10”. Despite being a little peeved, this is still 5-star value!

Course Type: Heathland

Par 66 (0 par 5s, 12 par 4s, 6 par 3s)

Distance: 4767

Moly’s Gross score: 89

118. Callander. 4 Nov 2020.

January 25, 2022 / Moly McMillan

A course down on its luck, well worth playing, but this is no “Gleneagles” as its web site infers.

Round £24. Par 63. Course Rating / Slope Rating (yellow) 62.6/105. Value (out of 5) – 4

There is a well known equation for individual business success – “under promise and over deliver”. Why do some golf clubs get this completely inverted by “over promising and under delivering”. Callander Golf Club is a perfect example of this error.

**Callander golf club has seen much better days – its website is also living in the past.**

The club has clearly seen better days – the photo above gives a glimpse of the state of its infrastructure. The ‘temporary’ clubhouse was a shipping container. Its web site includes the following statements, some quoted from media outlets:

“Callander Golf Club is probably the most scenic golf course in the UK“,

“The charming and challenging 15th is one of the most famous par 3s in Scotland“,

“‘The Scotsman’ includes Callander … ahead of Carnoustie’s Championship Course.“

“‘Golf Monthly’ rated Callander among the top ten courses in Scotland for visitors, alongside Gleneagles, Turnberry and St. Andrews.“

These statements, collectively, are so wide of the mark – in my humble opinion of course! Just image a touring golfer, having played Gleneagles, Turnberry, St Andrews and Carnoustie, turning up at Callander expecting something similar.

**Callander’s 7th, one of the many short par 4s, this one called ‘Blind’ for obvious reasons off the tee.**

Please, don’t get me wrong, this is a really fun and lovely golf course set within the beautiful Trossachs area of central Scotland, with very picturesque surroundings, some great and memorable holes and in decent condition.

**The 6th at Callander, ‘Dell’, the most difficult of all the holes , in full** **Autumn colours**

The course was opened in 1892 as 9 holes designed by Old Tom Morris, then Willie Fernie extended it to 18 holes in 1914. Heady architects both.

This is, in particular, brilliant holiday golf. It’s short, at well under 5000 yards from the yellow tees. It has fairly generous fairways, not too many bunkers and relatively straightforward greens. There is an abundance of par 3s, with five on the back 9 alone, including the cute 15th, where play is through, or more likely, above a tiny channel between tall trees. It’s memorable, and one of those holes that demands straight hitting.

The Slope Rating of 105, gives most golfers the chance of posting a great score for 18 holes – that’s always nice.

**The 16th at Callander, with Ben Ledi in the background**

Its well worth playing – but don’t expect to be playing Gleneagles – the green fee will tell the true story, and to that extent it’s also a great course for serious golfers to play as well, in order to experience the great value golf Scotland has to offer. Scots are known for being honest, so lets set the record straight on the web site.

**The wonderful par three 15th – ‘Avenue’. But not as famous as, for example, the ‘postage stamp’**

On a very wet Autumnal day, with colours in late bloom, Fran and I had the course pretty much to ourselves. I played decent to shoot 80

Course Type: Parkland

Par 64 (0 par 5s (although 1 on the white), 10 par 4s, 8 par 3s)

Distance: 4470

Moly’s Gross score: 80

67. Bridge of Allan. 11th Oct 2017.

October 12, 2017 / Moly McMillan

A 9 hole course from bygone days worth experiencing.

Summary: Round £20. Par 33. Value (out of 5) – 4

There can’t be many golfers who play Bridge of Allan for the first time that find the par 3 1st green with their tee shot; less than 5% I suspect, probably much lower. It’s not that it’s the most difficult par 3 ever, it’s just also so unusual. It’s 223 yards up a steep slope (40% they say!), with a blind plateau green that has a dry stone dyke across the fairway about 30 yards in front of the green. Welcome to one of Old Tom Morris’ famous holes. Thankfully not all of Old Tom’s holes are as demanding as this, otherwise golf in Scotland may not be as popular as it is!

The very demanding first shot at Bridge of Allan – the long par 3.

Old Tom Morris designed this nine-hole golf course in 1895, in the affluent Victorian spa town of Bridge of Allan and the course has commanding views of the surrounding hills and countryside, including Ben Lomond, and also Stirling Castle which is only a few miles away.

According to the golf historian, Robert Kroeger, in his book ‘ The Golf Courses of Old Tom Morris’, Bridge of Allan is “the best preserved in that the layout and length of holes and greens are exactly the same as they were in 1895”. So for historical reasons alone, it’s worthwhile playing here, and that is why I’ve said this is a 4/5 for value.

