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Gleneagles (Queen's), Scotland |
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Gleneagles Hotel
Auchterarder
Perthshire
PH3 1NF
Scotland |  | James Braid |  | Andrew Jowett |
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 | +44 (0) 1764 662231 |  | 20 miles S of Perth |
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Golf Club Website
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 | Book 8 weeks in advance |  | Heather Edment |
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The Queen’s course is the pretty little sister at Gleneagles. The holes are set within an all together softer landscape than the King’s and PGA Centenary courses. She’s only a short course and not the most challenging, but she is exquisitely delicate and stunningly beautiful. Patric Dickinson summed up Gleneagles in his book, A Round of Golf Courses: “So let us be fair from the very start; or even before the start, Gleneagles is something that was created, and exists, sheerly to please; if I may take a simile from the theatre, it is glorious musical comedy.”
Designed by James Braid, the Queen’s course opened for play in 1917. From the medal tees, the course measures less than 6,000 yards, but with a lowly par of 68, it represents an immensely enjoyable challenge. This is one of the finest parcels of golfing land in the British Isles. The holes weave their way across undulating moorland, through charming woodland, to greens set in pretty glades. The ball sits proudly on the springy fairways, inviting the most solid strike. The greens are true and ideal for bold putting and this really is an enchanting and exhilarating place to play golf.
Gleneagles is unusual in that it has three different golf courses and it’s also unique because it’s the only place in Scotland to have three Top 100 inland courses. This is a place to enjoy the entertainment and have some fun. Or as Patric Dickinson said: “Gleneagles is one of the wonders of the golfing world, a kind of Hanging Garden of Babylon on a Scottish hillside, and if you marry Golf, here’s the place to spend your Hinny Mune!” ¹
¹ Honeymoon. | |
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If the above course review article is not accurate, let us know by clicking here |
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 |  | | Average Reviewers Score: |  | | | Played Queens early June. Fairways springy greens firm but not overly fast. A typical misty wet morning didn't dampen our spirits with view of some stunning natural holes cut into the glen. A nice array of longish par 4's going out mixed in with a plateau green par 3 second and a reachable par 5 seventh (which I did followed on by the obligatory three put) alas! The back nine is arguably better highlights include back to back par 3's around a lake. Followed on by Real risk reward 280 yard par 4, push your tee shot and you will rack up a big number! Overall a spectacular par 68 not a push over by any means but willing to reward good play (shot an 80 off a 14 h'cap) . Must lastly mention the whole experience , I've been lucky enough to stay at Gleneagles half a dozen times and no other resort comes close. |
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| 07 June 2012
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| I played this venue in consecutive days with the King's and also watched some holes at the PGA Centenary during this year´s JW Championship, so comparison can be done with no risk to be unfair. I believe the Queen's Course is less challenging than the King´s  but a lot more true, with less blind shots and with nicer views although the three courses have very similar landscapes. The course itself is very fun to be played, with a lot of risk-reward holes but one thing I really don´t like is the lack of par 5s, the only one is number 7. But in the back nine you have three excellent par 3s (actually for most golfers 14th can be a par 3.5) and a very nice reachable par 4 (15th), where you can birdie or double bogey easilly, if tee shot is pushed the magic word "reload" will be heard. and after 10 days in Scotland, hole number 12th may be one of the best of the week, where if you are conservative you will face a long tough second shot, but if you take risk the approach can be a wedge. The course was in excellent shape despite some rain and the greens rolled very true and fast. If you travel to Scotland, you have to go and play as many links courses as you can, but a visit to Gleneagles (an amazing hotel and great staff) will for sure pay the bill, don´t miss it! |
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| 20 September 2011
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| I don’t know if any of you are familiar with the 1986 'Only Fools and Horse's" Xmas special 'A Royal Flush'? Hapless Rodney Trotter leaps up the social ladder when he manages to pull the Duke of Maylebury's daughter, Vicky. He is subsequently invited down to the ancestral pile for a weekend of shooting and he quickly discovers that he is way out of his depth. I know how Rodney felt cause I have previous. A bit of advice, never drive into Skibo Castle in a wee red Corsa if you are trying to pass yourself off as international playboys!!!  The reason that I mention all of this piffle is because I was half expecting to be discovered as way out of my social depth when I turned up at Gleneagles. I wouldn’t have been too surprised to be thrown out on my Primark laden backside. I needn’t have worried, we were treated absolutely brilliantly but that is the Gleneagles way, you are a King for a day.
