Spectacular natural links, but undermined by misleading branding.
Round £100. Par 70. Course Rating / Slope Rating (yellow) 70.3/126. Value (out of 5) – 3
Moly’s score – 91
Golfers often stand on a tee and ask “Where’s the green?”. On Montrose’s first tee, I can imagine a newcomer to links golf asking “Where’s the course?”.
The expanse of links land on view from the Montrose 1562 first tee, albeit in 1562 there would have been no course in this view!
Montrose’s 1562 layout is one of the most natural of all links courses, and as such should be a priority for those wanting to experience this form of the game at its most basic.
Bear in mind the prevailing wind is left to right at this very formidable tee shot at the second on Montrose. Like many, I suspect, I found the brilliantly positioned left hand fairway bunker. I don’t think there can be many holes where the right hand side OOB starts to your left?
Formerly named the Montrose Medal, the ‘1562’ label has only been used since 2018; ‘1562’ derived from the claim that golf has been played on the land from that year. The current course’s story and location actually begins in the 1860s, and evolved over a 50 year period during which a number of legends, starting with Old Tom Morris and ending with Harry Colt who designed the existing course in 1913. Colt had laid out the Montrose Broomfield course a few years earlier (My earlier blog here). So in fact, the more ‘junior’ of the two Montrose courses, ‘Broomfield’, actually pre-dates the ‘1562’ course!
Frank Crowe playing a typical links shot with the putter from well off the 6th green, with the poor fairway condition on show.
Like a number of Scottish Links, there were several different golf clubs that played on the same course, often in club matches versus each other, but sadly only two of them – Royal Montrose Mercantile and Montrose Caledonia – still exist and can be used by visiting golfers.
Brian Fearon putts onto the par three 12th green, one of the holes on the east-west spur away from the coast. Looked over by Gordon Samson
The course is a really honest test of links golf, set on the robust and fast running links land of the Angus coastline. There are six northbound coastal holes, starting from the daunting 2nd, then turning back south for a couple of holes, before an east to west and back gorse-laden spur from holes 10 through 15.
The par three 16th, a very difficult hole. Arguably plays like a par 4, in the prevailing wind.
The par three 16th and par four 17th are then two holes that are good enough for the Championship course of Carnoustie; fitting, as Montrose has been used as a Final Open Qualifying venue. Many a good round will have been destroyed on those late holes.
The characteristic feel of the Montrose 1562 course, here at the “Valley” 8th hole.
Unfortunately, when I played alongside 3 of my former Apex trustees, for the inaugural “Apex Trophy”, the course was not in great condition. We encountered the ‘choice’, but very accurate, language of a few local members of this hardy Angus town, mid way between the cities of Dundee and Aberdeen. I was ‘telt’ by an old guy (in his 80s, fully adorned in football colours) that “Son, the course is in its worst …… state I’ve ever seen and I’ve been a member for more than 50 years!”. It was certainly not conditioned good enough for the £65 twilight round fee, never mind the £100 daytime fee.
Moly teeing it at the final hole, one of the easier holes at Montrose.The original course was off to the left of this hole.
Nevertheless, the bunkers and greens were decent, and the quality of the layout and challenge was never in doubt, with the yellow tees still presenting 6137 yards in length. A strong wind would undo any golfer here.
I played pretty well for 91, but this was nowhere near good enough for the trophy with Gordon Samson shooting an excellent 83 (40 points), and will be severely cut for the next trophy outing!
High architectural pedigree at this well rated, but over priced, course that is a tale of two very different surrounds. Is this a camel I wonder?
Round £75. Par 68. Course Rating / Slope Rating (yellow) 69.8/119. Value (out of 5) – 3
Sometimes expectation can get the better of you. I’d read that Longniddry, one of the courses along the so called “golf coast” of East Lothian, had been designed through its evolution by no less than four of the worlds best course architects.
Gordon at the first. Lucky to miss the bunker off the tee, he sadly played his second into trouble to the left (see the bushes!). Always a great start:(
Harry Colt laid out the initial design in 1921, with subsequent adjustments by James Braid, Philip Mackenzie Ross and, finally, Donald Steele. That’s quite a pedigree.
Sir Alec Issigonis, designer of the original Mini motorcar, said, “a camel is a horse designed by committee.” The meaning was intended to convey how groups can be an ineffective method of development. Alternatively, “Too many cooks..” could also be used, in the same context.
Brian, again displaying his well coached follow through, here at the par three 6th hole, surrounded by greenside bunkers. I think all 4 of us might have been bunkered here – teamwork:).
