Muckhart GC - Courses 453 and 454

There are 3 separate 9 hole loops at Muckhart GC, all heathland in nature, that can be combined to form 3 separate 18 hole layouts.  The Cowden, at 3114 yard Par 36, was opened in 1908 (annual subs then were £1 a year per family!).  The Arndean, at 2652 yards Par 35, was opened in 1970 and the Naemoor course, at 3039 yards par 35, was opened in 1998.  These combinations provide three 18 hole courses, namely -

Arndean/Cowden, 5832 yards Par 71

Arndean/Naemoor, 5757 yards Par 70

Naemoor/Cowden, 6153 yards, par 71.

I've listed the total "Casual Yards" from each of the 3 scorecards, each of which equate to Yellow yardages and as might be expected, the Medal Yards courses are longer, but there's an additional twist to the Cowden Course.  The 1st hole is played from a tee outside the clubhouse windows for casual rounds ( a 173 yard hole) but there's a completely different 1st hole for medal play (a 109 yard hole) served by a separate tee and green.  I mention this because although the 1st Medal hole at Cowden was not in play when I played each of the 3 loops back to back on 28 September 2011, I'd played that hole a few years ago with Polly in a Mixed competition over the combined Arndean/Cowden course.

The Muckhart club nominates a course combination of the day and the  club's seniors were out in force on the Cowden course when I arrived, but with advice from the helpful Pro, it was possible to play Muckhart in an Arndean, Naemoor and Cowden sequence without being held up (and 27 holes back to back in under 4 hours in humid 24 degree conditions was good going!)

The Arndean Course is only 2652 yards but is quite hilly, with some pine tree plantations that can snag wayward shots.  The first three opening Par 4s are easy enough, ranging from 278-290 yards and need only a straight drive and short pitch to get you going.  I'd parred holes 1 and 2 and a good wedge to 3 feet on the 3rd, as shown here, set up an easy first birdie of the day.  The views from the Arndean Course are pretty spectacular, especially from the 5th, aptly named "Top of the World."  I'd caught this course early in the day in calm conditions and while most of the holes are short, they are pretty exposed so Arndean on a windy day would be far more testing.  I thought the best hole on Arndean was the 7th, a largely downhill 469 yard Par 5 with a blind second shot.  I managed a bogey after hitting a severe hook onto the adjacent 6th fairway, adding to the dog leg on the hole, so bogey from there was a good result.

I also liked this, the 9th, a downhill Par 3 with OOB all down the left side of the hole. For some reason we were using the Medal tee at 209 yards rather than the shorter 135 yard tee for casual play.  I'd hit an easy 3 wood to within a yard of the OOB and was stymied by some trees, but it could have been worse as the OOB also features a couple of houses, gardens and the road to the clubhouse.  I went round Arndean in 38, only 3 over par, with 14 putts, so I was off to a good start.  Naemoor was next, and as the name suggests, this course is almost flat.  At 3039 yards, Par 35 it didn't look too tricky either.

The contrast in design and turf between Naemoor and the other courses is obvious from the start.  Naemoor is more open, flat and easier walking, but where Arndean and Cowden were free-draining, Naemoor showed more signs of the recent rain, with a few really soggy patches and casual water.  This is the 5th on Naemoor, a short 289 yard Par 4.  The early morning breeze had strengthened considerably, so with a tail wind I only had a blind lob wedge shot up to a plateau green and another easy birdie was in the bag.  I played steadily from there with a bogey on the Stroke Index 1 6th after laying up short of a fairway water hazard and good pars on 7 and 8, but I really came unstuck on the closing 394 yard par 4.

This is the 9th green on Naemoor.  I'd lost a ball off the tee  after another wild hook off the tee and was lucky to escape with a double bogey after a good 6 iron approach. Still, I'd gone round in 39 or 4 over par, with 14 putts, so at least the combined score over Arndean/Naemoor would be good.  The Cowden course wanders its way through mature pine forest over some substantial hills and is a stiffer test than the other two courses.  It's not long at 3114 yards, Par 36, but with the wind having increased further since I'd finished the flatter and lower-lying Naemoor course, Cowden looked set to be a tougher test, and so it proved.

The 1st "Casual Play" hole is a 173 yard Par 3, as shown here, and anything left, right or long would be bad news.  I just missed the green on the right, but the green was faster than those I'd played earlier, so I'd an opening bogey.  The 2nd was a 353 yard par 4 played from an elevated and exposed tee with a blind second shot over a hill, and anything left off the tee would find a swamp. I was happy enough with another bogey, but not so pleased to bogey the 3rd, a short downwind Par 4.  I did at least par the 4th, but Cowden was clearly a more testing course.

This is the 5th, the Stroke Index 1 hole, played from an elevated tee to a narrow fairway which has several severe undulations creating blind shots if you're at all short with the drive or fluff your second shot.  A double bogey there after just such a fluffed second and further bogeys on 6 and 7 were also disappointing.  The 8th is a 307 yard par 4 played over a hill that I suspect plays shorter than it looks.  My drive had run down the other side of the hill to within 20 yards of the green.  I managed to miss the green from there (!) but at least a chip-in saved the birdie.

