Royal
XXXX Aberdeen
Royal Aberdeen
The 6th oldest golf club in the world and a beauty it is, too. Spend
some time in the clubhouse and enjoy the history. Balgownie Links,
as it is also known, is a traditional out-and-back layout, with a highly
regarded front nine. The 1st hits down towards the North Sea, where
oil tankers lounge in the water, while the next eight holes slide
through the seaside dunes. There are wonderful twists to fairways –
the approach to the 1st green sets the tone – although the landing
zones are somewhat smoother and more generous as a result. Still,
it is a battle of wits. The back nine sit on a higher level inland and
are more exposed to the wind as a result. The views may be better,
but the golf is tougher. This is a truly classic links with velvet greens
begging for bump and run, and delicious pothole bunkering.
Newmacher (Hawkshill)
There are two golf courses here, a few miles inland and to the
north of Aberdeen, and both were designed by Dave Thomas.
The Hawkshill, with its heathland flourishes, receives the greatest
plaudits and it is the bigger and more challenging of the two. Water
hazards appear on several holes – including the 1st – and these add
beauty and danger to a course which really comes to life amid the
flanks of Birch trees and Scots Pines. Thomas has a reputation for
strategically bunkering courses and Hawkshill is as good as it gets,
squeezing greens to ensure there is no let up in pressure. Holes are
tight and tree-lined with a manicured American flavour, but that
only serves to emphasise the quality of a course regarded as one of
Scotland’s toughest inland courses. Great facilities and an impressive
clubhouse.
Trump Aberdeen
This is picture-perfect links golf and it was designed to be the
‘world’s greatest golf course’. Martin Hawtree, the designer, had the
budget and space to do whatever he wanted and he has created
something remarkable. Holes move in a north-south orientation,
flowing in almost complete isolation between the biggest dunes
on the Menie Estate. It gives the holes an almost ethereal quality.
Fairways are wide but the bunkering is omnipresent and penal. The
18th hole has 18 bunkers so if you think you can avoid the sand for
the entire round, think again. The course opened in 2012, and, given
its proprietor, no expense has been spared. There are six tees… so
choose wisely.
Peterhead (Old)
Play on this linksland began in 1892, when Willie Park Jr laid out nine
holes. It was later extended to 18 but that spirit of natural links golf
remained… and has done to this day. The course is laid out to the
north of the River Uige. Indeed, a bridge over the river takes you to
the clubhouse. Peterhead starts gently and it is only when you climb
higher, to the 5th tee, that you appreciate the startlingly natural
dunescapes yet to come. These slip away to the sea and fill the
middle of the round, reaching out to the farthest point. There are no
better examples than the par four 7th, named ‘Valley’, with a green
sternly surrounded by pot bunkers, and the long par four 9th (Index
1) which glides through a dune created hollow. Fifteen holes play
north to south so the wind is always going to challenge you.
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