Most people reading this have probably never heard of Whistling Rock Country Club.

Before the 2015 Presidents Cup, I was definitely one of them, as I could not name a single golf course in South Korea. But I saw the look in D.J. Piehowski’s eyes when he reported back about his experience at this club about an hour and a half east of Seoul. I knew that I had to try to see it for myself.

“It was without a doubt the coolest, weirdest golf experience I’ve ever had,” he said. “The service felt way too good to be true. Like, you couldn’t shake the feeling the entire day that they were confusing us with someone far more important.”

When the opportunity to come over and cover the inaugural CJ Cup at Nine Bridges came up, I immediately began trying to find a way to visit this remote destination.

We spend a lot of time in this space trying to help you plan your golf trips. This is not going to be one of those reviews. Golf is booming in South Korea, but golf tourism is not very well established. Most of the top Korean courses are (extremely) private, extravagant, and incredibly expensive. Many courses even pride themselves on their exclusivity, and wear the title as a badge of honor. Whistling Rock is a member’s club and unless your rolodex is stacked full of Korean golf contacts, it’s unlikely that the opportunity to play it will present itself. But through video, pictures, and my best attempt at words, I’ll try to bring to life one of the most unique golf experiences I’ve ever had.

The Korean golf experience is one of formality and hospitality. I had not experienced anything remotely resembling the level of hospitality afforded by these clubs, Whistling Rock in particular. It was beyond anything I’d seen prior, or have seen since.

To help illustrate the bizarre conundrum that is my life, I was picked up by an employee of the club from my $19-a-night Airbnb in Seoul at 7 AM and driven through rural Korea to one of the most extravagant places imaginable. I was dressed in the nicest clothes I brought to Asia – khaki pants and my go-to Holderness & Bourne sweater. I already knew that I was going to be underdressed upon arrival and had no choice but to power through feeling like a fish-out-of-water.

The drive from Seoul was spectacular. The highway carved through mountains and rolling, verdant valleys with the first hues of autumn in the leaves. The journey was a stark contrast to the modernity and sprawl of nearby Seoul.

Climbing the last hill to the parking lot, our car was greeted by an uncomfortably large cadre of people waiting for my arrival. To an American guest, this kind of treatment creates anxiety. But I’m assured by Tony, the driver (and the assistant to David Fisher, the club’s VP of International Business and my host for the day), that this sort of treatment is normal in Korea. And while I’ve played my fair share of country club golf, I’m more of a change-shoes-in-the-parking-lot kinda guy. My mind was racing. 

I dropped my belongings in the locker room, and proceeded upstairs via elevator (lol) for breakfast. I passed a few of the 30,000 bottles of wine stored in-house and sat down with David for eggs and coffee. The clubhouse is described as “a floating beacon above the golf course,” and the views from the upper level immediately provided an appreciation for the scale of the landscape. After that first look at the course I couldn’t make it out to the first tee soon enough. 

 In Korea, there is much more to the golf experience than time actually spent on course.

We wrapped breakfast, and after a quick change of clothes, strolled out of the enormous glass doors to the patio to meet our caddie. At the handful of Korean clubs I’ve been to, the caddies are all female. There’s one cart per group, capable of accommodating an entire foursome. The ladies are extremely professional, knowledgeable, and approximately eight steps ahead of you the entire day. The carts themselves are capable of driving along the cart paths on their own, controlled by a remote on the caddie’s waist. The first time you see the cart moving on its own, you’re tempted to run it down on foot thinking that it’s a runaway. While you do have the cart to ride between holes from time to time, you typically walk down the fairway from shot to shot, which makes for a drastically different experience than a normal round in a cart. The caddie then waits for you in the fairway with your yardage and an array of clubs to choose from, and the social aspect of the walking portion of the round is effectively preserved.

Building this golf course was an enormous project, as three quarters of a million cubic meters of rock were blasted to route the three nines. This task was assigned to Ted Robinson, Jr. and his team. While on this site we typically appreciate the art of minimalism when it comes to golf courses, Whistling Rock is the antithesis of minimalism.

“The Doak Scale” is the famous grading system used by architect Tom Doak to evaluate golf courses. His five volume set of 

 goes through golf courses from around the world and rates them on a scale of 0-10. The description for a “0” is as follows:

“A course so contrived and unnatural that it may poison your mind, which I cannot recommend under any circumstances. Reserved for courses that wasted ridiculous sums of money in their construction, and probably shouldn’t have been built in the first place.”

Any time you hear about exorbitant amounts of money being spent on a golf course, your mind automatically turns to the word contrived. Often times when that much dirt is moved, the feeling of artificiality can’t be shaken. However, I was pleasantly surprised that this wasn’t the case at Whistling Rock. The rock formations, the lakes, and the waterfalls were all subtle and didn’t appear man-made at first (or even second) glance. The fact that so much land can be moved and go unrecognized to the naked (albeit unprofessional) eye is remarkable, and I gathered an even greater appreciation for what had been accomplished here. Add to that the scale of the property and it’s truly remarkable what the developers were able to accomplish. The blend of nature, solitude, and peacefulness was seamless.

In communicating with David after the round, he mentioned he’d like me to compare Whistling Rock to another course I would be playing later on in the trip: South Cape. He said he’d be curious to hear what I thought were the good and the great holes from each course. I was happy to oblige, but found the task much more difficult than I had imagined. I walked away from Whistling Rock absolutely blown away by the experience, but simultaneously shocked that I had trouble listing off truly 

 golf holes in retrospect. And I don’t mean that in a critical way. The sum of all of the parts, the unique landscape, fall foliage, and the serenity of the walk really struck a chord with me in a way that I struggle to describe succinctly. A hole by hole description of Whistling Rock just doesn’t capture the essence or experience of the property, so I’ll be a bit brief in this next section.

There are 27 holes at Whistling Rock. We went through the nines in the standard order of Cocoon-Temple-Cloud.

Cocoon sits on the lowest part of the property. As the name suggests, a metamorphosis occurs and the routing transforms as it approaches higher elevations (the Koreans are not short on metaphors when it comes to golf).

