Murcar Links

www.murcarlinks.com

White tees par 71, SSS 72, 6303 yards

Red tees par 72, SSS 73, 5635 yards

Murcar Links Golf Club lies adjacent to and north of Royal Aberdeen Golf Club on the links coast of Aberdeenshire which includes Cruden Bay, Newburgh on Ythan and the newer Trump International Golf Links at Balmedie.  Opened in 1909, the original course architect was Archie Simpson who was the professional at Royal Aberdeen and purportedly dropped in on his lunch breaks to design the course.  Advice on alterations was obtained from James Braid in the 1930s.  In the days before cars were widely owned the difficulty of reaching the course from nearby Aberdeen was solved by the use of the Strabathie light railway owned by the Seaton Brick and Tile Company.  It ran past the clubhouse and through the middle of the course.  Bought by the club in 1924 the railway was used until 1949 and was only removed in 2006. 

The narrow entrance to the 3rd green

The view from the 5th tee with a notable absence of fairway

We played Murcar with Lynn and David Lawson on a cold and windy day.  The overall impression of this course is long carries over vicious rough and a number of blind drives.  Take plenty of golf balls!   The first three holes are par 4s adjacent to Royal Aberdeen.  The third hole runs downhill to a green situated in a bowl with a tight entrance guarded by gorse and rough.  The course then turns to the north and the next stretch of six holes running by the sea was the best part of the course.  With no fairway the par 3 5th is a fearsome hole with a long uphill carry into the wind over hummocks

The 7th, 'Serpentine' has a long carry over a burn and a twisting

fairway uphill to the green

covered by thick rough.  Anything less than perfection is a goner!  The 7th, 'Serpentine' is deservedly the signature hole with a high tee with panoramic views of the North Sea, a drive over a ravine which must carry a twisting burn to a narrow fairway guarded by a gorse covered hill on the left and punitive rough on the right.  The second shot is to a front to back sloping green where anything right or long is in trouble.  The next three holes have long carries for the drive with the 10th being blind over gorse bushes. 

The 12th hole maintains the standard of difficult par 3s with no fairway and a sloping green.  The course then turns for home with a stretch of weaker holes on the inland side which lost some of the character of the earlier holes.  The 13th has a blind uphill drive and then a steep downhill slope to a flat rather nondescript green and the 14th had a wet fairway.  The last of the par 3s is the 16th which plays at right angles to the 15th to a plateau green.  The course then finishes with two short par 4s.

The par 3 16th crosses a ravine to a plateau green

Worth playing?  Yes - a tough course with some wonderful links holes but some disappointing ones.

Newburgh on Ythan, Newburgh, Aberdeenshire, Scotland

www.newburghgolfclub.co.uk

White tees par 72, SSS 72, 6423 yards

Red tees par 72, SSS 72, 5416 yards


Founded in 1888, Newburgh on Ythan (pronounced 'eye-than' and an old Pictish word meaning gorse) was initially a nine hole course laid out along the river Ythan and on the coastal dunes between the small town of Newburgh and the North Sea.  It was briefly an eighteen hole course in the early 20th century before being redesigned as a nine hole course after the First World War by James McAndrew, the professional at nearby Cruden Bay (see 24/10/2016).  It was not until 1996 that the course was extended to eighteen holes with the purchase of land to the south of the original course.

A stone wall guards the 4th green

Newburgh on Ythan is truly a game of two halves which we played on a sunny day with Lynn and David Lawson.  The first nine are built on a hilly area to the south of the clubhouse and although claimed to be on large sand dunes play and look more like a heathland course.  That is not to say that this is an easy part of the golf course as all the holes are either up or downhill and there a number of multi-tiered greens.  The second is a difficult long par 3 which needs a perfect strike to hold the well bunkered green.   The most memorable hole is the par 4 4th whose main hazard is a stone wall straddling the fairway and an odd out of bounds to the left.  The first nine finishes with a long par 5 with a blind drive and a green overlooked by the clubhouse and protected on either side by walls of gorse bushes.

The 15th green with the Forvie Nature Reserve in the background

The second nine is a completely different proposition - a true old fashioned links course with bumpy fast running fairways, revetted bunkers, bowl greens and beautiful views over the River Ythan and the stunning huge sand dunes of the Forvie National Nature Reserve on its opposite bank.  Golfing ornithologists will be totally distracted by the birdlife on the estuary.   The 15th and 16th run along the river bank and a hook will result in a watery grave.  The 15th is a short par 4 with a crumpled fairway and a green guarded by mounds and gorse.  The 16th is a particularly daunting par 3 with the green appearing to be in a sea of marram grass.  For the uninitiated the route in looks to be from the right but there lie bunkers to catch the unwary.  The 18th is an attractive long par 5 with a dogleg to the left to a green tucked at the base of the hill on which the clubhouse stands.

