Scotland Golf Bible

A guide to green fee value for money

Page 18 of 45

111. Powfoot. 23 Sep 2020.

December 2, 2021 /

Great value James Braid course well worth playing

Round £50. Par 71. Course Rating / Slope Rating (yellow) 69.5/126. Value (out of 5) – 4.5

If I were to list 5 courses, of varying price points and quality, to encapsulate Scottish golf, Powfoot might fit the bill for ‘great course taken for granted’. It would never make the cut of the top 50 Scottish Courses, perhaps even the top 100 courses; however, in many ways, playing Powfoot at under £50, using the typical offers abounding, makes you realise what great value golf exists in Scotland.

The brilliant par three 7th hole at Powfoot, with 9 greenside bunkers!

Powfoot, which takes the name from the village, sits on the north of the Solway Firth, in Dumfries & Galloway, not far from Annan. Overshadowed by the nearby Southerness course, I suspect a great many golfers bypass Powfoot – that would be a mistake in my opinion.

The blind tee shot at Powfoot’s tricky 8th hole, a tough and typical links hole.

Founded in 1903 with 9 holes, it was extended to 18 holes in 1911, then improved on by James Braid in 1923. At over 6200 yards from the white tees, it is a good challenge, especially I suspect when the wind gets up.

It plays and feels like a traditional links course; firm turf, good bunkering, aesthetically framed holes and greens, surrounded by thick gorse bushes. However, the last few holes are really parkland holes, with more trees bordering and sheltering the holes and on arable land.

The well framed 12th hole, a devilish par 3, showing the gorse that abounds on this course. Pay short to be safe. I didn’t and the wheels came off, with a quadruple bogie:(

Dominated by a range of good par 4s (13 of them), there are only 2 par 5s and 3 par 3s. There are quite a few memorable holes. The stroke index par 4 third hole is the first great hole; called ‘shore’ it plays south towards the firth and would be very difficult to reach in 2 shots when the prevailing south westerly wind blows. The seventh is a short par 3 that has nine greenside bunkers – aim for dead centre of the green here. The 8th, a tough par 4, has a blind tee shot and a sloping green that could be approached using the full array of links shots. Likewise the short par four 11th hole demands respect where shots need to be played cautiously to avoid being wrong sided on the right of the fairway and green.

The 17th green, with the copse in the background, on the parkland part of the course.

Despite being in the pandemic the green keepers had presented the course in excellent condition when I played. The bunkers were particularly good and well maintained.

The golfing gods decided to give me a reminder on the cruelty of the game. Playing incredibly well, I was level par for the front 9 and only 1 over after 11 holes. I then played the last 7 holes in 13 over par! Ouch! Nevertheless, it was only the second time in my life I had been level par after 9 holes on a ‘proper’ golf course!

WWII created an unusual hazard at the 9th – with the course guide showing the crater made by a German bomb.

Go out of your way to play Powfoot, highly recommended

Facts:

Course Type: Links

Par 71 (2 par 5, 13 par 4s, 3 par 3s)

Distance: 5990

Moly’s Gross score: 85

The cruel game of golf – level par front 9, 14 over on back 9.

110. Machrie Bay. 21 Sep 2020.

October 29, 2021 /

Don’t make the same mistake as Walter Hagen – this is not worth playing

Round £15. Par 33. Slope (yellow) 100. Value (out of 5) – 1

Machrie Bay, is on the west of the island of Arran, not far from the majestic Shiskine. What a big disappointment – unless you’re chalking up all the courses on Arran, I would give this nine hole course a miss. At £15 for nine holes, this was very poor value when compared with the similar prices on offer on the island.

The very poor first tee at Machrie Bay, not an impressive start.

The world was in the middle of the Covid Pandemic when I played, but in looking closely at the poor course condition it was clear that the pandemic was not the reason – the course was suffering years of neglect. The teeing grounds were bad and many of the greens were covered in moss.

The moss covered 1st green at Machrie Bay.

