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Scotland |
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Golf has been part of the sporting landscape in Scotland since at least the 15th century when King James II banned the game by Act of Parliament in 1457 and there is mention of the game being played on a number of courses along the east coast of the country during the 16th century, including Carnoustie (1527), Aberdeen (1538), St Andrews (1552) and Montrose (1562). Courses that developed at these locations, and many others that emerged along the coastline, from Dornoch in the north to Dunbar in the south, still present a formidable challenge to golfers in the modern era.
By 1880, there were 42 courses in play around the country and that number doubled over the following decade at the start of a golf boom that would last for around 30 years. Incredibly, a further 200 courses emerged in the 20 years between 1890 and 1910 as the popularity of golf soared during a period of industrial growth. The next 70 years saw a slow and steady growth before the next golf boom of the 1980s and 90s, bringing the total number of golf courses in Scotland to around 500. That number has since risen to over 580 at the end of 2010. | |
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 |  | | St Andrews (Old) | | No other course has hosted more Opens than the Old Course at St Andrews. Its 28th Open and the 139th Open Championship returned “to the Home of Golf” in 2010. |
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|  | | Muirfield | | Muirfield is the course of “The Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers” (HCEG), the world’s oldest golf club – according to direct written evidence – formed in 1744. |
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|  | | Royal Dornoch (Championship) | | Royal Dornoch Golf Club is spellbinding. It seems to mesmerise amateur and professional golfers from all over the world... |
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|  | | Turnberry (Ailsa) | | The Ailsa course at the Turnberry Resort is probably the most scenic Open Championship golf course. Located right next to the Firth of Clyde, with craggy rocks and superb views across to the Mull of Kintyre... |
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|  | | Carnoustie (Championship) | | Carnoustie is a big natural seaside golf links and the Championship course is considered to be one of the most difficult in the British Isles. |
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|  | | Kingsbarns | | One of the many delights of Kingsbarns Golf Links is that you can see the North Sea from virtually every part of the course. |
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|  | | Royal Troon (Old) | | Royal Troon is a traditional out and back links course. On a clear day, you can see the distant Ailsa Craig in the south, and to the west, the majestic mountains on the Isle of Arran. |
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|  | | Loch Lomond | | Loch Lomond Golf Club is set in more than 600 acres of sheltered seclusion, sandwiched between the mountains and the historic lochside. |
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|  | | North Berwick (West) | | The West course at North Berwick Golf Club is extremely close to the origins of golf. It’s the third oldest course in the world still playing over its original fairways... |
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|  | | Royal Aberdeen (Balgownie) | | The Balgownie at Royal Aberdeen Golf Club is a traditional out and back links course running along the shore of the North Sea and it has one of the finest first nine holes in golf. |
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