Swingers paradise
Obsessive golfers may not immediately think of Argyll as one of the classic destinations for a golfing staycation, but they are blinkered and wrong, says Richard Bath – the area is one of the great hidden gems of our national game
Historically, if you were thinking of an autumn staycation built around golf, the chances are you wouldn’t immediately think of travelling to Argyll and the surrounding area. Instead, you’d probably base yourself in Fife or Angus (St Andrews, Carnoustie, Kingsbarns, Lundin Links, Elie etc), East Lothian (Muirfield, Gullane, North Berwick, Archerfield etc), the Ayrshire coast (Prestwick, Troon, Turnberry et al), Inverness and the Black Isle (Dornoch, Castle Stuart, Nairn, Tain, Brora and Lossiemouth) or Aberdeen (Royal Aberdeen, Cruden Bay or Trump at Menie).
Yet Argyll and its environs are home to a great mix of top-notch and enjoyably homely courses. Indeed, if my recent trip to play the three majestically picturesque links courses at the tip of the Mull of Kintyre is any guide, there are few better places to play. Throw in the two world-class courses on Loch Lomond, the courses that pepper the coast, and the spectacular new offerings on Islay and Jura, and you suddenly realise that you have a real gem on your hands.
‘It’s a long way to come but once people get here they are always amazed at the whole experience,’ says Jennie Dunn, the professional at Machrihanish. ‘You’ve got three courses which are completely different, but all have wonderful views, and they never get really busy so you’re not rushed. It’s an amazing place, and once people have
been here and discovered it they tend to keep coming back.’
At the end of our trip to Campbeltown on the tip of the Mull of Kintyre to play Machrihanish Old Course, Machrihanish Dunes and Dunaverty, we found three remarkable links courses with some of the best views in Scotland. As Old Tom Morris, who designed Old Machrihanish, said of this stretch of coast: ‘The Almichty Maun hae had gowf in his e’e when he made this place.’
The 5,971-yard Machrihanish, with its signature first hole involving driving over the beach – a hole described by Jack Nicklaus as the best opening hole in the world – is one of Scotland’s grand old links courses and remains one of the finest golfing experiences in the country. With views over to the Paps of Jura, it is gloriously picturesque and ranked at 57 in Golf Digest magazine’s top 100 courses in the world.
It may be less well-known, but the 7,082-yard Machrihanish Dunes was a revelation. Opened in 2009, it took a while to bed in, a process which involved changing the order in which the holes are played, but has now come of age. Indeed, with its excellent practise area and scarcity of players, many locals even