Golf in the Scottish Borders (4/4)
Golf in the Scottish Borders – (Part 4 of 4)
This is the fourth and final blog on ‘Golf in the Scottish Borders’ and I am featuring Peebles Golf Club and also highlighting three other courses in the region – West Linton GC, MacDonald Cardrona GC, near Peebles & Torwoodlee GC just outside Galashiels.
There is a huge amount to do in the Scottish Borders apart from golf and I’ll touch upon some of the other activities and places of interest in the area, at the end of the blog.
Today’s Featured Course
Peebles Golf Club
www.peeblesgolfclub.com
Accommodation
I found myself staying at the Tontine Hotel on the High Street in Peebles, the night before visiting Peebles Golf Club.
There were a number of visiting golfers staying in the hotel that night and we discussed where everyone was playing the next day – MacDonald Cardrona, West Linton and Peebles were all on the agenda the following day.
It was interesting to hear that these groups were regular visitors to the Borders. They keep coming back, they said, because of the quality of the golf courses, reasonable green fees and good accommodation in the area.
My hotel certainly fell into the ‘good accommodation’ category and I have no hesitation recommending it for your next golfing trip to the area – www.tontinehotel.com.
The course
On arrival at Peebles Golf Club, I had a warm welcome from the Head Professional, Steve Johnston, who is well known for his articles in ‘Bunkered’ Magazine.
The club was founded in 1892 but moved to its current location in 1908. It would be another 25 years before Harry Colt redesigned the course in 1933.
The course is a hillside, parkland course with great views over the town of Peebles, which sits in the Tweed Valley, surrounded by rolling Borders hills.
The hillside landscape ensures great views but also means you won’t have too many flat lies. This isn’t a course where you can ease your way into the round, as it’s a fairly tough start.
The first is a 196 yard par 3, followed by the stoke index 1, 440 yard, par 4 second hole. You gradually make your way up hill, before your first real birdie opportunity presents itself at the 4th hole.
There are a great variety of holes here, with opportunities for birdies at the 4th, 7th & 9th on the front nine. On the 9th hole, you’ll have great views over Peebles from the tee.
The course will tempt you to go for shots throughout the round, where it’s all about risk and reward. No more so than at the par 4, 13th which, at 319 yards, maybe in range for the big hitters. However, you’ll have to hit it down the left if you want to go for it but, needless to say, this is where all the trouble is.
The 14th leads you back up hill again before a gentle descent over the closing holes. The par 5, 18th is the longest hole on the course at 541 yards and a fitting end to this scenic course.
The views don’t end there, as the clubhouse has its own views from both inside and outside seating areas.
The club is totally geared up for visiting golfers and you may want to consider the following opens that they have coming up. Check full details on their website – www.peeblesgolfclub.com
- Gents Senior Open – 2 Aug 2018
- Junior Open – 12 Aug 2018
- Ladies Senior Open Pairs – 13 Sept 2018
You can also check out Peebles Golf Club’s head pro Steve Johnston’s Bunkered Magazine articles here.
West Linton Golf Club
www.wlgc.co.uk
Location
West Linton golf club is located 20 minutes drive south, from the outskirts of Edinburgh. The course lies just off the main A702 road, south of the Pentland Hills, on the Slipperfield Moor.
This moorland course sits above the conservation village of West Linton and has great views to the Pentlands, Mendick Hill and the surrounding area.
The clubhouse looks over the course, which works its way around a heather and bracken clad terrain.
As you look over the course, from the clubhouse, the impression you get is that it’s been there for years. In fact the club was formed in 1890 and 36 years later in 1926, James Braid advised on improvements that were made to the course the following year. However, it wasn’t until 1972 that the course was extended to the full 18 holes.
The Course
The course measures 6161 from the back tees but has a par of 69. Whilst on paper the course may look short, you have to take into account that there is little shelter from the prevailing westerly winds. Additionally, the well protected greens are not particularly large.
Whilst you may have a gentle start to your round on the first and second holes, the finishing three holes are, in contrast, anything but a gentle finish. The par 4 16th measures 444 yards and the 17th and 18th, both tough par 3s, measure 196 yards and 230 yards respectively. I can only imagine the drama that these two finishing par 3s provide in match play events!
There are opportunities for birdies out there though, if you can avoid the penal rough and keep the ball on the fairways on the shorter par 4s.
Offers & Opens
West Linton Golf Club does offer special rates on Mondays and Thursdays for £20 per round per person (groups of 6) as well as excellent deals on twilight rounds over the next week or so.
