Scotland Day 1 – Arrival & Lundin Links

Our group of 12 all met in Chicago to take the same flight into Edinburgh. Due to some delays in Chicago, we didn’t have the relaxing morning I had planned at Lundin Links. But the amazing staff there was still able to accommodate us late in the day to get the full round in. After a couple of drinks we boarded the shuttle to get us to our first home base, the Albany Hotel in downtown St. Andrews. The Albany Hotel is by no means as large as other hotels in the area, but it worked great for our group. Great location, great breakfast in the morning, and a welcoming staff at all times!

Scotland Day 2 – Dumbarnie Links

Round No. 2 for the group saw us get to the wonderful Dumbarnie Links. I have some small personal ties to Dumbarnie Links, so I was very excited to actually play the course that I had heard so much about. I found the entire operation first class! We were greeted by one of the starters who boarded our shuttle to give us all the instructions before letting us go. The full driving range and short game area gave everyone a chance to find their “Scotland swings”. One of the most popular items at Dumbarnie is the wee dram of whiskey served before the first tee shot. The course is more forgiving than I would have expected and it was just plain fun. I think the course lends itself to helping put a good round together. That, coupled with the sheer beauty, made this a terrific day for the group and just about everyone walked away with a giant smile! We ended the night with a group dinner at a local pizza joint.

Scotland Day 3 – The Old Course

I kept Day No. 3 open in case anyone in our group had the gumption to wait in line overnight to try and get out on The Old Course. Chad McGraw and Mike Hunsche were up to the challenge. There were not many open spots available, so getting down in line before midnight turned out to be worth it. The guys ended up getting an afternoon tee time playing together. The coolest part was how many in the group came out to see them play part of the round. We got to see the guys play the first 2 holes before going our separate ways. Later in the day, a few us could not resist going out in the wind and rain to watch the guys finish their round. I have some photos below, but if you want to watch the entirety of what I caught on video, CLICK HERE FOR MY YOUTUBE VIDEO of these 2 fine gentlemen starting and ending their rounds.

Scotland Day 4 – Kingsbarns

We started our day by checking out from the Albany Hotel and transitioning to The Old Course Hotel. After dropping our luggage off, it was on to Kingsbarns. There was plenty of hype surrounding our day at Kingsbarns, one of the truly great courses in Scotland. What I remember the most about that round was having time for only a few swings on the driving range and not thinking about much as I hit them all solid. I decided to try and carry that to the course and keep my mind clear. Man did it work that day. If I had a list of the 10 best hickory golf shots of my life, 5 of them may were during this round at Kingsbarns. The Kauflins and Emigs played a match that will go down in infamy, with Rawn and Roger Emig making consecutive bombs on holes 17 and 18 to secure victory. We ended the day with a group dinner at Hams Heme which is right behind the 18th green of the Old Course at St Andrews.

Scotland Day 5 – Jubilee Course

This was Ryder Cup Friday in Italy, so some of us competed in an unofficial “Obnoxious US Golf Fan” outfit contest. I think Cindy Kauflin narrowly beat out Mike Hunsche for the award. After Team U.S.A. got slaughtered in the early matches, we certainly got a lot of comments from the locals as we gave it our best shot on the Jubilee Course. This round will not be forgotten anytime soon as we dealt with a pretty comical wind just about the entire round. I put together a short collection of videos from the day. CLICK HERE TO SEE THE FULL YOUTUBE VIDEO FROM THE JUBILEE COURSE.

Scotland Day 6 – The Castle Course

Of all the courses booked for the group, I think I was most interested to play The Castle Course for sure. Designed by David McLay-Kidd (who did Mammoth Dunes at Sand Valley in Wisconsin among others) and opened in 2008, the Castle Course has been polarizing for its modern take on links golf. I absolutely loved it! Some very interesting holes, some super crazy green complexes, and some great views of St. Andrews. What’s not to like? The staff was terrific and we had some excellent caddies with our group as well. We finished our last full day together with a group dinner at the Swilcan Loft Restaurant located on the top floor of the Old Course Hotel.

