Category: Ayrshire & Arran (Page 2 of 3)

131. (Glasgow) Gailes Links. 23 Mar 22.

April 28, 2022 / Moly McMillan

I wonder how many visitors drive to Killermont to uncover this true links test?

Round £110. Par 71. Course Rating / Slope Rating (yellow) 71.5/130. Value (out of 5) – 3

I probably know more than most about Scotland’s golf courses, plus I also lived in Glasgow; one of my son’s attended school in Killermont. Despite this, I find a geography lesson is needed for ‘Glasgow’ Gailes as I almost ended up back in Glasgow to play at the Gailes Links. That would have been a big mistake!

**The bunkers at the first hole, a par four of 341 yards, serves notice of what lies ahead at Gailes Links.**

Glasgow Golf Club was established in 1787 by the wealthy men of Glasgow making it the first club in the West of Scotland, and the ‘9th oldest club in the world’. It retains an exclusive air and its main headquarter club, based in Killermont in Glasgow, is not open for visitors, other than as a members’ guest. In 1892, the club built the Gailes Links course, initially designed by Willie Fernie, just south of the town of Irvine on the North Ayrshire coast. It is the most northerly of the great set of Ayrshire links courses, starting from Turnberry about 30 miles south. Since its inauguration the Gailes Links has been called ‘Glasgow’ Gailes, in part to distinguish itself from Western Gailes which it adjoins. Hence the confusion about its location. The Glasgow Golf Club might hold the record for the biggest distance between two club courses.

**The ‘gorsy’ remains, where trees used to be, on full display at the 3rd, the challenging par 4, stroke index 1 hole, at Gailes Links.**

The layout as it exists today, required a redesign by Willie Park Junior in 1912. Furthermore, and controversially, the course has undergone a complete transformation in the last few years, having uprooted tens of thousands of trees. I got mixed feedback from some members about the ‘carnage’ of the trees, which I understand is the reason that the Gailes Links course has been removed from the Open Qualifying rota.

**The delightful fifth green complex at Gailes Links, with the social housing of Irvine in the background. A beautiful contrast.**

One of the members said the resulting treeless course is much easier, as it has become a wide open links course. On at least two occasions I played from where trees would have been, likely saving me 4 shots. The courses main defense is now through clever and some severe bunkering – other than the westerly prevailing wind of course! This bunkering became sharply evident to me when, after a sound opening 5 holes, being called through by a 4 ball grouping, who then witnessed my 6, including 4 bunker shots, at a short par 3!

**The 6th, the first of only three par 3 holes at ‘Glasgow’ Gailes.**

My six at the 6th, provides a lesson how to score well at Gailes. Study the course guide and stay away from the bunkers, some of which are out of sight. I actually played well for my gross 88, albeit the course was playing short due to the very dry March weather. Along with no wind and sunny weather it felt more like the Algarve for the time of year.

**The only blind tee shot at Gailes Links is at the 7th (bottom right of the collage). There is much more space right of the ‘eye’ line, especially with the large scale tree removal.**

The course is long at over 6300 yards from the yellow tees, and comprises a zig-zagged ‘north/south out and back’ layout, with about 4 transverse holes. The resulting layout provides a great many subtle changes of direction, which must be very challenging when the wind gets up.

**The 9th is the shortest par 4 at Gailes Links, at 304 yards, but well bunkered at a typical driving length for most players, who might be best to play a longish iron off the tee, to avoid the sand.**

Without the trees, being wayward off the tees is not penalised, especially as there is only one ‘blind’ tee shot (par four 7th), and only one ‘blind’ approach, at the 14th, one of only two par 5s on the course. Along with only three par 3s, this makes the main challenge to score well, being your long iron/hybrid game being up to the challenge of the several par 4s over 400 yards. The resulting par is 71, although the yellow course rating is 71.5, with white being one more.

The approach at the 14th, a short but good par 5, where the long hitters will be tempted to reach the green in two, but will require to avoid a narrow bunker filled gap (above) about 100 yards short of the putting surface.

On the day I played, several of the bunkers were GUR, although not the ones I found at the 6th (my only bunkers of the day). I felt the winter rate I paid of £60 a little steep, with a few winter tees still in play, and despite the dry weather there was surprising indications of muddy locations – I wondered if that was a legacy of the tree removal, and impact on the drainage?

The local pro “Arthur” was really friendly and very welcoming, and therefore worth a mention.

If you get lucky with a winter rate in dry conditions, its fairish value, but the main fee of £110 for a mid week summer round, is not great value and getting out of range of affordability for most.

