https://southernessgolfclub.com/
Blue tees 6709 yards, par 69
Red tees 5604 yards, par 73
Lying on the north bank of the Solway Firth at the entrance to the Nith estuary, Southerness golf course is opposite Silloth on Solway golf course and due south of Dumfries. It was built in 1946 by a local landowner, Major Richard Oswald, and designed by Mackenzie Ross, the first president of the British Association of Golf Architects. It is notable as being one of the few clubs in which women have had voting rights since its founding.
Southerness is a classic true links course. Framed by the Southern uplands to the north with lovely views to the mountains of the Lake District to the south, there are good views of the Solway Firth especially at the 12th and 13th. We played it on a bright and breezy day. It is fairly flat with hard and fast running fairways and greens and lots of gorse and heather bordering many of the holes. The first three holes are classic links holes and are challenging par 4s bordered by heather and gorse which head away from the clubhouse and into the prevailing wind. The first par three is the 4th which is uphill to a
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| The fourth green has a backdrop of the Southern Uplands |
tricky two tiered green with runoffs especially to the right and bunkers front, right and left. An uphill par 5 follows in the opposite direction and with the prevailing wind. It is a slight dogleg to the left with a burn on the right and left at the corner which is underground as it crosses the fairway. The 6th turns back into the wind but is downhill and has the burn crossing it which can catch a long drive or a poorly hit second shot when the wind is against. A long par three follows from which there is the first sight of the Solway Firth. The first nine is completed by two lovely par fours again bordered by gorse and heather and well bunkered.
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| There are lovely views from the 12th green |
The second nine starts with a par three with a green at an angle to the tee and well guarded by bunkers. The course then heads out along the Solway Firth on the right with some lovely views of Southerness beach and the Lake District in the distance. The 11th is a short par 4 with an elevated green sloping from back to front and guarded by a burn crossing in front of the green. The dogleg par 4 12th opens out to a green which has a pond to the left, bunkers to the right and out of bounds long. The view of Southerness beach is distracting as is the possibility for nature lovers of spotting great crested newts in the pond. This is the most memorable hole on the course. The 13th is a long par 4 for men and a par 5 for women which heads towards the Southerness lighthouse, the second oldest lighthouse in Scotland and the emblem of the club. The course then turns for home with another long par 4/par 5 followed by a par 3 featuring bunkers to the right and left of the green and gorse to punish a long shot. The 17th is a tricky par 3 with no bunkers but an elevated green which is difficult to hold. Failure to stay on the green is punishing with deep swales to negotiate. The course finishes with a par 5 lined by heather and a green overlooked by the clubhouse.
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| The 13th green with the Southerness lighthouse in the background |
Worth playing? It's worth going out of your way to play this course
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