Scotland Day 7 – The Duke’s Course

The Emigs had to leave a day early, but the rest of us got a final round in on The Duke’s Course. The Duke’s Course is owned and operated by the Kohler Corporation and I have made some good contacts there over the years. The Duke’s is much more Americanized than its nearby neighbors. It is a parkland course with a full driving range and motorized buggies to ride in to make you feel like you are back at home. When we got back to the hotel, many in the group took advantage of the Old Course being closed on Sundays and walked the entire course. Then it was time to start packing!

Scotland Day 8 – Gullane

We all boarded our shuttle together and headed for the Edinburgh Airport. Rather than head inside with the rest of the group, I went straight to the rental car facility where Brian Weis was already waiting for me. We got our rental car (me driving, Brian navigating only) and embarked on our journey. First stop: A laundrette I found just south of Edinburgh where i could drop off my laundry and pick it up the following morning. Self-service laundromats weren’t an option, and having the hotel do it was INCREDIBLY cost prohibitive. Brian and I had some coffee and started our golf reconnaissance mission with some stops along the north coast of the East Lothian peninsula, just east of Edinburgh. We made stops at Royal Musselburgh, Kilspindie, Craigelaw, Muirfield, and The Watchman Hotel before making it to Gullane Golf Club for our first round. Brian and I got to play the No. 2 Course at Gullane and had a great time! We made a quick stop at dusk at North Berwick and then checked in for the night at the wonderful Marine North Berwick Hotel.

Scotland Day 9 – Montrose Links

After checking out from the Marine North Berwick, Brian and I made a number of stops as we left the East Lothian area and travelled up and around Edinburgh on our way up the eastern coast. We stopped at Archerfield Links, Muirfield (again, trying to see if we might sneak out), Gullane (again to drop off a thank you card), Longniddry, Monifieth, and Panmure. Our final stop for the day was Montrose Golf Links. Montrose is the 5th oldest golf course in the world and their championship course is known as the 1562 Course in honor of its opening date. What a wonderful layout! A great combination of true links holes against the North Sea and tricky inland holes looping back to the clubhouse. The true test was the Par 4 second hole. Heavy left to right prevailing wind combined with a fairway that turns left to right. All you really see from the tee are out-of-bounds stakes as far as the eye can see down the right side of the hole, with the Montrose Beach lurking down below. Very intimidating! We spent the night at the Park Hotel in downtown Montrose.

Scotland Day 10 – Trump International Scotland

My contacts at Trump International Scotland (aka Trump Aberdeen) are some of the best in the industry, so I was thrilled to actually get to see their property after all this time. Brian and I made a few stops on the way before meeting the staff for coffee and a tour. We stopped at Royal Aberdeen and were given a little tour of the clubhouse and members area. Just outside of the clubhouse we got to see what has to be the world’s greatest shoe and trolley cleaning station! We then stopped by and saw my friends at nearby Murcar Links before a quick pop in at Newburgh on Ythan Golf Club. Then it was on to Trump International.

After a tour of their super high end lodging options, Brian and I were left on our own to experience the golf course. There is certainly a lot of backstory on Trump’s hurdles to build the course, etc, but there is one undeniable fact: This is one of the most beautiful golf courses on planet Earth. Luckily after a tough stretch of treacherous holes on the front nine, the back nine opened up a bit and presented some UNBELIEVABLE golf holes. The grass walkways from green to tee between holes were like carpet, so you can imagine how good the actual golf course was. A truly splendid place to play golf!!!