These comments came to the fore of my mind when playing Longniddry, along with three good friends with whom I had worked with at Apex Scotland, a not for profit organisation dedicated to supporting people with convictions find work and improve their lives.
The plateaued 5th green, with bunkering awaiting the misjudged approach shots.
Set in the affluent village of Longniddry, only 20 minutes by commuter train to Edinburgh, the course occupies a relatively contained acreage, and has many £1m++ houses adorning several fairways. It is a heavenly place to reside for golfers. But the impression is that Longniddry is not a stuffy place, and one of the few “Golf Coast” upper rated courses that allow booking and discounts through the Golfnow app. That is to be applauded, but it can backfire a little; after booking a round at £75 a head with the clubhouse, I found out about a week before that tee times very close to ours were available at only£50 – on phoning up to challenge our fees, it must be said the club responded well. I do recognise the difficulty for clubs, especially when third party marketing app tee time pricing is sometimes controlled by the club, sometimes by the app marketers direct.
Frank putts out on the 173 yard uphill par three 13th, with backdrop of the Firth of Forth.
The course is very interesting. It has wide fairways, making for a relatively straight forward game off the tees, especially as the fairway bunkering is not as penal as some of its Lothian neighbours. The green surrounds are at times a real challenge, especially at the four par threes, where I lost count of the number of greenside bunkers. Unfortunately, the bunkers were still suffering (sic) from the Pandemic, like much of the population. If you plan to play Longniddry, spend a bit of time practicing your bunker play.
The par four 11th hole at Longniddry the start of the more ‘links’ feeling holes.
The fairways were fairly decent when we played on a lovely late September day. But the teeing grounds needed a little more care. The greens were good and clearly well watered.
The layout is a tale of two quite different environs. The course was created largely by carving out an area from the Boghill Wood, and holes 5 through 10, in particular feel like a woodland course. From 11 onwards the course opens out into a much more traditional links land layout with most holes with gorse in play.
The tough par four 7th hole at Longniddry, in the tree lined section of the course – stroke index 1.
The course is quite long at over 6000 yards from the yellow tees, given that it is a par 68. The real question I have, architecturally, is why none of the renowned architects after Colt said, “what about extending a couple of longer par 4s to make par 5s”, getting the par to (say) 70. Without this, you are left with 14 par 4s, with precious few birdie opportunities for the higher handicappers. The 17th/18th, both challenging par 4s of well over 400 yards, could relatively easily be altered, as could the long par four 3rd at 450 yards. I’m certain it must have been a debate down the years.
The short 16th hole with some of the residences of the well heeled in the background – I suspect that’s envy on my part?
The stoke indices also seemed to not reflect the difficulty. For example, the well bunkered par 3s, being labeled as the 4 easiest holes (not so, surely!), and the last, a long par 4 at 420 yards (yellow) being only stroke index 12? It would be intriguing to get the membership views on this.
There were two stand out holes for me:
> The 5th, a dog leg left par four of only 320 yards, with the approach played to a green on a plateau fronted by two mass grave like bunkers. Stay well right with the drive, and commit to at least one extra club on the approach. Its the most un ‘links’ like hole.
The cleverly designed par four 14th hole, where the burn comes into play for all but the longest off the tee. Good green complex.
> The 14th, a difficult par four, where only the long hitters can confidently drive over a ditch at around 200 yards, but the downhill fairway means that even a hybrid might run into the ditch. Then the approach is uphill to a carefully set green with difficult slopes.
The nice clubhouse awaits at the 18th – a demanding finish, more difficult than the SI of 12, in my opinion.
I played pretty well. After a 10 at the ninth, having been in trouble on both sides of the fairway, I came back in 41 (7 over), to actually win our small stableford competition. The winner was meant to get their meal paid for after by the other 3, but a number of my colleagues had to rush off, quashing my opportunity to milk any praise. But I’ve not forgotten!
Finally, going back to the camel proverb. A camel is actually a highly efficient design for its environment, in which horses would soon die. You can make your own mind up about the course being a camel or not.
Finally, finally. It is reported that Mary Queen of Scots played in the area of Longniddry. But how so, I say, when the location of the course was previously the Boghill Wood?
Course Type:Parkland/Links
Par 68 (0 par 5s, 14 par 4s, 4 par 3s)
Distance: 6052 (yellow)
Moly’s Gross score: 90
Moly’s Longniddry scorecard – a 90 with an excellent 41 on the back 9; but, a 10 on the 9th!.
This oasis might be the cheapest Harry Colt course in the world?