There’s not much to say about the course. It had many very plain holes, little more than fields with a tee at one end and a green at the other. It did have 2 holes worth noting, both which play over the road that circles the island. The 2nd, played from the white tees was a difficult par 3, and the 9th hole, a fairly short par 4, with a very dangerous blind second shot over the road, for which distance control is critical – I played a good shot and never found my ball again!

The tough par 3 second hole at Machrie Bay – pictured from the white tee.

On the day I struck the ball well and scored 40, for 19 stableford points.

The par four 6th hole – the typical bland hole at Machrie Bay

Finally to Walter Hagen. There is a delightful newspaper clipping on the Machrie Bay website here. Enticed to play “The Machrie” course, a beautiful course on Islay, Hagen turned up in Arran to play Machrie Bay. Don’t make the same mistake – but then again doing something the same as Hagen might not be too bad!

Facts:

Course Type: Parkland

Par 33 (0 par 5, 6 par 4s, 3 par 3s)

Distance: 2154

Moly’s Gross score: 40

Moly’s Machrie Bay scorecard – gross 40, with triple bogie at the last

109. Lamlash. 20 Sep 2020.

October 19, 2021 /

Reserve your ‘A’ game for Lamlash – the toughest Arran challenge

Round £27. Par 61. Slope (yellow) 106. Value (out of 5) – 5

If you only play one course in Arran, Shiskine would be it. However, for difficulty, Lamlash, “a wolf in sheep’s clothing”, takes the prize. Played as a par 61 of just under 4000 yards, or as a par 64 of 4500 yards, it represents a real challenge, both physically (it’s a tough walk) and demanding accuracy off the tee. There can’t be many players of the course for the first time who don’t need at least one “3 off the tee”. I anticipate the World Handicap System (WHS) slope ratings will be adjusted upwards in time from the initial 106 (yellow) or 109 (white), once historical data is built up.

The beautiful par 4 first hole at Lamlash, playing longer than its stated length.

With three of the holes (7, 8 and 10) playing as long par 3s off the yellow tees, rather than short par 4s from the white, I actually think the slope rating should be higher off the yellow tee boxes compared with white.

The 3rd hole at Lamlash, the stroke index 1 “goatfell” par 4. Moly learnt too late to play conservatively off the tee (play short and right with a 5 iron off the tee).

Blessed with a quite magnificent late summer day, the course was in excellent condition when I played with Fran on our Arran golfing trip. Paying only £20 through Golfnow this was incredible value, especially as the rack rate of £27 would also merit 5 star value. Disappointingly, we were met with a gruff starter who complained that “Golfnow shouldn’t have allowed the booking”. This reinforced a theme that emerged over our Arran trip with several locals behaving resentfully towards the holiday golfer – even although the holiday visitor income no doubt enables the local fees to be reduced. As an example, the current membership (2021) of Lamlash is only £380, with a first year membership reduced to only £225. These fees are so much lower than English club golf fees, this being a relevant comment as we were told that the village of Lamlash had a nickname of “Little Yorkshire”, such was the number of retired people from the North of England.

The par four 9th at Lamlash, with views towards Ayrshire past Holy Island in the foreground.

The course abounds with sea and hill views – with Troon and Prestwick visible on clear days – Holy Island also dominates the skyline.

Don’t let the views offset the concentration needed in playing Lamlash, a course that feels a combination of Highland, Parkland and Heathland layouts. It has some really great holes. The starting 3 holes should be played conservatively, with level bogies being more than ok for anything other than the single figure player. The third, a par 4, justifiably the stroke index one hole, with great views, has a demanding drive, which should tend to the right of the fairway, with the second shot best played long and left.

The tough 208 yard par three 7th hole (yellow), which plays as a 283 yard par 4 from white. A key theme at Lamlash.

The long par 3s played off the yellow tees are, collectively, a real test. There are four over 200 yards long, plus the 10th, an uphill par 3 at 198 yards, which needs to be played as a par 4 by most golfers. There is a strong argument that the stroke indexes should be different for the white and the yellow tee boxes here.