All three nines start with a relaxed, shortish par-4. The first on the Cocoon 9 is about 340 yards, and the tee shot is played out toward an iconic mountain backdrop. A wedge from there brings you to the putting surface, where you immediately get an appreciation for the challenge you’ll be facing. The green contours are 

The 2nd hole is a thrilling risk/reward par-5, and the first of three straight half-par holes (and probably my favorite of the 27). This one is 570 yards from the back tees, with a tee shot playing relatively straight forward. A solid drive left me about 280 in, with this view over the water:

The green appears to be sitting on a cliff edge, and there’s nowhere to miss. It’s a true risk/reward shot, and a big ego test right off the bat (you already know what I chose). A pure 3-wood left me in the small slit of fairway just in front of the green. It’s a gripping and challenging approach that remains one of my most enduring memories of the day.

After two easier holes to start, the Cocoon 9 gets rude. The 3rd is a long uphill par-4 that took a solid drive and a 4-iron to reach. This is also the first of the renovated putting surfaces that are described in a bit. This hole is shown below from behind the green:

It was difficult at times to get a full appreciation for the dramatic elevation changes of some holes until looking back at them from a different angle. There’s 

 some kind of slope in play. The same goes for the green surfaces, as the slopes often are much more severe than they would appear to the naked eye due to the grandeur of the surroundings.

This element actually prompted the club to soften the slopes on several greens and completely renovate others due to the lack of pinnable space on the surfaces. Specifically, the 3rd green was lowered so that players could run shots up onto the green with the long irons that are required to get home.

Courtesy of the Whistling Rock website, below is a fascinating time-lapse of the renovation. Holy man hours!

Eric Iverson (part of Doak’s Renaissance design group) was commissioned to remodel the greens to tone them down, and the results are exceptional. The slopes are still strong, but the contours are subtle and consistent. Most importantly none of the greens felt tricked up or unnecessarily difficult the day I played them. They’re manageable for the high handicapper, and challenging enough to provoke thought for the low handicapper.

The 4th on the Cocoon 9 is another signature hole. The 340 yards it reads on the card is significantly longer than the crow flies, and gives the player yet another rousing risk/reward shot from the tee. It was about 290 to the center for me, and played even shorter than that.

The 5th goes out to a quiet part of the property, and the 6th tee is where you encounter the first tea house. Consistent with the theme of a day of golf in Korea lasting an entire day, a halfway house is much too deep into the round for your first break. On each of the three nines, a mid-round break is taken in the grandiose (and staffed) tea houses.

! The club takes great pride in the unique nature of these structures and what they represent, and it sticks out as a vital part of the experience even several months after the trip.

Rested and ready, we emerged from the Cocoon tea house to complete the nine. On the remaining holes of Cocoon, several pin positions were right on that dividing line of rewarding a solid shot and 

 punishing a poor one. On the par-5 7th, a new back left pin was added at the bottom of a collection area. From the fairway with a wedge in hand, it looked like a beautiful punchbowl that was going to collect an approach and bring it right next to the stick. I missed the shot right and got crushed.

Consistent with the Cocoon, the Temple 9 eases you in with a short par-4, and then proceeds (again) to a lengthy par-5. Unlike Cocoon 2 the hole is essentially unreachable, playing almost 600 yards, with a severely uphill second shot to a green angled sharply to the right. Both the climb and the hole are tough, but you’re immediately rewarded on the next tee with a launching pad from the highest point on the property to the fairway over 200 feet below.

In addition to the aforementioned renovation of several green complexes, Iverson also redesigned the 8th and 9th holes on the Temple 9. The 8th (below) was transformed from a par-3 into a unique par-4 that bends severely to the left and traverses a large mound in the fairway on the green approach. At about 340 yards, it wasn’t quite drivable for me but offered plentiful options. The 9th was renovated from a par-4 with a tough forced carry approaching the green, to a medium length par-3 over the same hazard.

The Cloud 9 was our final loop of the day, and the difference between it and the other two nines was stark. This was the only nine where Iverson did not renovate the greens, and it was only after playing this nine that I got a full appreciation of the work he did on the other two. The punishment for mishits around the greens was severe and overly-penal. On one occasion, I spun a wedge off the front of the green, then took three chips to get over the huge false front. For a high handicapper, I can see these severe undulations being a deterrent.

As mentioned at the top, Whistling Rock loves its metaphors. All but five of the 27 holes sit on one side of the biggest mountain, and these 22 holes represent life. Through a tunnel and out the other side of the mountain, five holes sit in full seclusion from everything except nature. No other players, no views of the other 22, no view of the clubhouse, and apart from the tea house, no sign of civilization. This part of the property represents the afterlife. This shit is deep!

Despite the severe greens, the Cloud 9 was a perfect finale to the day. Usually 18 holes doesn’t feel like enough, and the unique experience on this part of the property was the perfect nightcap. It’s worth noting that the land in “the afterlife” is even more severe than the previous life, and the challenges that come with these holes are even more extreme. In the evening sunlight, the fall foliage popped even harder. The afterlife might be a sensory overload!

Consistent with the entire experience to this point, the 19th hole experience in Korea is a unique deal. The first step is what they call the sauna. In reality, this is a hot tub in the men’s locker room, except, as you might expect, much more over the top. At Whistling Rock there were multiple tubs, each with its temperature stated to the decimal point. I stripped down to my birthday suit, and climbed in with the other members of the group to debrief on the day. The setting was a bit uncomfortable at first, but I was surprised how quickly I got used to it. By the end of the trip, I was left wondering why every round of golf doesn’t end this way.

Next up was the shower, and the re-dress for dinner. The day started in the dark in Seoul and the sun had long since set as we went back up the elevator to the dining area. As expected the food and the service were top of class. I still can’t quite shake the ridiculousness of the level of hospitality. What do they do when someone who is 

The food and wine came in droves, and David and I chatted deep into the night. As long as the day was, it was hard to actually pile in the car knowing this is likely a place I won’t ever see again. At least I could leave knowing it’s a place I won’t ever forget.

Whistling Rock

On the eastern coast of the North Island of New Zealand, perched high above the Pacific Ocean sits Cape Kidnappers, a 2004 Tom Doak creation easily among the most dramatic golf courses on earth. I arrived at the gate on a stunning December morning and pressed the button to call the Pro Shop and have them buzz me in.

Drive safe?! Huh? From the gate to the clubhouse?

Soon, I realized. Twisting turns over mountainous terrain and around streams and canyons continued for several miles until green grass mercifully appeared. At multiple points I wondered if there was a turn that I had missed. This video is from 

The pictures of Cape Kidnappers have been circulating in golf magazines for years. Chances are that you’ve seen the ubiquitous overhead shots of the cliffs at some point and not even realized it. Doak offered up the following summary of his first impression:

“When I arrived in Napier, they picked me up in a helicopter and flew me across to meet Julian, so the first time I saw the site was as you see it pictured in the magazines, from the air rather than on the ground. We spent all day on the ground, and then at the end of the day, we went back to Napier via an old two-track road, for miles and miles with a bunch of stream crossings. All I could think was, this entrance road is going to cost more to build than the golf course!”