Scotland Day 11 – Castle Stuart

This was easily our most aggressive day of the overall plan. Our drive from Aberdeen to Inverness was going to take us about 4-1/2 hours of drive time and we had about 7 hours to do it with a number of stops to make along the way. We got up bright and early from our hotel in downtown Aberdeen to meet up with the GM at the ultra-popular Cruden Bay. Besides Muirfield, Cruden Bay is definitely the course that was the most difficult to visit and explore without putting a ball into the air. Brian and I could have spent hours in the old clubhouse at Cruden Bay which serves as a golf museum. We then went up and around the northeast coast of Scotland, visiting Peterhead, Fraserburgh, Cullen, Spey Bay, Moray Golf Club in Lossiemouth, Nairn Dunbar, and Nairn. Whew!

When we arrived at Cabot Highlands to play the Castle Stuart course, there was some wind and rain to contend with. But luckily after only a few holes, the weather subsided and we could enjoy an amazingly still and calm evening out on this world class course. I found Castle Stuart to be one of the most enjoyable hickory golf courses I have ever played. Pretty open off of the tee with some amazingly interesting green complexes to contend with. Many holes could be played in a number of different ways, and the conditions and overall setting were absolutely world class!

Scotland Day 12 – Brora

We had coffee with my contact at the Kingsmills Hotel in Inverness before beginning our journey up into The Highlands. Our first stop was Fortrose & Rosemarkie Golf Club. The Club Secretary at F&R was one of the first connections in Scotland I ever made years ago, so it was a thrill to see the course for the first time. What a unique place. If you look at the photos below you will see the map of the course which covers a small peninsula surrounded by water. There is a small road bisecting the course, with Fortrose on one side and Rosemarkie on the other. Their signature hole is a short Par 3 where you hit over the road and onto the green, going from one township to the other with one swing!

Our round for the day was at Brora Golf Club, our northernmost point of the trip. I had heard nothing but positive things about Brora and it did NOT disappoint. Brora is most known for having sheep and cows grazing all over the place while you are playing. Each green is surrounded by a knee-high, low voltage electric fence to keep the livestock from damaging the greens. There are no openings. You step over to putt out and step back over to get to the next tee box. Great course, great views, and great hospitality at Brora! We then stopped by Golspie Golf Club on the way back before checking into the Royal Golf Hotel overlooking Royal Dornoch!

Scotland Day 13 – Royal Dornoch

We kept this morning open to catch our breath and get some laundry done. We did go exploring and visited Tain Golf Club and Bonar Bridge Golf Course during the morning. This was our worst weather day of the trip.  Tain and most of the other local courses had to close due to the amount of rain they took on overnight and into the morning. Luckily, Royal Dornoch drains very well and we were still able to get our round in on one of the world’s top courses.

We had a little celebrity sighting as former PGA Tour Player Brad Faxon teed off right in front of us at Royal Dornoch. To me, there is nothing better than knowing you are going to play in wind and rain and being prepared for it. Brian and I had an amazing afternoon on Royal Dornoch. The course is pretty much 9 out and 9 back along a crescent shaped coastline. The front 9 is mostly elevated and then you turn and drop down to holes right along the beach. It was an awesome day. We moved over to the newly renovated Dornoch Station Hotel for our final night in the Highlands.

Scotland Day 14 – Travel Thru The Highlands

No golf planned this day. We took the long way from Dornoch to get down to the World Hickory Open in the Troon area. First we made a quick stop at the Culloden Battlefield. As a fan of the show Outlander, I felt I must make a short pilgrimage to this famous spot that plays such a pivotal role in the series. Then it was about a 6 hour drive to go down along the entire Loch Ness, thru Fort William and the Glencoe area, heading south. The positive was every little town was adorable and the mountains were incredible. The negative was it was raining and foggy the ENTIRE way. We made it for the kick off social for the World Hickory Open before checking in to the Marine Troon Hotel for the rest of the trip. After 7 different hotels in 7 nights, it was a welcome sight!

Scotland Day 15 – Dundonald Links and Royal Troon

The World Hickory Open got underway at Dundonald Links, which hosted the Ladies Scottish Open just a few weeks prior. This first day was more of a team event, with the best 2 scores counting from your foursome. After getting over the initial first tee jitters, I can safely say that I hit the ball pretty darn well most of the round. For the most part I avoided the gorse, fairway bunkers, and train tracks that came into play. Even though I broke out a quality hickory outfit for the round at Dundonald, it was very hard to compete with my playing partners from Switzerland who absolutely BROUGHT IT!