On the day we played, Scotland was covered in frost. The hour and a quarter drive from the west saw a minimal rise in temperature with the mercury only hitting positive when we entered Perth and Kinross, would frost stop play? Fast forward 2 and a half hours (Only 1 hour and 10 minutes after our allotted tee time and you would never have guessed that there had been any dodgy weather, the fairways were lush, the greens only slightly marked by a light spiking, we were more than good to go. I was pre-warned of the natural beauty of the Queen's Course but I suggest it was undersold to me, as the place is just simply stunning. You could be standing in a 3D Gainsburgh or Constable masterpiece it is just breath-taking.
But you can’t play the view, thankfully, the course matches its surroundings with a magnificent variety of holes which will more than keep you on your toes. I am honestly struggling to name a weak hole as I don’t believe there are any however, holes 9-14 and 17 are just a wee bit more special. The Queen's is undoubtedly one of Scotland visual show stoppers and that, along with the Gleneagles name, comes at a price. I urge you if you get the chance to play here on a corporate or winter fee then grab it with both hands, you will not regret it. So hats off, (again), to James Braid, Earlsferry’s finest, for another design classic, perhaps the prettiest in all of the land or as Del Boy and Rodders might say. Pukka!!!!!!!!! MPPJ |
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| 22 January 2011
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| Our much-awaited visit to the Queen’s didn’t get off to the best of starts with overnight frost suspending play until nearly lunch time last Monday, so we had to hang around the temporary accommodation that’s in use during the current refurbishment of the Dormy House. Once we got out on the course at noon, however, the glorious, largely sunny conditions we had over the next four hours really showed this little beauty in the very best of light.
 Golf on this course is not meant to be too taxing as fairways are generally wide and open, but bunkers are large, deep and plentiful - the craters on the 7th in particular - so good scoring has to be earned. The opening half dozen holes are bounded on the right by discreet housing then the minor road that leads to Braco but that’s as close as the outside world gets to even a hint of outside interference.
The offset green perched on a ridge at the 6th is a high point on the outward half and the uphill, right angled dog leg at hole 9 is well worth it’s stoke index rating of 2. Views of the gWest course down below can be seen from the elevated position of the 8th fairway and although it lies only a quarter of a mile away to the west of the Gleneagles estate, the new course looks a totally different type of layout, bereft of trees or sizeable changes in elevation – but more of that some other time when it opens for play…
Of course, the telephone on the 10th tee just has to be dialled to place a late lunch order that’s ready 15 minutes later in the Halfway House beside the 11th tee of both the King’s and Queen’s courses. And as we sipped our cups of tea and looked out on the Perthshire hills from the cosy wee cabin with the sun streaming in through the windows, it merely confirmed that we were at one of the top places to play inland golf in the country.
 After an engaging outward half, the back nine don’t disappoint in any way whatsoever. In fact, if anything, the natural beauty quotient is cranked up even higher with the highlight for me being the beautiful 12th - think Royal County Down’s 9th where the fairway drops down from a plateau to green level - followed by wonderful back-to back par threes that skirt little Loch an Eerie. It’s a stunning little trio of holes that makes best use of every inch of the landscape on that part of the property.
I can’t remember when I last saw so many green keepers working on a course (I was told there were 20 working between the King’s and Queen’s with a similar number on the temporarily closed PGA Centenary), mainly hollow tining greens - about half the putting surfaces had been worked on – so the current major renovations off the course are being matched on the fairways and greens.
