Scotland Golf Bible

A guide to green fee value for money

Category: 2 star (Page 1 of 3)

183. Mearns Castle. 24 Mar 23.

June 10, 2026 /

“Most scenic and challenging in the area.” An exaggerated claim by the Academy.

Round £10 (GolfNow Hot Deal, now £20). Par 31. Value 2/5.

Moly’s Score – 40

There is a real Mearns Castle about half a mile from the golf course, built in 1449 by Lord Herbert Maxwell. The same Maxwell family whose descendants would eventually own Southerness on the Solway Firth, reviewed in Blog 164, a course that justifies the word “scenic” more than anything I encountered here.

The actual nearby ‘Mearns Castle’, a 15th century Maxwell tower house, which the course takes its name. I wonder if Satnav ever gets this confused with the course.

The castle has, as far as I can establish, no connection whatsoever to the golf academy except proximity and, one suspects, the marketable romance of a medieval tower.

The golf academy is a substantial operation with Toptracer range, tuition, café, fitness studio, nail salon, and a massage therapist! More of a leisure complex with a 9-hole course attached. Nothing wrong with that, but problems begin when the website describes that course as “one of the most scenic and challenging courses in the area.”

I played it on 24 March 2023, via a GolfNow Hot Deal, for £10. It was waterlogged. It should have been closed.

How could you allow play with fairways like this in several places. Sometimes short term economics doesn’t make sense. One never knows if a Blogger will come along!

The course occupies pleasant enough parkland on the southern fringes of Newton Mearns, the well heeled commuter town south of Glasgow. The 1st offered an early introduction to the course’s style: there is a hidden fairway ditch ready to swallow a ball without warning. This was one of the very few “challenging” features though.

The course had minimal fairway bunkering. However the greens were surprisingly good surfaces, so well done to the greenkeepers. It is the one positive comment I can offer.

The greens were redeeming, a benefit for players learning the game. Here at the 4th.

The course website mentioned “continued investment in drainage and course improvements.” This is a tacit acknowledgement that drainage was a problem, which again raises the question why the course was open. A course that quietly admits its drainage issues while remaining open in March when waterlogged is providing very poor value, even at £10.

The was the typically bland approach view, here at the 5th hole, with the building ruins on the left being one of the very few interesting features.

The list price is now £20 for nine holes, I paid £10 on a Hot Deal. But golf on a course that should have been closed, is not good value at any price. The marketing overclaim tips it further – a course that sets expectations it cannot meet is doing its visitors a disservice.

Facts:

Course Type: Parkland

Par 31 (9 holes)

Moly’s Gross Score: 40 (net par)

Round: £10 (GolfNow Hot Deal). List price £20 (9 holes).

Value: 2/5

Moly shot 40 on a waterlogged day.

148. Ballumbie Castle. 5 Jul 22.

October 8, 2022 /

Perennial struggle for Ballumbie Castle

Round £25. Par 69. Course Rating / Slope Rating (yellow) 68.3/122. Value (out of 5) – 2

With good municipal courses still available in Scotland, but declining in number due to council budget cuts, the race is well underway to see whether courses like Ballumbie Castle survive.

The dog leg right 2nd hole, the common feature on this fairly uninspiring and ‘tired’ course

I know this course and area well, it being a stone’s throw from my wife’s family home. I was intrigued during the late 80s and 90s when several courses were built in the wider area, including Letham Grange, near Arbroath, which finally closed in 2019. I was skeptical about the business case for these courses, often heralded as part of housing or leisure developments. My question was why pay more to play Ballumbie than nearby municipal Caird Park or Monifieth Links? Moreover, why pay more for Letham Grange when as an Angus resident you qualified for nearby world class Carnoustie?

The par three 11th, the best hole on the course, not surprisingly the area dominated by overlooking houses.

Look closely at the 20 years of Ballumbie Castle’s history and you uncover a repeated saga of dissolved companies or companies in administration and protracted housing development applications. The last point is the open secret, the land’s inherent value is in housing, not golf which is often a means to an end. The former dream of living in a golf development must be a bitter pill for those still housed overlooking the former Letham Grange course landscape. Ballumbie Castle Estate householders must wonder how long their golf course views will remain.