Doak was referring to Julian Robertson, the owner and developer of both Cape Kidnappers and Kauri Cliffs up the coast. Mr. Robertson was insistent on routing the back nine out onto the narrow fingers along the cape and found an architect in Doak who was up for the challenge. The fingers sit 400 feet above the South Pacific Ocean, which shimmers below with a blue tint reminiscent of the Caribbean.

The cliffside holes are certainly the main attraction and the reason why you come. Heck, for $360 USD (for an international guest in the peak season) you better leave feeling like the views and experience were worth it. And you do.

With that in mind, I was genuinely shocked when I looked back and wondered whether I enjoyed the front nine even more than I did the back! While it doesn’t offer the same dramatic views offered by the back, the front makes up for it with intriguing land movements and shots that I wanted to play over and over again. Perhaps it helped that I knew next to nothing about the front nine before teeing it up, but Doak clearly paid particular care to this part of the property to ensure that the cliffside holes were not the only memory golfers take away from the day.

For example, the blind tee shot on the par-5 4th was a thrilling swing (photo cred: 

A small post serves as the aiming point, and while seemingly narrow from the back tee, the hole surprises as you crest the ridge to a wide fairway. There is also a speed slot on the left side that enables a look at getting home in two.

The front nine is not entirely inland, as you do get a taste of the views to come on several holes. As views go, the par-3 5th was among the highlights. The hole plays over a ravine to a green a protected by a cliff on the left side:

Yet another indelible shot was the approach into the par-4 7th, which trundles down a hill to a perched green guarded by bunkers on the left side:

Moving from the 9th green to the 10th tee, the ambiance and energy of the course certainly shifted. I knew I was about to play one of the most extreme nine hole stretches in the world. Heck, at that point I wasn’t even sure the land was suitable 

 a golf course. The wind got much stronger, and was beating dead-in off the ocean on that that particular day, which meant the holes out on the fingers would be even more challenging.

As it played dead into the wind for me, the 10th was beast at 475 yards and totally exposed to the elements. Thankfully the vistas helped distract from the score I carded.

The 11th is a par-3 that comes back inland before the 12th sends you right back out into the breeze. Similar to the 10th, the view from the 12th fairway makes the green look like it sits directly against the ocean horizon on an infinity cliff. This shot was one of the most thrilling of my entire trip to NZ:

The 13th allows groups to catch their breath a bit, however that doesn’t mean it was any less memorable. The tiny par-3 is the only hole on this side that plays along the coast (rather than back and forth from the coast), and typically plays with a cross-breeze.

Doak offered the following regarding the 13th hole:

Moving along the coast, after the short par-4 14th, the next stop is the 650 yard par-5 15th. It comes with a warning:

 is the hole you’ve undoubtedly seen pictures of. Aptly named Pirate’s Plank, the behemoth rides along a cliff to the left of the fairway and stops as far against the coastal wall as possible, with yet another infinity green against the horizon. Any shots left and long may fall for a 

Here’s one more look at the 15th (center) from way out over the ocean:

Playing into a stiff breeze, it genuinely felt like this hole wouldn’t end. There was nowhere to hide and it demand three solid shots. When I finally got to the green it it offered up the best vista of the entire property. This is the view of that sticks with you, demonstrates how special the property is, and truly illustrates how high above the ocean the course sits.

The tee on the short par-5 16th sits as far onto the cliff as physically possible and is buffeted by the most extreme wind on the property. Players walk 120 yards from the previous green back to this tee box. Doak ensured that players of all skill levels experience the scene by laying out four different sets of tees along the small sliver of land. I loved this stretch, as the back to back par-5’s are routed in opposite directions, ensuring a distinctly different wind on each.


Continuing the theme from the front nine, the two finishing holes that come back inland towards the clubhouse are two of the more interesting and strategic holes on the back side. The approach into the 18th green is nearly blind, and features a punchbowl green. In the context of an exceptionally unconventional course, an off-the-wall finishing hole just works.

I travel to play courses that provide a different experience than what I get at home. Cape Kidnappers achieved that objective better than just about anywhere else I’ve ever played. While the best golf courses in New Zealand are spread out across vast distances, I highly recommend carving out the time to get to Cape Kidnappers, exploring the country’s non-golf offerings along the way, and budgeting plenty of time.

Cape Kidnappers

After a week spent between the Melbourne Sandbelt and the coast of Tasmania, I had 11 days to spare before my family arrived for our scheduled Christmas vacation. This was my first ever time down under, and with that much free time on hand, I knew exactly how I wanted to spend it.

Even as a kid, I remember seeing pictures in magazines of Kauri Cliffs and Cape Kidnappers in the far off land of New Zealand. To a teenager that had never been outside the U.S., these courses might as well have been another planet. The concept of seeing them in person and playing them had never been on the forefront of my mind until I started traveling the world, and started realizing just how feasible it is to see places that you want to see.

American billionaire Julian Robertson is the man responsible for the development of both Kauri Cliffs and Cape Kidnappers on the North Island of New Zealand, which are consistently ranked in the top 50 courses in the world. Kauri Cliffs was designed by American David Harman, and the actual golf course itself is just a fraction of what the resort offers – helicopter tours, quad biking, farm tours, barbecues, and a spa. The peak season rate for an Owner’s Cottage (accommodating four adults) is equivalent to about $7,500 USD (!). It’s the epitome of a luxury resort.

But I’m here for the golf and the golf only, so I’m staying at a $40 Airbnb tonight. International Greens Fees run about $360 USD during the peak season. Is it worth the price of admission? Let’s see…

(You’ll notice significant differences in the lighting in some of these pictures. I arrived the night before and spent a pristine evening on the course photographing the course in the best possible light. Our morning tee time greeted us with a bit of a drizzle before fortunately clearing up for the all-world closing stretch.)

The setting of this golf course is one of the most magnificent pieces of property I’ve ever seen a golf course built on. The course was seemingly built with the intention that you should never lose sight of the ocean, which is nearly true with views on 15 of the 18 holes. The scene photographs incredibly well, surpassed maybe only by some of the other courses I would later play along this same eastern coast of New Zealand. The cliffs are perched high enough to provide a dramatic view all the way down the coastline to the south. Even if there wasn’t a golf course here, the destination would still be worth visiting and soaking up.

