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Kinghorn Golf Club
Played On 09/11/2022Quirky old fashioned links
Very much an old school links, with nature playing its role in how challenging it’ll be. At less than 6000 yards and a par 65 it’s not a long slog, and with a fair wind and a free run it’s possible to whizz round in sub 3 hours. The layout has a good mix and it’s easy to imagine how the course was set down to fit with the contours of what was available. There’s some really quite challenging holes, particularly the par 3 2nd, but there are loads of scoring opportunities. A lot will depend on conditions and the luck of the bounce (it is proper links golf!). Fairways are a bit scruffy, mostly left to nature. Loads of undulations and rabbit scrapings. Tee boxes could also do with a bit of tlc. However the greens are in excellent nick. Very true and some with quite severe slopes, but not gimmicky as you find in some ‘modern’ links (here’s looking at you Castle course in St Andrew’s!).
Club house looks quite nice and we had a warm, friendly welcome. Worth giving them a call to check for deals.
Last but not least it’s worth mentioning the views - they really are spectacular. Uninterrupted over the Forth to Inchkeith and beyond to Auld Reekie herself. Worth the round for this alone. But I’d still play it for the golf - it was great fun and felt a bit like taking a step back in time.
Matfen Hall Golf Club - Douglas Course
Played On 10/17/2022Blustery Autumn on a Great Layout
We’ve played Matfen many times, but rarely in late autumn. The 3 9s are all great layouts, offering their own challenges. Standing Stones is probably the toughest with the run from 5-8 being particularly hard, not helped by the howling gale we played in. The courses were in generally pretty good condition for the time of year. In common with most courses in this region underfoot was a bit muddy and as a result the fairways haven’t been cut as short as normal. The greens were really soft, but still fast and true, the only problem being all the tree detritus blown all over.
Off the course the pro shop is well stocked and the cafe serves a mighty fine bacon and sausage stottie!
Despite the challenging conditions we really enjoyed our round. The Hot Deal we got was absolutely outstanding value for money - you could easy pay 3x that amount and not feel robbed!
Beamish Park Golf Club
Played On 07/17/2018Blind mans bluff
A well maintained and established parkland course with some interesting holes, nut unfortunately with too many blind holes for our taste.
The course works it’s way round and then up and over rolling hills resulting in some decent elevation changes and lots of blind shots. There are good markers though and fairways are generally generous. Even if you do stray off line the rough under the trees isn’t too severe so it’s difficult to get in lots of trouble. A couple of the par 4s are in excess of 400m and present a good challenge, but there are quite few shorter ones, some of which need a bit of toughening up. Stand out hole is the 15th which drops down to a narrow fairway between the trees.
All in all a nice enough course with just too many blind shots for us. If you’re ok with them you could easily add another star. Worth mentionining the helpful and friendly pro shop staff. Always nice to have a warm welcome.
Brancepeth Castle Golf Club
Played On 07/12/2018Interesting course - tough par 3s!
Pleasant members club with an interesting layout and some seriously challenging par 3s. Along with most courses just now the fairways were parched dry and very firm. Greens however were very well watered, soft and true. Overall a well maintained course.
A well established parkland layout with most fairways being based on old fashioned fields. This means they are broad and ‘wave’ up and down, leading to some interesting bounces and stances. You can even end up feeling a bit sea-sick! There’s a decent variety in length and shape which keeps thing interesting. It’s the par 3s that are the really challenging part though. They’re all tough with very little margin for error.. the 10th in particular is a beast, much harder than the 9th (hardest 9th in world golf).
All in a pleasant, well maintained and interesting course.
Portlethen Golf Club
Played On 07/02/2017Good condition but frustrating layout
Although the greens are in great shape and the course has matured the layout of this course really lets it down, particularly on the back 9. The front 9 has a couple of interesting holes, 3rd in particular is a nice challenge, but you get funnelled into tight spaces where it feels claustrophobic. Even worse on the back 9. Almost seems as though a couple of holes are shoe-horned in where they shouldn't be. I played off the yellows (as a visitor) and the position of some tee boxes is just weird. This unnecessarily shortens some holes and restricts the course to a par 70.
Pace of play was also pretty slow - best part of 4 hours, not helped by the layout I think
Peterculter Golf Club
Played On 05/31/2017Greens in great condition and a friendly welcome
Thoroughly enjoyed a last minute booking to play at Peterculter. Interesting layout on the banks of the Dee. Course feels very mature despite only being created in 1989. Welcome at the small pro shop was extremely warm and friendly, was even given a gift of a course guide as it was our first time.
Fairways were in pretty good condition, fairly tight with nicely graduated rough. The deep stuff was very deep! Lots of out of bounds on the left all the way round the course - you definitely don't want to have a dose of the hooks! its not stunningly long but the relatively narrow fairways keep you on your toes and the firm greens require a bit of thought to get close. There's some nice elevation change too as you drop down from and climb back up again from the Dee. A couple of the holes channel into a bit of a funnel just after the turn and feel a little claustrophobic but apart from that things are well spaced out.
At £40 each it was a little pricey compared to other deals you can get around the area, but the combination of an interesting course and a high standard of maintenance make it worth it.
Thanks for your positive and fair review of our golf course.
We hope to have you along again in the near future.