When we checked into the hotel the previous day, Brian and I walked into the clubhouse of Royal Troon, host to the 2024 Open Championship. We were lucky enough to meet up with their Bookings Manager and tell them our story. We set the tone for possibly coming back after our round at Dundonald to see if we could get out on the course. Success! We got about 11 holes in before dark, including the infamous “Postage Stamp” Par 3 8th hole! It was awesome!

Scotland Day 16 – Western Gailes and Trump Turnberry

The first official day of the 3 day World Hickory Open tournament will be a day that Brian and I will never forget. After walking basically 36 holes the day before, we made sure to get a solid breakfast before heading to Western Gailes. Let me cut to the chase and tell you that I played well at Western Gailes, hitting the ball pretty solid most of the day. I carded a nice solid 94 for my efforts. To put it in perspective for you golfers reading this is difficult. No measuring devices allowed and no caddies, so just your yardage book and the thoughts of the other 3 in your group to go on. Varying green speeds. And lots and lots of wind. There was a consistent 35-40 mph wind going at Western Gailes, so who knows what a realistic par for the course was that day. Every 18 inch putt was a test of wills! That being said, Western Gailes was one of the finest true links courses I have ever seen!

We all know what it feels like to get pelted in the face with wind on the golf course for 4 or more hours. Normally, the last thing you want to do is go play more golf. But Brian and I agreed that if there was time we would make the effort to get down to Trump Turnberry. I got done first and was waiting for Brian with a travel cup full of hot soup when he came into the clubhouse. We stuck to our plan and made the 45 minute drive down to Turnberry.  Unlike the night before on Royal Troon, this time we came prepared. Even though the guys in the shop thought we might only get in 11 or 12 holes, we finished all 18, playing glow balls for the final couple of holes. When you look at the photos below, you will see why it was an unforgettable night. The sunset was ridiculous! What a place!

Scotland Day 17 – Prestwick

Home to the first ever Open Championship in 1860, what a thrill it was to have Prestwick in our rota for the World Hickory Open. Looing back on the round, to tackle Prestwick with no rangefinder and no caddie might have been the most challenging round I have ever played. Prestwick is the perfect combination of quirky and standard holes. What do I mean by quirky? The first hole might be the most unnerving first shot on any course in the world, with a wall lining the train tracks going down the entire right side of the hole. The 5th hole is known as The Himalayas. It is a blind par 3 over a wall. On the wall there are colored lines painted to tell you where to aim. If you are on the green tee box, aim over the green line and so on. But the ultimate is the 17th hole known as The Alps. A long par 4 where the fairway narrows and rises up into the sky. Over that rise is some hay, and then a bunker called The Sahara, then a beveled green, and more hay. Believe it or not, The Alps remains almost exactly as it looked in 1860. It was unreal! My final score of 93 included a 9 on The Alps with a lost ball in the hay long, backed up by a birdie 3 on the final hole. The ol’ 9-3 finish!

Scotland Day 18 – Kilmarnock Barassie

I made a great connection with the GM from Kilmarnock at the tourism convention I attended earlier in the year. So I was thrilled to learn that his course was going to be part of the World Hickory Open. When we showed up to the course to find very little wind, everyone was thrilled after the previous days. Then when I birdied the opening Par 5 and was even after 4 holes I definitely had delusions of a quality score. Two lost balls off of OK drives and an untimely shank at the end brought me home in 91, with the dream of breaking 90 scuttled by that hosel rocket! We said our goodbyes at the social later in the night and went back to pack up and head home.

World Hickory Open

Thanks to all of the organizers and sponsors for putting on such a fine event. To all of my playing partners and other participants that I met along the way, it was pleasure meeting all of you. Thanks to Graham, the event’s official photographer for getting so many quality shots. Until next time!

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