The land movement throughout the entire property is extreme. While I’ve never been to the Plantation Course at Kapalua, this is almost exactly how I would picture it. Jurassic Park + Pirates of the Caribbean, and golf carts are a necessity for all but the bravest souls (though I managed to link up with the only two gentlemen that dared to walk the layout on this December day). Despite the drastic elevation changes, the actual holes themselves don’t play 

 severely uphill or downhill, as many of the tough traverses are between holes. Harman did an excellent job of using the slopes to the benefit of his resort guests, with many downhill tee shots. It’s mountain golf without the annoying extremes and gimmicks. The fairways are wide and undulating, often inviting players to swing away without fear off the tee, and to use the contours to position their ball on the proper side of the fairway.

A look at the 6th, one of the few uphill holes (and one of the many forced carries):

The par-3 7th was easily the most memorable hole on the front side. The tee shot is one of the more thrilling shots on the course. From this tee it was 165 yards to the front hole location. This hole is the first time you encounter the coast and the carry definitely gets the heart rate up quickly.

For us, the pin was front right. But you can see in the flyover below that the player has options on what lines to take off the tee. The green is actually carved out of a hill, and you can use this bumper just left of the green to nudge your ball onto the green when the hole location requires it. A right miss here is completely dead so providing the left bumper as an option is crucial.

The par-5 8th, playing downwind on this day, could be reached with a solid drive and a mid-iron. The slope to the right of the green serves as a kicker for approaches played up the right side, and is one of the more fun shots you’ll play on the front side. Here’s a view of the 8th hole from behind:

A highly elevated tee box greets you after making the turn to the drivable 10th. From there, you descend to the only part of the property from which you cannot see the ocean. The 11th requires a challenging forced carry to reach the putting surface, and the 13th is easily the most intriguing hole of the non-view bunch. You’ll want to consult your yardage book before this tee shot, as you’re encouraged to take your drive up the right side to provide a better angle from the green. But from the tee box, you see nothing ahead that would discourage taking a direct line at the hole (see the far right of the photo below):

The par-3 14th kicks off the rollercoaster finish. The tee ball is played directly out towards the crystal blue ocean, and on the most exposed part of the course the wind is almost always an issue. On this day, it’s coming off the left. With the pin placement on the left half, and certain death to anything that misses left, it’s one of the most challenging shots of the day with a mid to long iron.

The 15th is a friendly par-5 that reminds me of an inverted version of the 5th at the aforementioned Kapalua Plantation Course. This is the start of three cliffside holes that bend from right to left to make the best use of the playable land. Anything left of the fairway is unplayable, and there’s not much room to bail out to the right either. It’s one of the most demanding drives at Kauri Cliffs, but you’re more likely to remember the view than where your ball actually ended up.

Here’s a quick video that gives perspective on the setting:


On a stretch of golf that’s full of them, I suspect many would call the 16th the signature hole on the course. From the back tees it plays 350 yards, but as the crow flies, it’s a much shorter carry to the green. With a breeze slightly behind and just 300 yards to reach the front it’s very tempting to give it a go, especially knowing you have all of the room in the world to bail right. For those less enthralled by the prospect of carrying the native vegetation on the left, alternative options abound: anything from a mid-iron to a fairway wood are viable choices. The further you play back from the tee, the less of a risk you run of hitting it into one of the many bunkers. However, the further you lay back the worse the angle gets and the longer the approach. Definitely a good risk reward hole.

Like the end of a tube of toothpaste, Harman squeezed every last bit of the cliffside real estate into the routing, culminating with the stretch from 14-17 during which it feels like you’re dangling off the side of a cliff. Look closer, however and there’s actually a decent amount of (unusable) land that runs off steeply to the actual cliff edge. The place is a case study in infinity greens. The 16th green serves as a good example:

After two half par holes on the easy side, the 17th is a beast. Similar to the two previous holes, both play downhill to a fairway bending to the left and nowhere to miss. Looking back at the pictures now, the fairway looks way wider from the air than it does from the tee. Here it is:


The 18th is an uphill par-5 that puts your back to the ocean, and brings your memorable day to a close. I was lucky enough to spend the day with two Kiwis whose candor and humor greatly added to the experience, and made me feel less like a tourist. I’m grateful to have enjoyed their company.

As much as I enjoyed the layout and the views, the number of forced carries on what is a resort course was a bit troubling. Almost all of these carries are of no worry to a low handicap player but are a huge detriment to a high handicapper. While there are myriad teeing options, ranging from 5,500 to 7,100 yards, I did play with an older gentleman who simply did not hit the ball very far. These carries (particularly the large hazard in front of the 11th green, and the canyon on 18) caused him great difficulty and hindered his enjoyment of the course as there was no option to play around them. There were obviously limitations on what could be done to mitigate these elements (native areas, extreme slopes, soil composition, etc.), but it is worth noting if you are planning a trip and thinking of playing this course.

Circling back on the question on whether or not I felt like Kauri Cliffs was worth the price of admission, I can confirm that it was. If you can afford to travel to New Zealand for a vacation then it’s worthwhile to spend your money on a golf course like this. The setting is glorious, the views are among the best in the world, the conditioning is superb, and the layout is fun and coaxes you into heroic shots. The inland holes are full of intrigue, and the cliffside holes will stick with you for a lifetime.

Kauri Cliffs

Doing things a bit differently for this review since Tara Iti is too dope for WordPress. For the hole-by-hole course summary of Tara Iti, please visit the accompanying 

 (must be viewed on desktop!). This post accompanies the photo essay and delves into the backstory of the course, translates the ethos of the club and describes the experience beyond the course in detail.

The driveway is nearly unmarked and google maps doesn’t work for it. I had to use the satellite view to drop a pin on what I believed to be the clubhouse, then followed the blue dot as it moved. From there the drive entails a gravel road long enough to make you question whether you’re going the right way. Finally, a small sign points toward the clubhouse and to the course beyond.

Tara Iti is an intimate private club (that 

 possible for you to play! More on this later). Located about an hour and a half northeast of Auckland, Tara Iti hugs the east coast of New Zealand. After inquiring through the website about the possibility of taking a look at the course that 

 with a top 50 world ranking, I was lucky enough to receive an invite to stay, play, and get the full experience (and pay, for the haters out there).

