Honest and Short Trail
4 MIN READ
Is there anything more delightful in golf than a quick nine holes on a sunny evening in the company of friends? Short form golf on a wee gem of a course as the sun sets with conversation freely flowing. It’s pure bliss.
Remarkably, one in every five courses in Scotland are made up of only nine holes. Going back generations, these courses were at the heart of village life, the lifeblood of the community often run by volunteers. It remains true, even today, particularly in the most remote parts of the country. For the visitor arriving and finding nobody around, a few pounds are simply honourably placed in an ‘honesty box’ at the clubhouse and off you go. It’s golf as it was meant to be, traditional and charming, with camaraderie at its very heart.
In our modern, time-conscious society, where day-to-day demands often make 18 holes a challenge, the nine-hole game has perhaps never been more relevant. Or what about those now working from home due to the Covid-19 pandemic and with more leisure time on their hands? Go and enjoy a quick nine when time allows. Nine holes can also be easily fitted into a visitor’s busy golfing itinerary.
“To be able to get nine holes in after dinner is a great way to get out on the golf course with family,” concurs Padraig Harrington, the 2020 European Ryder Cup Captain. “I love nine-hole golf because it gives me my fix of golf.”
Our Trail starts in Perthshire, where even the world-famous Gleneagles Hotel offers a nine-hole Wee Course for all abilities. The same applies at Blairgowrie, another renowned venue. An entire visit to the region could be made up of short-form golf, offering exceptional turf, breath taking views and the type of challenges to test even the best.
Base yourself at the luxurious Gleneagles Hotel and take your clubs to the delights of Comrie and St Fillans, before continuing your nine-hole experience on the short Dornock Course at Crieff. Mains of Taymouth at Kenmore is a personal favourite, offering family fun in gloriously picturesque surroundings, with Dunning, Dunkeld & Birnam, Killin, Milnathort and Blair Atholl other pleasant lay outs to sample.
Up in the Highlands, there are plentiful places to stay and wonderful nine-hole golf to explore. The Royal Golf Hotel in Dornoch is steeped in Highland hospitality and the Royal Marine Hotel in Brora another excellent stay-and-play choice.
Make the journey to Durness and you won’t be disappointed. It is the most northerly course on the British mainland. It’s remote, raw and remarkable! Abernethy, Bonar Bridge and Carrbridge are local favourites, while Ullapool, around 60 miles northwest of Inverness, provides excellent vistas. Portmahomack is across the Firth from Dornoch, while you could make the pilgrimage to the Isle of Skye where the course looks out seawards towards the Isle of Raasay and inland towards the Red Cuillin mountains.
For the intrepid visitor, nine holes at St Medan perhaps epitomises short-form golf in Scotland. I’m biased given my previous holidays to the far south-west region as a youngster, but here you will find an absolute cracker of a nine-holer. The most southerly golf club in the country, it sits snuggly on the shores of Luce Bay where the views take the breath away – especially on a June evening.
Wigtown & Bladnoch, Castle Douglas and Gatehouse of Fleet challenge and inspire too. Across in the Borders, where you can enjoy a stay at the exceptional SCHLOSS Roxburghe, you will find beautiful nine-hole golf at Innerleithen, Lauder and Langholm. Nine-hole golf. Honest, short and fun!