You maybe want to take advantage of the above offers, before playing in one of their opens, coming up in the next few weeks. Check full details on their website – www.wlgc.co.uk
- Junior Open – 3 Aug 2018
- Gents Open – 5 Aug 2018
- Ladies Greensome – 12 Aug 2018
- Gents Senior Open (Texas Scramble) – 23 Aug 2018
- Senior Open (Mixed Greensome) – 6 Sept 2018
The MacDonald Cardrona Hotel Golf Course
MacDonald Cardrona Golf Course website
The Hotel
The MacDonald Cardrona Hotel Championship course is only 8-10 minutes drive from Peebles. The hotel and golf course sit in a magnificent setting, surrounded by the Borders hills, with the River Tweed running along side part of the course.
The hotel is currently offering one night accommodation, full Scottish breakfast, plus two rounds of golf for a total of £59 per person, based on two people sharing a room. Seems like a good deal to me, if you can book the dates you want.
The hotel has 99 rooms, a swimming pool & spa, two bars and a restaurant and with the town of Peebles nearby, you will find plenty to do, when you’re off the course.
The course
MacDonald Cardrona golf course opened its doors in 2001 and is a newcomer to Scottish Borders golf. However, the championship course has hosted events for both the EuroPro tour and the Challenge Tour in its short history.
The length of the course can vary between 6,300 yards to around 7,000 yards, depending on what tees you play from. On a number of holes there is quite a bit of walking from green to next tee – so you may want to consider taking a buggy.
This is a Dave Thomas designed course where you will see generous fairways, with plenty of sizeable, contoured bunkers, accompanied by large greens. It has a feel of both a moorland course and parkland course.
The course is relatively flat, as part of it runs along side the River Tweed. There are four par 3s, four par 5s and of the remaining ten par 4s, six of them are over 400 yards – so this is a testing, lengthy track. Three consecutive holes stand out for me and they are the par 3 5th, the par 5 6th & the par 4 7th which all play on the other side of the River Tweed from the rest of the course.
The resort is offering some tee times this week starting at £17.50 per person for a four ball, which is great value for this course – prices rise to £50 per person in August.
Torwoodlee Golf Club
www.torwoodleegolfclub.co.uk
Torwoodlee Golf Club is a parkland course that sits just outside Galashiels. A long driveway, off the A7, leads you down to the course where the main features are the trees and the sloping landscape. Additional features include the River Gala which runs along the final hole and the new Borders Railway which splits the course.
The first 3 holes are on the clubhouse side of the course before crossing the new Borders Railway line to the 4th hole. You will play on this side of the railway track until 13th before crossing back to play the 14th hole.
The course has a lot of variety and many sloping lies will test your skills on a lot of holes. There are five par 3s, two par 5s and five of the remaining eleven par 4s are over 400 yards.
This is a scenic course, in a tranquil setting, which was in great condition when I visited last month. They offer 2 for 1 voucher deals, as well as excellent twilight rates, which you can check on their website www.torwoodleegolfclub.co.uk.
There are several opportunities to play the course over the coming weeks, at one of their open events.
- Junior Open – 29 Jul 2018
- Gents Open – 4 Aug 2018
- Ladies Greensome – 11 Aug 2018
- Gents 4 Ball Better Ball – 8 Sep 2018
My Conclusion on ‘Golf in the Scottish Borders’
As I look back at my trip in the Scottish Borders, I think back to the discussion I had on my last night in Peebles with a group of golfers. They stated that they keep coming back to the region because of the quality of the golf courses, reasonable green fees and good accommodation in the area.
I can confirm that during my four days in the Scottish Borders, the accommodation has been great and, from the first course at Eyemouth, to the final course at West Linton, I have come across many quality golf courses, all offering excellent value for the visiting golfer.
I would just like to finally thank all the golf pros and club secretaries in the Scottish Borders who have been so courteous to me and generous with their time.
Other non-golfing activities in the Scottish Borders
There is so much to do for both golfers and non-golfers in the Scottish Borders, plenty places to stay and many places to eat and drink in all the main towns.
- Fishing on the River Tweed and the River Teviot.
- Mountain biking at Glentress
- Plenty Hill walking, canoeing/kayaking & cycling to name a few.
Places to Visit (click the links for websites details):
Castles:
- Thirlestane Castle, Lauder
- Hume Castle, Kelso
- Hermitage Castle, Newcastleton
- Floors Castle
- Jedburgh Castle Jail & Museum
Abbeys:
Museums:
- Hawick Museum & Scott Art Gallery
- Eyemouth Museum
- Jim Clark Room (currently closed until Spring 2019)
- Coldstream Museum
- Museum at Gungreen House
- The John Buchan Story
Exhibitions/Visitor Centres/Gardens:
Historic Buildings:
- Paxton House
- Mellerstain House & Gardens
- Borders Textile Towerhouse
- Smailholm Tower
- Old Gala House
- Bowhill House & Country Estate
- Traquair House
- Abbotsford House
Previous three blogs on Golf in the Scottish Borders:
– Golf in the Scottish Borders Part 1
– Golf in the Scottish Borders Part 2
– Golf in the Scottish Borders Part 3
NEXT BLOG will be out in August and focusing on Edinburgh & the Lothians
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