When Los Angeles-based financier Ric Kayne bought 570 acres of beachfront land near the town of Mangawhai in 2012 (at the recommendation of his business partner, John Darby), it was nothing but a forest of non-indigenous pines. Kayne hired Tom Doak to design and build the golf course – no small task considering the density of the forest, and the difficulty of removing the stumps and underbrush.

I rolled up to the course the night before I was scheduled to play in order to take a tour of the grounds. My host was a gentleman named Jim Rohrstaff, and his enthusiasm for the club was evident from the beginning. He’d played 18 earlier that day, and was jacked up to take advantage of the beautiful weather by grabbing some clubs and showing me around a few holes. Jim was mid-sentence telling me a story when I saw 

 for the first time. He saw the expression on my face change, and realized I hadn’t seen the full setting yet. He stopped, realizing the shock I was going through: 

With temperatures in the 70’s and the best possible sunlight, this was easily the most fun I’ve ever had on a golf course without officially 

. Armed with a couple of red Solo cups, some range balls, a six iron, and a putter, we went for a memorable walk. We hit all manner of shots from a variety of yardages, putted around the punchbowl third hole, and toyed with the contours of the layout, which define the experience of the course.

I’ve been fortunate to see some truly amazing places, but this course spoke to me in a way that I can’t remember any other place (much less course) coming close to. The ocean is so blue that if you’d told me it was dyed I would’ve believed it. The color of the sand dunes juxtaposed against the infinite backdrop of waves makes the setting pop, but it is the 

 of the waves that makes it ethereal. Tara Iti is how I envision golf heaven.

Photos can give you a sense of what the course is like from a visual perspective. It’s as beautiful of a setting as you could imagine, and the land looks like it was destined to be a golf course. Beyond the imagery, the general ethos of Tara Iti instructs the entire experience. It’s like someone came up with a vision of golf’s perfect playground, put it in the most ideal setting you could envision, and sent you on your way.

Digging deeper into the ethos, Tara Iti is the opposite of stuffy. Make no mistake, it is a private members’ club that is made up of the elite of the elite and is the ultimate luxury experience. Membership is extended via invite only. The club goes by a code of, “we have no rules, but if you break one, we’ll let you know.” Many of my questions were answered with a, “Well, we don’t really share that information,” followed by a slight smirk.

One point that Jim stressed throughout the visit was how important it was for members to treat the staff well, as if that was one of the primary criteria for membership. Jim claimed that he knew all 62 staff members by name, and it was clear that he had a certain rapport with everyone we encountered, from the caddies, golf staff, and grounds crew to the servers in the restaurant. The staff was remarkably personable and friendly, yet seemingly never kissing your ass. They struck the perfect balance, and were truly invested in providing an authentic experience for members and guests alike.

Before arriving, I knew that Tara Iti did not get a lot of play. Even then, I was surprised at how there were barely any cars on site. Then I rolled past the putting green, which was surrounded by 

, and it all made sense. It would appear that the majority of members and visitors arrive to the course by chopper from Auckland, and the sound of helicopters taking off and landing would litter the air throughout my 24 hours on site.

I checked into my room for the night. As you would expect, it was incredible:

The clubhouse is relatively modest (see below). Classy, airy, and simple, it struck a perfect chord with the rest of the property. Along those same lines, jeans are a common sight.

When you think you’ve already found the best place on earth, you find something else remarkable and unique. 

Oh hey, a cool wood fire oven attached to the back of a truck? Sweet, a garden that provides all of the vegetables for the compound? Cool, a traveling halfway house! LOL alpacas and mini-ponies!?

Standing on the fifth tee box during that initial walk, Jim pointed out what appeared to be a sand dune between the fairway and the ocean. Except, it wasn’t a sand dune. Rather, it was an ocean suite complete with one of the most ridiculous views on earth, an outdoor hot tub, and a wall sized sliding door that can be opened up to the elements.

Sweetening the deal is a three hole whiskey loop that wraps around the clubhouse and never pushes you more than fifty yards from the bar. The first hole on the loop is a pitch from turf just off the 18th green to the practice green, where you play to the one full-sized flag on that green. The next pitch takes you from the first tee to the ninth green. Finally, you hit from the clubhouse patio back to the 18th green, right back to where you started.

The food menu was not extensive, but I soon learned that the off-menu options were the play. The staff knew Jim’s favorites, and he didn’t have to order dinner, it just sort of appeared. The most memorable part was the Hokey Pokey, a Kiwi desert consisting of vanilla ice cream with small chunks of honeycomb toffee.

When the sun set, it was time for a change in scenery and we headed over to the man gender-neutral cave containing a simulator, trackman, putting green, full bar, and a big screen television. Jim (after walking 18 holes earlier in the day and then playing host for another couple hours) fired up the simulator and we pounded balls into the screen as we sampled (and sampled, and sampled…) the beverage options.

Notice how long I’ve gone on talking without even mentioning the course? That’s how much of an impact this place had on me beyond 

To (unnecessarily) sweeten the deal, golf can be played in this part of the world twelve months a year, with winter temperatures bottoming out around 50 degrees Fahrenheit. There are no tee times since the course doesn’t receive enough play to require the formality. If you want to go play as a sixsome, you can go play as a sixsome. And, while this isn’t really relevant to the experience most visitors will have, when I asked if I could stay after the round to shoot some more sunset footage, they could not have been more hospitable.

In a way, Tara Iti kind of ruined golf for me because I don’t think I’ll ever see anything this great again.

– Option 1: Get invited to be a member. Good luck with this one.

– Option 2: Get invited to be the guest of a member. More likely, but still tough. Your best option is going to be one of the coolest things I’ve ever seen regarding access to a private club…

– Option 3: Use your once-in-a-lifetime pass. You can cash in a once in a lifetime trip to Tara Iti (provided that you have a letter of recommendation from your club) to visit, (and pay handsomely, though consistent with other top courses in NZ such as Kauri Cliffs and Cape Kidnappers) to stay at the property and play the course. To get the process started, simply to go the 

, and Jim will review your application and get back to you (note that the club is able to accommodate visitors more frequently in the April to November timeframe).

Reminder: For the hole-by-hole course summary of Tara Iti, please visit the accompanying 

photo/video essay (must be viewed on desktop).

The Tara Iti Experience

Of all of the courses played on this jaunt through Scotland, Cruden Bay is one that really sticks out as one that hit me right in the feels. It represents so much about both the history of the game, and the current state of the game, and yet it’s still a blast to play. Just a 30 minute drive from the nearby hub of Aberdeen, not only should your visit to this area most definitely include this course, it should be based around it.