The 18th green is overlooked by the imposing clubhouse

Worth playing?  Yes - although only the back nine holes are a true links course.

Cruden Bay Championship, Aberdeenshire, Scotland

 www.crudenbaygolfclub.co.uk

White tees par 70, SSS 71, 6287 yards
Red tees par 74, SSS 74, 5722 yards

Cruden Bay owes its existence to the Great North of Scotland Railway Company which commissioned an eighteen hole golf course for its newly erected Cruden Bay Hotel, both of which opened in 1899.  The railway brought golfers and hotel guests to nearby Port Erroll from where a specially constructed tram line delivered them to the front door of the hotel.  The course was designed by Old Tom Morris and Archie Simpson and the inaugural tournament in April 1899, graced by many famous golfing names such as James Braid, Ben Sayers and Andrew Kirkaldy, was won by Harry Vardon.  In 1926 the layout was redesigned by the partnership of Tom Simpson and Herbert Fowler and apart from minor changes remains the same today.

The fourth is a testing par three with a

difficult carry to the green

On arrival at Cruden Bay there is a dramatic view of the sand dunes, fairways and greens of the two courses, the Championship and the nine hole St Olaf, and beyond to the sea from the elevated clubhouse.  Expectations are high at this stage but unfortunately are not completely fulfilled by the course.  The first hole is a long par 4 with a left to right sloping fairway.     The second is a weak hole

with a plateau green which is so steep that the pin cannot be seen from thirty yards short.  The 3rd is a quirky hole with a blind tee shot which must be placed on the left half of the fairway otherwise the approach to the green is also blind.  The 4th is a lovely par three which plays towards the sea from a elevated tee on a large sand dune over a deep hollow to an elevated green carved out of another dune.  On the left is the Water of Cruden and the small fishing village of Port Erroll.  There follows a roller coaster of holes starting with the fearsome carry from the elevated tee at the 5th. For ladies the approach shot to the 6th is almost impossibly difficult, usually requiring a wood which must carry a burn just short of

The approach to the 6th green is guarded by a burn and bunkers 

the green and hold a sloping green.  The 7th is another dogleg left to a steep plateau green.  From the 8th tee we commented on the enormous sand dune to the left, little realising that it had to be climbed to reach the 9th tee.  A killer climb is rewarded by wonderful views of the sea and golden sand beach of the Bay of Cruden.

Several rather nondescript holes follow with the 10th, 11th and 12th being rather wet as they lie in a flood plain on a lower level.  A burn meanders across the course at this point and comes into play at the 10th, 11th and 13th which is a par 5 to a green set in a bowl.  The two weakest holes on the course follow.  Both the tee shot and the approach shot to the 14th are blind and the par 3 15th is also a blind hole.  Unusually the 16th is also a par 3 and is a  classic links course short hole with the green guarded by the 'coffins', grassy hollows to the right and back of the green.  The course finshes with two wet and unmemorable holes.

The view from the 9th tee looking back over the 15th green to

to the right and the 16th green to the left

The terrain is very demanding at Cruden Bay and there are a number of hole routings with blind shots and some 'no-nos' of modern golf design.  This is offset by the very warm and helpful welcome which we had from all the staff.

Worth playing?  Yes but be prepared for a frustrating round!

St Olaf course, Cruden Bay, Aberdeenshire, Scoltand

www.crudenbaygolfcourse.co.uk

Blue tees par 64, SSS 64, 4926 yards
Red tees par 68, SSS 68, 4692 yards

St Olaf is the nine hole course which lies in the middle of the Cruden Bay championship course (see today's date).  It is on fairly flat but undulating terrain and is a welcome relief after the steep slopes of the second nine of the big course.  Its main defences are gorse and strategically placed bunkers.  The most memorable holes are the par 4 sixth and the four par 3s  The 6th has an approach over a hill to an elevated green nestling in the dunes.  This is followed by the par three 7th which plays over a gully to a sloping green. The ninth is a lovely par three to a large undulating green which is a real birdie opportunity with an accurate drive.

The 6th green

Worth playing?  Yes as a fun little course.  A welcome relief after the frustrations of the big course!