As this is only the second Queen’s review posted in the last three and a half years, perhaps it’s time non-corporate golfers found out what they are missing by trying one of the special 4-ball tee times offered by Gleneagles or, better still, by booking a discounted tee time via the Top 100 Golf Club? Jim McCann |
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| 27 October 2010
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| | I played the course as a corporate visitor at the end of November after it had been closed for a week due to flooding. Unsurprisingly the course was fairly soggy, but there wasn’t too much standing water. As a result the course played deceptively long for a such a short track. Our enjoyment was not dampened however, (though our feet may have been) as the layout is delightful. Every hole, bar a couple) have either stunning views across the valley or else are pretty enough in themselves that you feel like your playing on a site of outstanding natural beauty. The greens were in good condition, albeit very soft, and they ran true and consistently throughout. The first six holes unfold along the high side of the course before dipping and weaving for the middle 6 holes in preparation for the final leg home. The topography gradually plays a bigger factor in the challenge. A few blind shots from the tee, and big changes in fairway levels really did make you have to think where you put the ball between tee and green and a well placed drive catching a downslope can easily knock 20-30yards off an approach shot. The scorecards have suggested timings per hole, which is a great idea, and we were politely chivvied along by a marshall on the 10th hole as we had dropped behind (unfortunately 4 ball corporate golf is painstakingly slow). The clubhouse and facilities were among the best I’ve ever had the privilege to use, although we couldn’t avail ourselves of the half way hut for lagging behind our schedule. I’d love to come back and play this course again on a dry summers evening (perhaps a foursomes or 2 ball) as well as try out the Kings Course. |
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| 29 January 2010
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| | Played in June 2006. Beautiful setting and a fun course to play, the first 6-7 holes were very challenging into the prevailing wind, so don't be fooled by the par 68. It is enough of a golf course for any player and the finish is tremendous. Personally, I rank the Kings first, this a close second, and the PGA Centenary a distant third at this site. |
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| 17 March 2007
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| | The Queen's Course is first class and I remain unsure as to whether I enjoyed it more than the King's - that's how good it is. There are definitely more stand out holes here but length, particularly nowadays, counts against it. The 7th, 10th, 12th, 17th and 18th made a real impression on me. |
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| 14 April 2006
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| | You can't just talk about the course! The Queen's may be the most beautiful place to play golf in the world. Sun glistens through the trees, deer appear on the fairway, birds swoop and soar, the views of the surrounding hills are simply lovely...Now, the course: the biggest differential between the halves of any course I know -- the back nine is about 6 shots easier. Both are crammed with interesting and challenging holes, notably the par 3s. But the whole experience is a golfing treat as well as an aesthetic one. If you come to Gleneagles for the first time play the Queen's first, then the King's. |
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| 19 February 2006
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| | If this course was a baby you would pinch its cheek and say, " Ohh you lovely cute little, lovely, little, sweet, bbblll, baby, baby (possibly blow on its tummy at this stage)". I love this course. I would rate it second to only the Ailsa at Turnberry, and that said the two are far from comparable. The Queen's is a perfect club golfer track. It is short enough to allow you to score, and pristine enough to let you know you are playing at a world class venue. Take my advice on this, put your pride to one side, don't pretend that you can threaten the PGA off the blue tees (trust me I have played it), instead enjoy all the qualities of Gleneagles on this beautiful course. I hope you get a better impression of the lay out from other reviews, but I hope my review provides you with the best possible day out. Enjoy, I certainly did, and will again. |
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| 19 August 2005
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| | If the Queen's at Gleneagles is the cute little sister of the three courses then the King's is the horrible big brother and the PGA the ugly big sister (more of the latter two in their review sections). I played the Queen's in October 2003 (Gleneagles have had an internet offer of around 30 quid a course in October the last few years so keep your eyes peeled on the web) and found this to be a far better experience than the one I'd had at the King's when I played it. Its a touch under 6000 yards from the medal tees so not too long. The condition of the course from tee to putting surface is so good - everything is well manicured and presented. Some of the views are simply stunning and the whole layout blends in beautifully to its surroundings. The halfway house is worth visiting for a ten minute break on your way round and the Dormie clubhouse has first class facilities from a steam room in the lockers to great food in the lounge - pricey in here, but how often do you play at a venue like Gleneagles? If you plan to make a day of it and play two of the three courses, make the Queen's one of your choices and you'll be guaranteed at least half a good day out! James McCann |
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| 24 January 2005
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| | I must be missing something with the whole Gleneagles thing. Yes, great hotel and nice views but the courses are average and terribly overpriced. These types of courses come a dime a dozen in the states so maybe I'm tarnished by that. Downfield and Rosemount are as good and only half the price. |
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| 01 January 2005
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| | On a nice day the Queens makes you glad a) to be alive and b) that you're a golfer. The views, wildlife and course design are incomparable. How you play is almost secondary (we lost 7&6 and still enjoyed it). You'll find a huge difference between the nines in terms of difficulty -- back nine about 6 shots easier -- but you will never regret anything about your day. Best holes? 6, 7, 10, 13 & 17 for the golf; all of them for the scenery! |
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| 31 October 2004
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| | Such an enjoyable experience. A course to savour in beautiful surroundings. A complete honour and delight to play the Queen's. |
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| 02 April 2004
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