Cruden Bay has never been starving for visitors, but the recent development of Trump International Golf Links down the road in Aberdeen has undoubtedly given the area a boom in golf tourism. But on its own, it’s already a world class golf course. The course opened for play in 1899, with the original layout being designed by Old Tom Morris and Archie Simpson. Just 27 years later, the course was redesigned by Tom Simpson and Herbert Fowler, yet still long before bulldozers became essential in course shaping. Little has changed in the last 90 years, and it is critical to the visitor experience to know this before visiting.

Blind shots in golf are typically not well received by the weekend hacker. I have to admit, before I really understood the history and the significance behind some blind shots, I could easily be lumped into this category. However, over time, I’ve grown to appreciate certain examples of them. In modern design, they’re considered a great taboo. But in the pre-bulldozer era, they were an inevitability. What makes Cruden Bay so unique is that it’s such a great celebration of the original lay of the land. The holes are built through and around some enormous dunes, and do require some shots right over them.

Those that love this game travel in search of authentic experiences and you’ll definitely get one at Cruden Bay.

(All photos in this post are the product of the very talented 

. I would strongly advise checking out his 

 for more stunning photos from around the world. Special thanks to Patrick for allowing us to use his photos for this post.)

The clubhouse sits high above the property and provides a stellar panorama of the layout, as well as a view of the dunes and the sea. In typical Scottish style, what it lacks in extravagance, it makes up for in charm.

After descending down a steep path to the first tee, you’re greeted with a rather challenging opening par four. The second hole is short but challenging, with an almost blind uphill approach to a highly elevated putting surface (see overhead shot above, with the first hole in the foreground, and the second in the background). The third is a very short par four that seems a bit forced into the property. Despite it being just about 275 yards, a driver is not recommended due to the fact that there is nearly nowhere to land it, and the green can’t be viewed from the tee. Out of bounds surrounds the left side and wraps around the back, and the tee includes a traffic light system (!) to let you know when it’s safe to hit. It’s very, very rare that we’ll recommend laying up, but we won’t get upset if you do. (Also worth noting, I might just be bitter about this hole due to the fact I went OB both times I played it.)

The 4th is where the fun starts. A great 195 yard one shotter where “short is not an option,” according to our forecaddie. This is the first introduction to the dunescape, and the first time a mid-iron is needed. It’s a great par-3, and it kicks off the most memorable stretch on the course.

The 5th hole is when Cruden Bay stops being nice, and starts being real. Mad real. A demanding par-4 that requires accuracy off the tee. The fairway is wide, but fescue left of the fairway will make a ball disappear immediately (trust me).

The upper left hand portion of the photo below shows the fifth green from the sky. If the back portion of the green looks a bit unusual, it’s for a good reason. Old photos of the original Tom Morris green were discovered, and the fifth green was extended in an effort to reclaim this historic element of the course.

The 6th is where the controversy around Cruden Bay begins. The reachable par-5 is rather generous off the tee, but the debate lies within the second shot. It’s one of the most blind shots you’ll ever hit, and you’ll need a forecaddie you can trust.

I was mentally prepared for this hole based on research I had done prior to the round, but still couldn’t quite get comfortable with the line. For us, the 555 yarder played down breeze. After a solid drive, I hit what I thought was a solid 8-iron on a good line, only to find it in the tall grass left of the hole. It was frustrating, but maybe I pulled it more than I thought I did? The quote I often hear about blind shots is, “it’s only blind the first time you see it,” but this approach is a really tough one to get comfortable over if you’ve never played the hole. Then again, if my ball found the center of the green, I might be saying how simple the blind shot is.

Personal feelings aside, these types of quirks are what makes Cruden Bay unique. How often do you get the chance to get bitten by Old Tom Morris? Embrace it. There aren’t many walks like this one, and if you’re not prepared for these types of rub of the green, it may diminish your experience. And that’s on you, not on the golf course.

This stretch of the course is so great that I don’t know which holes to detail out, and which ones to skip over. The 7th is another solid par-4 back up the hill with an especially fun approach (see the upper portion of the above photo). Some thinking is required off the tee about how close you want to get it to the dogleg, then you’ve gotta hit a solid mid-iron up the hill to the elevated surface. A strong and fair test of a hole.

The 8th is a great example of why par does not matter. At just 250 yards, it plays as either an insanely hard par-3, or too easy of a par-4. It’s a four on the card, and with a helping wind on this day, it only took a 3-iron to get home. But this hole is Cruden Bay in a nutshell. Look at how perfectly the hole sits in the dunes. Sure, in modern days, a bulldozer could have been used to lengthen the hole, or to perch it up on top of those dunes. Here, they embrace the landscape and let the hole speak for itself, without a worry as to what the card says the par is. And make no mistake, this hole is not an easy birdie. The green is severely sloped, and some pins are very inaccessible from the wrong location near the green. It’s a perfect short hole because it while it looks like an auto birdie on the card, there’s much more nuance to it than initially meets the eye.

The walk up to the 9th tee is tough, but worth it. In the above picture, you can see a path elevating from right to left. Now see that dune all the way in the upper left hand corner? That’s where you’re going.

The tee box is new, and unsurprisingly it was voted as the best view in Scotland golf. Here’s Tom Murray teeing from the highest point on the course:

From this perch, take a peek down at the pin positions on 14 and 15, because you won’t see them when you’re playing your approaches (more on this later).

The 10th continues to take you back down to sea level with a dangerous tee shot from an elevated area. The fairway is wide with plenty of bail out space left, but anything right finds the OB.

After a short par-3 back towards the clubhouse, the course continues to extend outward along the coast. Old Tom Morris cared not about making sure the 9th routed back towards the clubhouse, nor about following any traditional “out and back” routings. He cared only about using the best parts of the land for golf holes.

After the par-5 13th (which also has a blind approach), the two holes that follow are the subject of much debate. The 14th (photographed below from the 9th tee box) is a tight par-4 that plays uphill with a nearly totally blind approach.

If you look closely at the photo above, you’ll see a white stake about 40 yards short of the green. This is your aiming point for your approach, as the green sits almost comically low beneath the fairway and the 15th tee to its right. For as much as I did not care for the blind shot approach into the 6th, I 

 the approach into the 14th even more. It’s much friendlier, and the punchbowl green makes you feel like you can’t miss the green (yet I assure you that you can).