Round £40. Par 69. Course Rating / Slope Rating (yellow) 68.1/127. Value (out of 5) – 5
Drive through Dalkeith, which might appear a bit drab, and through the car park of Newbattle GC and you are met with a graceful parkland layout, with many magnificent trees, that just seems so unexpected. The course is an easy walking affair, other that the 2 holes (2nd and 17th) that play across the river esk valley that sits between the opening and closing holes and the rest of the course. With a substantial club house, this makes Newbattle a great venue for a group or society day out.
The delightful 17th at Newbattle, a par 4, stroke index 4, which must be a formidable match play hole.The River Esk is just visible, and never comes into play.
We know about the genius of some golf course design; the majestic Augusta of Alister McKenzie, the natural beauty and guile of The Old Course, the brutal nature of Pete Dye’s Ocean Course at Kiawah Island. Sometimes though, great golf course design is difficult to put your finger on.
When I played Newbattle, in Dalkeith near Edinburgh, it felt great, not because I played well, not because the weather was nice, but because ‘it just did’. It was almost indescribable why the course flowed so well and that I think is real genius. That was what Harry Colt design can be.
The very well bunkered par three 11th hole, ‘Roundel’, at Newbattle.
Although the Newbattle club was formed in 1896, the current full 18 hole course, the Colt legacy, was built in Dalkeith in 1934. Originally linked to Dalkeith Golf Club (1880), it’s called Newbattle as it’s within the historic boundary of Newbattle Abbey, a Roman Catholic monastery, and a key part of the Scottish religious story.
The tee markers, here at the 9th, are typical of the small yardage differences at Newbattle
When Fran and I played on a delightful mid summer day, the course was very busy, but never seemed to get back logged. The tees, fairways and greens were immaculate, with the bunkers still unraked due to the ongoing Covid Pandemic.
After pulling my opening drive about 2 yards out of bounds left, then hitting my second ball over the back of the first green, that turned out to be my only ‘blob’ in returning an 89, for 35 stableford points. If it were a competition though, it wouldn’t have troubled the scorers on this ideal day for golf.
The approach to the 13th at Newbattle, with Arthur’s Seat in the background
Play aside, this is a great little course well worth playing as part of an East Lothian tour. In terms of East Lothian value for money, it must be near the top of the pile. It’s certainly underrated in my opinion. The stand out holes for me, were the 5th, a long par 4, and easily the Stroke Index 1 hole and the long par 3 14th hole. To score well though, you need to avoid the clever and penalising bunkers.
The relatively easy finish at Newbattle, except if you find the copse of trees beside the green
There is an argument to say Harry Colt, the main contributor to many of the world’s great courses, including 3 on the Open Championship rota (Muirfield, Royal Liverpool, Royal Portrush), is the foremost designer of his age. I think Newbattle might just be the cheapest green fee of the more than 100 courses designed in whole or part by Colt.
This flat and featureless links is a poor Montrose companion
Round £25. Par 66. Value (out of 5) 2
Golf was first recorded on the Montrose Links in 1562 which makes it the fifth oldest links in the world; only at St Andrews has golf been played continuously longer on the same land.
First at Montrose Broomfield – a typical hole on this flat course.
Montrose is therefore heaped in golfing history, but whilst the Medal course can lay claim to historical greatness, one should not get over enthused by its smaller neighbour – the Broomfield course. It was originally a 9 hole course laid out in 1907, and then extended to 18 by the renowned architect Harry Colt, during a time when he was significantly altering the Medal course, one of his earlier golfing works.
The 9th green on The Broomfield close to the Montrose town.
The Broomfield is a short and pretty flat links course, which will vary in difficultly wholly dependent on the wind. At only 4822 yards from the common white/red tees, this is a course that is within reach of most golfers, and there are several birdie opportunities, evidenced by my score of 79, the first time for several years I have broken 80, including birdies at the par 4 1st and 15th holes. I was playing off my new handicap of 17:)
The secret of good scoring was keeping the ball on the fairway, and avoiding the relatively few, but deep, bunkers, plus avoiding the small burn that came into play on the 3rd, 4th and 13th fairways and in front of the 5th and 12th greens.
The 11th on The Broomfield, one of the few more defined holes.
When I played the greens were in good condition, but the tees were in need of more care – the fairways were typically dried out allowing significant roll, meaning approach shots had to be judged carefully.
Par 3 17th at The Broomfield in Montrose
The highlights for me were the holes played towards the town, namely the 9th and 15th, which give a real sense of the historical closeness between the people and golf. There were also a couple of holes, the 8th and 11th, which being more enclosed by surrounding shrubs, making them more memorable.
In summary, Broomfield is a good course to learn the game, or for a warm up before playing the Medal, but not worth going out of your way to play on its own.