Fran at the par three 4th hole, where we both nearly made birdie.

The course itself is laid out in 4 varying sized parcels of land around a small hill and housing access roads, with fairly long walks between the sections. There is a nice mix of holes, but the predominant feature is of dog-leg right par fours, with seven of them. Not great if you are a mid length fader of the ball, like most mid to high handicap right handers. Low handicap faders though must revel on this course.

12th green at Ballumbie Castle, a short par three at 141 yards

Over the years, the course condition has declined steadily, matching the financial struggles of each management regime. Whereas the tees were previously pristine with great tee box markings, those days are long gone, with only one tee box marker (the 17th) being left from its glory days.

The greens and fairways were still okay, but the bunkers could have been better kept.

Moly at the 11th green, a long par 3, which should have a higher stroke index in my book.

I played very well, shooting 82, the best I’ve done here, picking up birdies at the par three 4th and the par four 9th. But my decent round doesn’t deflect from the general ‘tired’ state of Ballumbie. If you get a good deal, through golfnow as I did, it’s worth playing, but there’s better value to be found nearby at the full price.

The very strong par four finishing hole at Ballumbie Castle, take at least one club more to get up to the green, take two more if the oin is on the upper level.

The current planning application for housing being debated will see several of the holes being replaced with housing, so it remains to be seen the golfing future of Ballumbie Castle.

Facts:

Course Type: Parkland

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

Distance (yellow): 5716 yards

Moly’s Gross score: 82

Moly’s 82 at Ballumbie, including two birdies and two 7s.

113. Cally Palace. 23 Oct 2020.

December 22, 2021 /

Don’t believe the hotel’s description – this is no better than your average council course.

Round £32. Par 71. Course Rating / Slope Rating (yellow) not registered. Value (out of 5) – 2

The hotel website quotes: “The Cally Palace has it’s own 18 hole parkland golf course, which is one of the finest golf courses in the area.”

Utter rubbish, this course, designed in 1994 by Tom Macauley, an architect described as “adequate” by golfclubatlas.com, is no better that many average council run courses in Scotland. In fact, that might be doing a great disservice to many of the wonderful council run courses.

The trees are the star on this course – Moly finding a nice hazard on the 16th fairway!

If there is a highlight at this ‘free to hotel residents’ course in Dumfries and Galloway, it’s the many beautiful trees that adorn the grounds of the hotel. They are worth seeing – albeit one of them made for a difficult lie on the 16th!

The trees are the star at The Cally – here as a backdrop to the hotel at the 18th

Everything about the course spoke about it being done ‘on the cheap’. The bunkers were shallow, the greens were small and, disappointedly, the course made little use of the magnificent Cally Loch on the estate. In addition, several of the greens were indistinguishable from their surrounds.

The 13th at Cally Palace – by far the best hole on the course.

Although the course is free to residents, this is definitely not a golfing hotel, with no changing facilities for the visiting golfer. It is also closed in January and February, made possible by not having any golfing members. It’s also not listed on Scottish Golf’s list of courses, so it doesn’t have a course rating or slope index.

When I played, the course should really have been closed due to being waterlogged, but the benefit at least being that Fran and I were the only people playing.

The very poor 17th green at The Cally – typical of the course, unfortunately.

Other than the trees, the only hole of real note was the Stroke Index 1, short par 5 thirteenth hole – by for the best on this layout. I was very lucky to get a par, after pulling my drive, only to find I’d miraculously cut the corner of the dog leg and able to get to the green in 2!

The 7th at The Cally, a typically bland par 4.

The course helped me to another personal record, the most occasions relief for casual water has been taken.

Don’t go out of your way to play Cally Palace.

Facts:

Course Type: Parkland

Par 70 (3 par 5, 11 par 4s, 4 par 3s)

Distance: 5706

Moly’s Gross score: 94

A wet day, making the 94 at The Cally, better than the score really.

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

« Older posts

© 2026 Scotland Golf Bible

Theme by Anders Noren — Up ↑