Another view of the signature 14th green:

I would show you a picture from the tee, but it would just be a picture of the side of a dune. The same dune that provides the unreal view from atop the 9th tee also guards your view of the 15th green in totality. A tee in a wooden sign displays the pin position for the day, and the forecaddie earns his modest wage on this shot alone. Without his help, there’s no way you could know where to aim.

Above: The 15th green, with the 16th green in the background.

Cruden Bay is in the mix to host the 2019 Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open, but 

 that they will not be playing the course as stands today. For as much as visitors criticize blind shots, professionals seem even less equipped to handle them mentally. As such, the story I’ve heard mentioned is that two par 3’s on the back (the 11th and 15th) will be skipped, and two holes from the club’s St. Olaf 9 hole course will be put into play.

Regardless, when you pay your fare and play Cruden Bay yourself, you’ll play this quirky par-3 that’s unlike anything I’ve seen aside from the 5th at Prestwick. It’s fun, embrace it!

Two nice par-4’s bring you back to the clubhouse, and the special day concludes. For myself, a double bogey on the last for a 72 left a very bitter taste in my mouth. I needed another crack at it, and a week later I found myself rerouted up the road from Aberdeen for another shot at her. What I had failed to account for was the fact that I caught it on a relatively calm day the first time around. When the wind came on round 2, it destroyed me. I was coming off 18 holes at Royal Aberdeen that morning, and was on the backend of my 15th round in nine days. I couldn’t even finish the round I was so exhausted. Cruden Bay in the right conditions is an absolute beast, but equally as fun as it is challenging.

Visiting guests to Cruden Bay have the option to play 27 holes during their visit, the club offers the challenging 2,463 yard (par 32) St. Olaf course to all guests, either before they head out as a warm up or after their challenging 18 holes while they wind down.

Of the courses I played in the Aberdeen area, Cruden Bay was no doubt my favorite, and ranks amongst my highest recommendations for your Scotland trip.

If you're looking for a place to stay in the area, look no further than our friend Ru Macdonald's place: 

 for the photos. I would strongly advise checking out his 

 for more fantastic photos from around the world.)

Cruden Bay

The very first leg of this extended jaunt around Scotland was four rounds in and around the Inverness area split between Castle Stuart, Brora, and Royal Dornoch. Much to the chagrin of the twitter “Itinerary Guy,” this meant that I had to skip Nairn and live with the fallout. You can’t play ’em all right? Well, enough Itinerary Guys weighed in to make me reconsider my route for week two, and it became clear that I couldn’t miss the chance to play this legendary gem.

I made my way back up to the Highlands from Aberdeen for my 11:30 Friday morning tee time. No, this was not the ideal route, but with a rental car, and a once in a lifetime open schedule in front of me, what’s a few more extra hours in the car?

It’s a dark, overcast day with a light drizzle, and the Moray Firth is angry this morning. The sound of the waves is deafening, and the walk to the first tee alongside the sea is one of the best I’ve seen.

Nairn was founded in 1887, and they preserve their history better than almost any course I’ve seen (more on this at the bottom). A mix of names have been involved in its development over the years, the most famous name being Old Tom Morris. It’s most recent time in the spotlight was the 1999 Walker Cup (

!), where GB&I eviscerated the Yanks in singles in route to a 15-9 victory.

Almost every course played on this trip is set right against the sea, but I continue to be astounded by the variety in styles of the courses. The first seven holes at Nairn play right along the water, and the land is very flat. This is not a knock at all. In fact, in my experience, the flatter the links course, the more interesting and intriguing the design elements are, particularly with the bunkering (with Royal Lytham and St. Annes and Royal Liverpool immediately coming to mind). From the onset, I’m in my yardage book trying to figure out which bunkers I want to take on, and which ones I want to lay back from on the very first tee.

On the second, a 463 yard par-4, a ditch comes in at 285 that defines the hole. I try to lay off a driver, only to catch one flush and end up in the hazard for a foolish one shot penalty. I shook my head but smiled. That tee shot was a test, and though I executed the shot I was trying to with near perfection, and I failed the test. I was too greedy, and Nairn made me pay. Tip of the cap.

With the winds down, the course could not be more gettable. After getting battered by wind for over a week, it’s a welcome change of pace. While I don’t want to say that the back nine underwhelmed, the front nine along the sea is surely the highlight. The third hole doglegs left slightly away from the sea, allowing just enough room to jam a par three in that goes back the other way towards the water. Then, from the back tee on the 5th, you actually have to play directly over the 4th green with your tee shot. No modern course would ever be designed this way, but these small nuances serve as a great reminder of the origins of the game, and how courses were designed before bulldozers. The view from the 5th tee:

I was not far into the round before I shot Andy Johnson (of 

 fame) a text: “Nairn definitely makes bunkers great again.” There’s 108 of them in total, and they’re some of the best and most strategic bunkers I’ve seen in the British Isles. They also have a consistent “raised” look to them, and seemingly pop out of the landscape like gophers. This adds an appealing visual element to both your tee shots and your approaches, and makes them impossible to ignore. For example, here’s the bunker that protects the 4th green:

True hazards in every sense of the word, and to me, the most defining characteristic on the golf course. Well positioned bunkers can make or break the design of a hole, and Nairn executes this to perfection.

You continue out along the sea, move slightly inland on holes 8 and 9, then start your turn back towards the clubhouse. But before you do, you encounter the single most charming halfway house I’ve ever seen.

A converted barn with rolling fairway terrain right up to the door. I wasn’t even hungry or thirsty, but I had to get 

On the 10th green, I get invited to join up with a fivesome. To clarify, this is an 

 fivesome, and I’m now the 6th. Did I mention that Scotland is the best? Scotland is the best.

The age of the members in this group varied greatly, and the banter was flying at a pace I could not keep up with. I don’t mind playing golf by myself, but it’s not even close to the experience of playing alongside someone you enjoy conversing with. But playing with a member takes it to an entirely different level. You inevitably get a history lesson as you play alongside the insight to the types of games they play, their drinks of choice, and of course the accents. On this misty day, I got the full experience.

I get invited to join the guys in the clubhouse for lunch, where they tell me all about “The Archive Room.” The assistant pro, Sean Burgess, had messaged me prior to arriving to make sure I made time to see the room. I was starting to wonder what all of the fuss was about.

