Avoid Wednesdays and Saturdays!
Summary: Cost £10 (winter). Par 32. Score 43. Value (out of 5) – 3.5.
Detail. Blairgowrie has a population of 8000, it has some quaint but dated shops, certainly no high street coffee branded shops here. It does however have a fine golf club with 3 courses, 2 of which are listed amongst the very best in the world, laid out by the renowned James Braid! Blairgowrie epitomises the wonderful conundrum of Scottish golf.
The weather looked good and I set off after being advised during a quick telephone call that the Lansdowne course was free for several tee times around mid-day. However, as it turns out, Wednesday and Saturday are the days traditionally the members play en mas, and when I arrived the tee times were taken. I therefore settled for playing the Wee Course, and it turned out fine. But the message for visitors is avoid Wednesdays and Saturdays.
“The Wee”, is a lovely little 9 hole course (5 par 4s, and 3 par 3s), with ample lush fairways (they get their fair share of rain in Blairgowrie!) set in very mature woodland. Other than the 416 yard 8th, the par 4s are short and require accuracy, not length, from the tees, especially as some are dog legs where a driver will out-run of fairway. The bunkers have soft sand and were well raked, and the greens were big for a 9 hole layout.
The 2nd hole, a dog leg right, has a green protected by 2 magnificent trees making the approach an interesting challenge. Much easier to play in winter with less leaves!
2 trees guarding the 2nd green
However, the most intriguing hole was the par 3 7th, where you must trust your yardage as there is an unseen valley full of bunkers in front of the green.
Hidden Greens in front of 7th green
I had a disaster on the par 3 4th, where I pulled both tee shots well left, and ended with a 7. That actually sums up Blairgowrie – stay out of the trees to have any chance of scoring well. I look forward to tackling the Rosemount and Lansdowne courses, both championship quality.
News of the Day: Dennis Rodman, the US former basketball player, has apologised for angry comments he made about a US man detained in North Korea. Rodman is the most high-profile American to meet the young North Korean leader Kim Jong-un , who he describes as a friend. Bizarre!
Key Facts
Course Type: Heathland
Green Fees:
May – Sep; £30.00 per day; Winter £10 for 9, or £15 for 18.
Par 32 (5 par 4s, 4 par 3s)
Distance: 2373 yards
Moly’s Gross score: 43
Blairgowrie “Wee” scorecard
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