Category: 1851 – 1900 (Page 11 of 14)

66. Turnhouse. 10th Oct 2017

October 12, 2017 / Moly McMillan

Nice layout with good greens with upside for plane spotters!

Summary: Round £35. Par 69. Value (out of 5) – 3.5

Turnhouse golf course was laid out with 9 holes in 1897, and extended to 18 holes a few years later. The original course designer is not known, but James Braid carried out a redesign in 1928, characteristically focused on the use of bunkers.

Views of Edinburgh airport from the 5th green at Turnhouse

The course sits on Lennie Hill, very close to Edinburgh airport and easily accessed by road. There are good views of the Pentland Hills to the south and to the Fife Ochill Hills to the north. For a parkland course designed in the 19th century it unusually has two 9 hole loops, starting at the clubhouse.

The nice par 4 6th hole at Turnhouse – where I had one of my 3 birdies

Turnhouse has a classic parkland feel and there is a good mix of some generous and some tighter fairways. I thoroughly recommend the excellent online course planner available on the club website, especially as there are several blind tee and second shots. A good example is the long 4th hole which has a nasty blind bunker on the right hand side of the fairway at about 430 yards awaiting a well struck second shot – bear in mind out of bounds is tight along the left of this hole.

The fast Stroke Index 1 10th green at Turnhouse, a tough start to the back 9.

The planner might also help gauge driving distance on some of the tighter holes, with the formidable 13th tee shot being actually easier that it looks, with only a hybrid or fairway wood being needed at the tee, with a larger landing area being available than at first sight.

The greens were surprisingly well drained and quiet fast – I putted off the 9th green where the pin had been placed on the right – beware! Overall the course was in good condition, with only the tees perhaps in need of some effort.

The frightening looking 13th tee shot at Turnhouse – take a hybrid to guarantee playing from the fairway.

I had a most mercurial round. I only hit 3 greens in regulation and birdied all 3 of them! (4th, 6th and 11th) – my stableford had three 4 pointers but no 3 pointers!

There is an interesting quote on the club web site about the hazards in the development of parkland courses around the turn of the 20th century, and worth sharing:

“In those early days, golf courses were shaped by natural terrain and while links courses had sand bunkers, inland courses relied on gorse, whin and dry stone walls for hazards. At Turnhouse there is a record of turf dykes about three feet high being built forty or fifty yards from the tee across some fairways and in January 1908 an instruction was issued to remove steps over the walls and have gaps made in their place.”

Turnhouse was a most pleasant surprise and one of the lessor known Edinburgh courses well worth a visit.

Facts:

Course Type: Parkland

Par 69 (2 par 5s, 11 par 4s, 5 par 3s)

Distance (yellow): 5926

Moly’s Gross score: 91.

Moly’s Turnhouse scorecard: 91 for 31 points

64. King James VI. 29th Aug 2017.

August 30, 2017 / Moly McMillan

Easy walking freshwater “island” course on the River Tay in Perth ideal if you are a trainspotter!

Summary: Cost £25. Par 68. Score 95. Value (out of 5) – 2.5.

The “King Jimmy” golf club was founded in 1858 and initially played on North Inch; it was named because King James VI had played golf on the “Inches”, the public land for common use along the River Tay. Golf can actually be traced back 500 years in Perth and this in covered in an earlier blog here.

Moncreiffe island, home of the “King Jimmy” golf club

The club relocated to Moncreiffe Island in 1897, to a course designed by ‘Old’ Tom Morris, and is believed to be the only freshwater island course in the UK.

This presents a challenge for any visiting golfer, as the only access to the course is by using the narrow walkway across the railway bridge, accessed by steep stairs on either side of the bridge. The walk from the nearest public car park is around 500m.

The double green on the 1st/4th with King James VI club house in the background.

The course is very flat and its lack of undulation makes for a fairly repetitive round with many holes looking the same. Although I played in late August after a relatively dry spell the course was very soft and preferred lies would have been appropriate. I understand that the course is impacted significantly after rainfall. This softness made the course play much longer than its stated yardage.

Moly driving at the tree lined short par 4 12th hole

The very lush grass also meant that balls were easily lost in the short semi rough, in fact I found 3 balls sitting in the open; make sure you get a good line on the ball after each shot.

The greens were the best feature of the course, closely followed by the lush fairways. The tees would benefit from some work. The main hazards are the course boundaries and some majestic tree lines.

The 8th green, typical of the scenery at King James VI in Perth

The most memorable holes were those played over a grassy dyke built into the 11th and 13th holes, where it’s important to know your yardages. The dyke is almost 50 yards in front of the 11th green, so make sure you take enough club.

Fran, my playing partner, at the par 3 5th hole.

I played with Fran and we both had good and bad patches in our round. My highlight was reaching the 423 yard par 4 18th green in 2 blows. Pity about much of the rest.

If you do plan to play here, I strongly recommend using a half set carry bag and hiring a trolley from the club.

Key Facts

Course Type: Links

Par 68 (1 par 5s, 12 par 4s, 5 par 3s)

Distance (yellow): 5684

Moly’s Gross score: 95.

Moly’s King James VI scorecard – 95 for 27 points (off 17 hcp)

61. Ballater. 2nd Aug 2017.

August 3, 2017 / Moly McMillan

Good course in the heart of Deeside which offers challenge for all levels.

