THE RANKINGS PROVE THAT SCOTLAND’S GOLF COAST IS HARD TO BEAT
In the National Club Golfer’s Top 100 Fun Courses in Great Britain and Ireland, East Lothian features seven times. In Golf World’s Top 100 courses in Scotland, East Lothian has 13 entries. In a nutshell, that’s Scotland’s Golf Coast. Arguably, Scotland’s No1. golf destination. So many unique and exciting experiences. The subjectivity of a golf ranking is its beauty. With so many courses to choose from, almost 600 in Scotland, the debate rages.
The Stalwarts
Consistently, a handful of names always appear in the world’s Top 100s, a slightly bigger handful in the Top 50. East Lothian is lucky to have two. Having hosted the Open 16 times, it’s no surprise to see Muirfield reach as high as number two in some lists. Perhaps more of a surprise, but impressively getting higher and higher is North Berwick. A fun, challenging and charismatic course, North Berwick plays with the traditionalist’s heart strings.
From a bucket-list perspective, for those travelling on ‘once in a lifetime’ golf trips, we can celebrate these two courses. Without question they deservedly feature in every world’s best, including Golf Digest and Golf Magazine. The quintessential East Lothian links experience with the mastery of Old Tom Morris stubbornly lurking over each bunker and around every green.
Gullane 1 makes it a ranking hat-trick
However, the region has the greatest concentration of Championship links golf courses in the world. East Lothian is far from being a two-trick pony. Having hosted the Scottish Open in 2015 and 2018, Gullane No.1 is notably finding itself high up the UK & Ireland rankings. Gullane No.1 reaches number 22 in Golf World’s Top 100 in Scotland and 61 in Golf Monthly’s Great Britain & Ireland list. As one of three courses at Gullane, it rightly receives many a column inch.
As mentioned previously, the Golf World Top 100 in Scotland is important to highlight. 13 courses out of our 21 in the region appear in this publication. The versatility of East Lothian is beautifully demonstrated here as Muirfield at number 3 is joined by 12 others, including Kilspindie at 43, Longniddry at 83 and Gullane No.3 at 88. We talk about East Lothian golf suiting all budgets and all abilities, there you have it.
Championship classics
National Club Golfer’s Top 100 in Great Britain and Ireland has six East Lothian courses. The three stalwarts appear, but they are joined by Luffness, Scottish Open host venue – The Renaissance Club and the wonderful Dunbar. Like North Berwick, Luffness and Dunbar are courses for the purists. Both extremely different, with Dunbar clinging to the rocks and Luffness enjoying the lower turf of Gullane Hill, their reputation is strong.
The number of championship courses on the coast is undeniable. The acclaimed golf course designers attributed to so many of the courses is unquestionable. But, we understand that golf is about more than the prestige. Both National Club Golfer and Golf World have produced a Top 100 of ‘Fun’ courses. Making an appearance is Musselburgh Old Links, celebrating its 350th anniversary this year. 9 holes with hickory clubs is hard to beat if you love the game. Gullane No.3, the shorter of the three Gullane courses also features, as does Winterfield, a municipal course at £30 a round!
Courses for all budgets and ability
Talking about money, Craigielaw features in a ‘Best Of’ courses under £60. There are too many examples to talk about but Gullane 2, The Glen and Archerfield need a tip of the hat too.
Scotland’s No.1 Golf Destination
Scotland is a sensational place to play golf. The Home of Golf. Scotland’s Golf Coast is not a bad place to start if you are looking to tick off lists, get value for money, or enjoy everything this great country has to offer. Biased, of course, but we’re confident that we are ranked as the No1. Golf Destination in Scotland. See you soon.