I had absolutely no idea what I was in for, and I’m not exaggerating when I say that this room changed me. Like, it is going to be a requirement that I have a room in my house in the future that at least somewhat resembles this place. I know next to nothing about the history of Nairn Golf Club, and I could have spent a week in there going through the artifacts and reading the books. There’s 100 year old meeting minutes talking about the current weaknesses of the routing, the draining, the design, etc. There’s results from literally over a century’s worth of tournaments. There’s pictures, old golf clubs and balls, couches. It was perfectly manicured, and looked like something you would see in a museum. A bottle of scotch and some glasses sat on a nearby table, and books about links golf other golf courses littered the table surrounded by the seating. There were membership booklets from 1912.

If you do make the visit to Nairn (and you most certainly should), it should be required that you request a key to the archive room.

Nairn Golf Club

If you’re looking for a course to anchor a northern Scotland trip around, Royal Dornoch is the one. While we’ve touched on a few other great places in the area (

I checked into my modest accommodations at the Dornoch Hotel (far from luxurious, but perfect for someone ballin’ on a budget) on the night prior to my scheduled 36 hole day across the street, and quickly discovered that I was essentially out of luck for dinner for the evening. Though there was still plenty of sunlight at 10:00, the town of Dornoch is a bit sleepy and mostly void of dinner options at this hour. It’s small inconveniences like that this that remind me of my location on the planet, and in a country of just 5 million people, I’m likely north of at least 90% of them. But what’s lacking in terms of infrastructure is more than made up for in Scottish charm.

Royal Dornoch is almost always ranked in (at minimum) the top three among golf courses in Scotland, and easily the highest ranked among courses that are not on the Open rota. The reality is that the town and the property itself are not capable of housing a crowd of that size. The course itself doesn’t try to pretend to be a championship test, as it tips out around 6,750 yards, but to me, this only adds to the uniqueness of the experience.

The club was founded in 1877, when Rutherford B. Hayes was the president of the United States. The U.S. was barely a hundred years old when this place opened up! It might get a bit repetitive to hear about the ancient dates of some of these clubs, but it will never cease to amaze me how long places like Dornoch have stood the test of time through wars, depressions, storms, erosion, and extreme advancements in technology. Before venturing across the pond to the British Isles, I had always imagined that these old courses would lack modern conditioning, and that that was simply part of the charm. I was surprised to find that this is rarely the case, and certainly not here. Royal Dornoch is as pure as pure gets.

Paired up with three American visitors, we’re off at 10:20 with overcast skies above. The first hole immediately puts your mind to work. At just 331 yards, and a modest 12 on the stroke index, it appears to be a breezy start. But the two bunkers on the left about 200 yards from the tee are situated perfectly. If you want to blow past them, feel free, but just know that the fairway narrows there and the deep shit is waiting for you. If you lay back with iron, you’re likely taking these two bunkers on, so you better be accurate with that one too.

While I’m not going to break down the strategic elements of each of the next 17 holes, the first one paints a perfect picture for how many decisions you’re going to have to commit to over the next four hours. It’s fantastic. And the more I pour over my yardage book some two months after playing it, the more I realize how many great holes Dornoch has that are worthy of discussion.

The second is a par three measuring 184 yards, and home to what Tom Watson calls “the hardest shot in golf.” No, it’s not the long iron off the tee into the prevailing wind. It’s the second shot. When you inevitably miss this green, you’ll see why. The surface is narrow, and sits perched well above the two bunkers that frame the front. If you’re wayward, it might take you a few back and forths across the width of the green before it finally finds the surface.

Going out towards the third hole, the course really begins to open up. After a short walk down a tight path through the gorse, you emerge onto the piece of the property that you see in all of the pictures. The 413 yard par-4 bends to the left, but of course there are four perfect little pot bunkers lining the right side of the fairway, waiting to collect anything that runs out too far. The wind helps you move the ball away from these traps, but the gorse comes in tight on the left waiting on any shot that cuts the corner too closely. The green is huge, and I kind of lost focus on the golf as I wandered around the surface imagining all of the possibilities.

The view of the third green from the fairway, with the 4th in the distance:

The fourth is another strong two shotter (like, a really strong hole, but I’m on pace for about 4,000 words so I’m sliding past it), followed by a 353 yard par 4 that really tickled my senses. It’s wide open and inviting off the tee. There’s doesn’t appear to be a reason to keep the driver holstered, so I let one rip way down the fairway. I arrive at my ball, and quickly realize they got me. Three small bunkers guard the front of the green, and the pin sits on the front. I’m way too close. This place is like a crossword puzzle, and just when you think you nailed one, you realize the word you just inked in pen doesn’t fit the answer you need for 27 down.

The sixth is another great little par-3 that seems to be clinging for dear life on the side of a hill. You then walk up a steep path to a near isolated part of the property for the 7th, a screaming 479 yard par-4 back into the teeth of the wind. From there, you get perhaps the best view of the day:

A blind tee shot on the 8th brings you back down the hill and out to the furthest point, and the walk back to the 9th tee brings you seaside for the first time.

The shadow cuts in the fairway are perfectly appealing to the lusting eye, and with the sound of the waves crashing on the beach behind you, before you’re nine holes in you already understand what everyone has been talking about. While the course is scenic, it doesn’t 

 the scenery. The golf course itself stands on its own from a design, conditioning, and fairness standpoint.

Articles

Whistling Rock

Cape Kidnappers

Kauri Cliffs

The Tara Iti Experience

Cruden Bay

Nairn Golf Club

Royal Dornoch

Brora Golf Club

England Golf Trip Part VI: Royal Lytham & St Annes

Castle Stuart

Playing Through the Midnight Sun at Lofoten Links

Royal Portrush

Royal County Down

England Golf Trip, Part V: Wallasey

England Golf Trip, Part IV: Royal Liverpool

England Golf Trip, Part III: Royal Birkdale

England Golf Trip, Part II: West Lancashire

England Golf Trip, Part I: The Belfry

Articles

Whistling Rock

Cape Kidnappers

Kauri Cliffs

The Tara Iti Experience

Cruden Bay

Nairn Golf Club

Royal Dornoch

Brora Golf Club

England Golf Trip Part VI: Royal Lytham &#038; St Annes

Castle Stuart

Playing Through the Midnight Sun at Lofoten Links

Royal Portrush

Royal County Down

England Golf Trip, Part V: Wallasey

England Golf Trip, Part IV: Royal Liverpool

England Golf Trip, Part III: Royal Birkdale

England Golf Trip, Part II: West Lancashire

England Golf Trip, Part I: The Belfry

England Golf Trip Part VI: Royal Lytham & St Annes