The 18th at Lamlash, a finishing hole that befits this tough golf course.

On a benign playing day, I scored 88, or 11 over my handicap. I can’t imagine many players beating their handicap playing Lamlash for the first time. It has plenty of guile and, along with Shiskine, is one of the two must play courses while on Arran. But – this is not “occasional holiday golf”, for that play another course on this beautiful golfing island.

Highly recommended.

Facts:

Course Type: Highland / Heathland / Parkland

Par 61 (0 par 5, 7 par 4s, 11 par 3s)

Distance: 3945

Moly’s Gross score: 88

Moly’s Lamlash scorecard – 88 for 26 points. It actually could have been much worse!

108. Corrie. 19 Sep 2020

October 19, 2021 /

Dishonest golfers spoil it for the majority at this spectacular setting

Round £20 (no 9 hole price). Par 62. Slope (yellow) 90. Value (out of 5) – 2

In assessing value for money at Corrie, a beautiful little 9 hole golf course in the Sannex Glen on the east of the island of Arran, you have a real conundrum. How do you assess the value for a 9 hole course, when they don’t have a rate for playing only 9 holes? It was £20 for the day, no matter how much you play. When asking some local members about the lack of a 9 hole rate, they advised me that in the past they had had several instances where people had paid for 9 holes but gone round twice. As often the case, the behaviour of the few, spoils it for the many.

The view from the second tee at Corrie, looking up Sannex Glen

Had there been a 9 hole rate of (say) £15, I would have said it was 4 out of 5 for value, but with no 9 hole rate it’s only 2 out of 5 in my book. There is a principle here.

Having got that off my chest, I’ll get on to the next criticism – Corrie must be the most hazardous course I’ve played, due to fairways crossing each other. The 7th, a stroke Index 93 (see card below?) downhill par 4 crosses over the 3rd fairway at about driving length! I just hope the club use some of those over-priced fees for golf insurance, because someone will inevitably get hit by a golf ball. Perhaps the SI 93 isn’t a typo, but the number of accidents that have occurred so far.

“Smearing Horse”, the stroke index one 6th hole at Corrie

After the straight forward par 3 opening hole, the course vies up to the left into Glen Sannex and you witness for the first time the spectacular punch bowl in which the golf course is situated. Play on a fine day, like Fran and I did, and there are some heavenly view all around.

The par 4 7th hole, which crossed the 3rd fairway. Be careful!

The course was in really good condition when we played, but I can imagine that the slopes could be treacherous when the course is wet. I’m sure the rain floods over the course off the hills. Therefore, if you’re visiting Arran, perhaps keep an eye our for nice weather before playing Corrie.

It’s also worth visiting the cafe which is located in the small club house – it had good ratings on Facebook and is worth the visit with its nice range of cakes.

The views towards the sea from the 5th green at Corrie

The course was founded in 1892, so it’s a well established layout, and I get the impressions that it’s not been changed much over the years. The web site doesn’t have any history, but does have a nice layout explaining the holes, each labeled with the hole name. The sixth hole, an uphill par 4, well deserves the Stroke Index 1 rating, and is called “Smearing Horse” – I would love to hear from anyone who knows the origin of that name.

Hitting “up the Glen” from the tee at the short par 4 3rd at Corrie

At only 3220 yards for the 18 holes (sic) off the yellow, with Slope Index 90, this should allow people to get a low round in. I was only 2 over gross, with no birdies, and can’t remember playing better. But with only 4 or so bunkers that I counted, this is a flattering score really.

No golf trip to Arran should miss Corrie, but I recommend planning to go around twice to get your money’s worth.

Facts:

Course Type: Highland

Par 31 (0 par 5s, 4 par 4s, 5 par 3s)

Distance: 1610

Moly’s Gross score: 33

Moly’s lowest every 9 hole course score – 33

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