Course Type: Links

Par 72 (2 par 5s, 13 par 4s, 3 par 3s)

Distance: 6322 (yellow)

Moly’s Gross score: 88

**Moly’s Gailes Links scorecard – 88, best round in a while.**

130. Kilmarnock (Barrassie). 22 Mar 22

April 20, 2022 / Moly McMillan

A course to play to help appreciate “Golf; from a new angle”

Round £95. Par 72. Course Rating / Slope Rating (yellow) 71.9/125. Value (out of 5) – 3.5

The Ayrshire coast is home to some of the finest golf Scotland has to offer. Barrassie used to be a village in its own right, but is now considered part of the town of Troon. Ironically, it was the ‘long’ distance from Troon golf course, that caused the locals of Barrassie to establish a course in 1894, designed by the Prestwick professional, John Allan.

It was in the early 1930s that a new 18 holes course was designed by Matthew M Monie, who was an author who wrote under the pseudonym ‘Theodore Moone’. As for the course in play today, it comprises nine holes from Moone’s 1930s design and nine new holes built in 1997. Nine of Moone’s original holes are retained as a 9 hole course called ‘Hillhouse’.

**The scientist, golfer and author, Theodore Moone, proved that golf course architecture was also one of his numerous talents**, **with Barrassie being one of only a few courses he designed.** **I suspect we all recognise the subject of the book’s cover!**

Search for Moone on the internet and you will be presented with opportunities to buy his book, “Golf from a New Angle”, based around fictional letters about the fundamentals of golf. Look a little deeper and his scientific approach to golf, may have been way ahead of his time – I suspect Bryson DeChambeau may be a fan.

The brilliantly designed approach at the par four 3rd, the stroke index 3 hole. Note the obscured view to the left hand side of the green and the sharp left to right slope towards the front right bunker; coupled with the burn 40 yards short of the green, this is a great hole, typifying Barrassie’s architectural guile. **It is stroke index 1 on the Ladies card**.

Although no sea is in sight, this is unquestionably a classic links course of a high standard. Playing at almost 6500 yards from the yellow tees, and with several dog leg holes and semi-blind approaches, this is also a course with plenty of guile. It was handy that I played in a group that included a long term member, who was on hand to offer advice when needed.

**The aesthetic, or terrifying, view of the par three 4th hole, at 150 yards. Here, old pals, from left to right, Brian, Douglas (our host) and Stephen, look happy – before teeing off!** **I think this might be one of the most obvious “lateral hazards” in Scotland?**

Nevertheless, I suspect you need to play Barrassie a great many times to appreciate which sides of the greens to play into, as there are often ‘hidden’ gullies and slopes which make getting up and down impossible for all, but the most gifted players, if you are “short sided”. The club has a delightful video on it’s website here – once viewed, it is clear why Barrassie has hosted many top amateur competitions and is also an Open Final Qualifying venue.

**The majestic framing around the newly re-built par four 13th hole.**

The course was in magnificent condition for a mid March day, with the fairways and greens playing as if it were already June. The bunker conditioning was the only thing I would criticise, but even that was likely down to the legacy of the pandemic which was just easing off.

**Barrassie member Douglas driving at the 401 yard par four 17th hole.**

We all played about the same with respect to our handicaps and my partner, Brian, and I, halved a closely fought 4BBB game against Douglas and Stephen, having come back from 3 down (well played Brian!). It is always nice for a ‘friendly matchplay’ (although an oxymoron for some) to be in the balance until the very last putt is holed.

**Stephen eyeing another fine drive down the middle – almost right through the eye of a needle.**

One thing about Barrassie worth mentioning; the winter golf rate of £45 is brilliant value, especially when compared with the £95 summer fee, an amount reflecting the significant recent price growth I’ve witnessed across Scotland. I think this has been driven by both the increased demand for golf due to the pandemic and also the ongoing tussle between clubs’ loyalty to their membership versus serving the needs of the peripatetic golfer, for whom membership is not desired. The latter conflict is a matter of fierce debate within the Scottish Golf Union organisation.

**The 17th green, showing the great conditioning of the course in mid March, and the little gully left being a treacherous ‘leave’, for two of us.**

I once heard the great football manager Bill Shankly describing a Stallworth player as “honest” meaning they always gave their all and could be completely relied upon. That’s how I felt when playing Barrassie – it is an “honest” links golf course, if such a thing is possible.

Course Type: Links

Par 72 (3 par 5s, 12 par 4s, 3 par 3s)

Distance: 6460 (yellow)

Moly’s Gross score: 96

**Up and down round of golf. Gross 96, but still 29 stableford points.**

110. Machrie Bay. 21 Sep 2020.

October 29, 2021 / Moly McMillan

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 / Moly McMillan

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