Summary: Cost £35. Par 67. Score 94. Value (out of 5) – 3.

Ballater seemed a good choice to return to golf blogging after several months absence due mainly to my sojourn to watch the British Lions take on the All Blacks. Ballater is 40 miles east of Aberdeen, in the heart of Royal Deeside, an area I spent many happy years hill walking in during my teens. The “royal” tag comes as Balmoral Castle, The Queen’s summer residence, is only a few miles away.

18th green and large clubhouse at Ballater

A nine hole golf course was founded in Ballater in 1892, and extended to 18 in 1905, the pedigree of the course demonstrated by an exhibition match between James Braid and Harry Vardon in 1906.

Although the course is described on it’s web site as mainly heathland with parkland characteristics, I beg to differ and say it’s actually the other way round, and felt much more parkland to me. Although surrounded by hills and forest, the course is surprisingly flat and offers an easy walk. With many fairways adjacent to each other, with only light rough in between, it offers regular opportunity to be wild off the tee and still easily find your ball – something I unfortunately took advantage of often! However, overall this is not an easy course with some very tricky greenside bunkers (some of which are blind to your approach shots) and some very penal rough.

The very large 1st green at Ballater

Although the course lies close to the River Dee the river does not come into play as often, by comparison, as Braemar (further along the Dee). These open fairways and lack of water in play, means the course is quite good for holiday golfers. However, the course is quite busy and I would recommend booking, especially during the Summer months.

The course has some challenges in particular the opening six holes are very tough – I double bogied the first 5 holes, and actually felt I struck the ball well! The 3 par 3s on the opening 9 holes are particularly tough, culminating with the 9th hole which has a semi blind small green.

The typically Scottish 2nd green at Ballater with the town houses in background

The course was in all round good condition when I played, with good greens and lush but firm fairways. I played better than my scorecard would suggest. It felt like a 30 point day, but with 3 balls lost, for 6 penalties, made it only 25 points. I had a nice birdie 2 on the par 3 17th though.

I played having booked through the teeofftimes.co.uk website and paid £22.50 versus the course published price of £35 for a midweek round. At £22.50 it would be worth 4/5 for value but only 3/5 using its rack rate.

It’s worth playing this nice course, which also has a big bar and good value restaurant food.

Tricky Par 3 5th at Ballater

Note: I had to use my phone for pictures, which are not the usual standard….sorry!

Key Facts

Course Type: Parkland

Par 67 (0 par 5s, 13 par 4s, 5 par 3s)

Distance (yellow): 5582

Moly’s Gross score: 94.

Moly’s Ballater scorecard – 94 for only 25 Stableford points:(

59. Edzell. 15th Dec 2016.

December 15, 2016 / Moly McMillan

Great course worth playing, but only good value with discounted green fee

Round £60. Par 71. Value (out of 5) 3.

Edzell Golf Course, in the nice village of Edzell close to the Angus Glens, was established in 1895. It is located close to the main A90 between Dundee and Aberdeen so is very easily accessed and well worth playing.

The course was designed by Bob Simpson, with further input from James Braid in the 1930s and recently in 2015 was upgraded by Martin Ebert of Mackenzie & Ebert a company with a growing and prestigious global catalogue. The current course lays testimony to golfing architecture at its best; the course fits naturally to its surroundings with, in particular, a great array of fairway bunkers which will especially challenge the longer hitters.

The dangerous 9th hole approach – keep it left!

The course is part heathland part parkland but the fairways are generous. The greens are very large, with some subtle fairway hollows, making it important to check your yardage. Some of the front flag locations are very tricky when coupled to the tight greenside bunkering.

The par 3 14th at Edzell emblazed with Winter sun

After a relatively straight forward par 4 first, the 2nd, 4th and 5th are all long par 4s, at well over 400 yards. The 6th is also a tricky par 3 with 5 green side bunkers, where most golfers will be using a hybrid or fairway wood. After a bit of respite at 7 and 8, the par 5 9th presents a hazardous approach with a steep river bank close to the right of the green. Play well left with your second and third shots, in my advice.

The 15th, with a typical array of dangerous fairway bunkers

To score well at Edzell you need to get through the first 9 without disaster (I didn’t!). I suspect many cards are deposited in a waste bin before the 10th tee!

Of the many highlights on the back 9, my favourite was the aptly named 16th, the “Spion Kop”, with 2 very large green side bunkers on a devilishly sloping bank. Don’t take on a front pin here.

The relatively straight forward par 5 18th, with the fine clubhouse and Edzell village in the background

The course was playing winter tees but full greens when I played and in excellent condition, although several of the bunkers were undergoing re-construction; this didn’t dilute my enjoyment though. I played pretty well for a 97, or 29 stableford points, including the front 9 disasters.

My only gripe is I think the headline green fee, at £60 in summer, is slightly high, no doubt subsidising the £550 membership fees. However, I played using teeofftimes and got a good deal.

Some Facts

Course Type: Parkland/heathland

Par 71 (2 par 5, 13 par 4s, 3 par 3s)

Distance yards: 6182

Moly’s Gross Score: 97

Moly’s Edzell Scorecard – played better than the score of 97 suggests, for 29 points (16 hcp)