Fine views from the 1st, which also shows the typical flat greens

However, I suspect the course will not be to everyone’s taste. Most of the holes have out of bounds (OOB) in play, mainly for the right handed hooker. OOB areas are also tight behind some greens, especially the 4th which also has a dyke in front of the green. There are hardly any flat lies as the course is so hilly. The greens are however pretty flat, which meant that when I played 2 greens were out of action due to being waterlogged. Of course, Old Tom mainly designed links greens, which naturally drain much better than parkland.

The semi-blind par 4 7th at Bridge of Allan

Old Tom makes much use of existing dykes which are in play on several holes and also blind tee shots by carefully using existing tree lines – this is especially true on the 6th and 7th holes, which need to be played more than once to get a feel for the line from the tee.

I had a difficult time on the day, including three 7s in my 13 over for 9 holes. My day was typified by hitting a magnificent drive (probably about 240 yards) at the 7th, but I never found my ball as it was very likely plugged.

The difficult par 4 8th, another uphill hole at Bridge of Allan

The course was very wet when I played which was a pity, but the fairways were in good condition. I think that it must take several rounds here to get used to the tricky layout. The highlight holes for me in addition to the 1st were the 4th, 5th and 7th.

Facts:

Course Type: Parkland

Par 33 (0 par 5s, 6 par 4s, 3 par 3s)

Distance (yellow): 2517 (9 holes)

Moly’s Gross score: 46.

Moly’s Bridge of Allan Scorecard – 46

53. Stirling. 19th Sep 2016.

September 22, 2016 / Moly McMillan

“Camera’s Please” at this historically located parkland course with outstanding views.

Round £45. Par 72. Value (out of 5) 4

If you play at Stirling remember to take a camera. There are spectacular views of Stirling, it’s castle and other historic buildings and of the Trossachs, Ochill and Lomond Hills, even the Southern Highlands (in clear weather!).

2nd tee at Stirling with views towards the historic town – the rounded turret of the gaol is evident.

Given Stirling’s strategic and historic location, it’s not surprising that golf was played in the area currently occupied by Stirling golf course, by King James IV, King of Scots, in 1505. There was no golf course as such, on what was historically a “Royal Park” dating back to 1200 and used for Hunting – perhaps worth reflecting on when you hunt for golf balls here:)

3rd at Stirling, a typical well defined hole on this course

The current course was established in 1869, and has been subsequently developed by some of golf’s aristocracy – in 1892 Tom Morris Junior designed a 9 hole layout; in 1904 Willie Fernie of Troon extended it to 18 holes; and in 1967 Sir Henry Cotton redesigned the course with significant tree re-planting which is now bearing full fruit.

The apex of the dog leg on the 9th, with fine hill views

The resulting golf course does justice to the views on offer and at well over 6000 yards, even from the yellow tees, will challenge your handicap to the full (see Moly’s card below for evidence!). Stirling is a classic layout, with both front and back 9s, each having a par of 36 with 2 par 3s and par 5s. There is also a really good level of architectural variety, in terms of uphill, downhill, dog-legs right and left. The course sits on a hill and this is therefore no easy walk, but it’s worth it.

One of my playing partners, Gordon, plays at the 11th with Stirling Castle in the background

The highlight holes for me were the dog-legs: the par 5 1st is a tough start, the 9th offers great hill views from the dog leg apex, and the par 4 15th, which is SI2, is the best hole on the course in my opinion requiring a 220+ yard uphill drive to give access to the plateau green. The only omission in the design for me is the lack of a 200+ yard par 3, although the par 3 8th, at 180 yards uphill, required a recovery or long iron.

The 15th at Stirling with the Castle in the background

The course was also in great condition when I played along with some former colleagues of the charity Apex (Scotland), which does so much good work helping people rebuild their lives after offending. Only downside was that the greens had been treated with sand, making putting very slow and different compared with my local links greens.

Stirling also has a nice club house, serving good food. Its well worth playing Stirling.

Some Facts

Course Type: Parkland

Par 72 (4 par 5s, 10 par 4s, 4 par 3s)

Distance yards: 6201 (yellow)

Moly’s Gross Score: 99

Moly’s Stirling scorecard – 99

Category: Loch Lomond, The Trossachs, Stirling & the Forth Valley (Page 2 of 3)

119. Aberfoyle. 5 Nov 2020

118. Callander. 4 Nov 2020.

67. Bridge of Allan. 11th Oct 2017.

53. Stirling. 19th Sep 2016.

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