The last hole on Cowden is a really good 501 yard Par 5, with OOB all the way down the right and a stream that cuts across the fairway 130 yards out from the green.  I had an easy par there after laying up short of the stream in 2, for a gross 42, 6 over par, with 15 putts.

My combined scores for the 3 courses were -

Arndean/Cowden, 80, net 70 with 28 putts.  A net 1 under par round.

Arndean/Naemoor, 77, net 67 with 27 putts.  A net 3 under par round.

Naemoor/Cowden, 81, net 71 with 29 putts.  A net par round.

Muckart GC is well worth a visit.  You might not want to play the full 27 holes unless you're fit and the weather's fine, but the Arndean/Cowden combination is particularly good.

PGA National Centenary Course - Course no 452

Polly, Craig, Stu and I played here on 26 September 2011.  This is Craig, Stu and I close to the 1st tee. The PGA National Centenary (catchy name, eh?) is of course the venue for the 2014 Ryder Cup, so we'd been keen to play it to see what lies in store for the teams, spectators and TV viewers.  The Ryder Cup match will be played from the Blue Championship tees and from there, the course measures a formidable 7262 yards.  Craig and I opted to play from the White tees, giving us a course of 6776 yards, Par 72.  Stu went for the Yellow tees, giving him a slightly more manageable 6307 yards to negotiate and Polly was off the Red Ladies tees, at 5270 yards.   Polly and I had stayed at Gleneagles Hotel overnight, enabling us to play the course the next day at a reasonable price and negotiate a discounted deal for the guys to join us, minimising our costs, an important factor since we've still got a lot of travelling etc to do in order to complete our challenge of playing every Scottish course.

There had been heavy overnight rain and although it was still a bit damp underfoot when I'd played the Hotel's Pitch and Putt course before breakfast, the PGA National course was absolutely saturated, with casual water affecting most shots.  Indeed,  we were often splashing our way through puddles or finding that the ground would sink a few inches under our weight (and I'm only 180 pounds!)  We were left wondering what state the course would be in should some really wet weather arrive before or during the 2014 Ryder Cup.  We'd heard rumours of the match being brought forward to avoid the kind of weather-related problems that affected the match at Celtic Manor, but it's been a wet summer in Scotland this year, so we're left hoping that the weather in 2014 will be kinder.  The ground conditions meant that there was no run on the fairways and the greens were slower than we'd expected.  Accordingly, the PGA National course proved to be an absolute beast on the day and if I'd known just how heavy the ground would be, I'd have joined Stu on the Yellow tees.  As it was, even my good tee shots and fairway woods were still short on the par 4 holes and we all struggled to reach greens in regulation.  The views of the Perthshire countryside were as stunning as they are on the other 2 main courses at Gleneagles (the Kings and Queens Courses), but in the contest of Man v Course, the course won hands down in my case. 

Apart from the extreme difficulty of the course itself and the wet ground conditions on the day, my other impression of the course is that it's very long walk, with some demanding elevation changes.  I've been working as a caddie this year at the Renaissance and Archerfield courses, so I'm well used to carrying bags round championship length layouts.  I suppose it's inevitable that a course layout needing to accommodate large crowds needs space for crowd circulation etc. but I'd not want to be on a big bag here for up to 5 rounds in 3 days!

I'm also struggling to identify an obvious signature hole with the kind of wow factor that I'd been hoping to see.  Maybe the 6th on the front 9, a 176 yard downhill Par 3 played over a pond, as shown here.  This hole is called "Mickle Skelp" meaning "small hit" but with the wind against and the tee well above the green and exposed to the wind, I needed my 7 wood just to get to the fringe at the front of the green.  Another bogey on the card and still no par.  In fact, I'd been struggling to find fairways and greens, sat out of bunkers (and get out of them!), so after 6 holes I was 2 under level 6s.  Not good and further 6s on holes 7-9 meant I was out in 52.

The 10th is a downhill 190 yard Par 3 and I'd finally reached a green in regulation, only to 3-putt from 20 feet.  Polly had hit a superb tee shot to within 3 feet and missed from there but at least she'd registered a par. I thought the bast hole on the back 9 was the 16th, a 518 yard Par 5 with the third shot played over a pond uphill to a narrow green (or in my case, the 4th shot!)  Another double bogey there and I was still parless.  The 17th was only 179 yards downhill into the wind.  I'd found a greenside bunker, got it out to 10 feet, so a good chance - missed!

I'm not sure what to make of this, the 18th, a steeply uphill 484 yard Par 5, with the green set in a hollow surrounded by banking that forms a "natural" amphitheatre that, come the Ryder Cup, will no doubt provide space for stands that will accommodate a large gallery of spectators.  Played without such additions, the 18th was just a slog that petered out far from the club house, leaving a decent Par 4 length walk over a soggy field to the car park.  We all felt a sense of anti-climax on completion of the round and although I'm sure that this course will provide a strong test come the Ryder Cup, it's not one that will feature in my own list of top Scottish courses.  There are many other Championship courses that could host an event as big as the Ryder Cup, but I suppose money talks louder than common sense.

For the record, I'd limped around in 103, with 34 putts.  OK, the conditions weren't the best and I'd been too ambitious to go for the White tees, but a net 93, 21 shots above par and no pars or birdies? Not my worst round, but at least I'd scored a birdie and had a few good pars when I played the Celtic Manor course before the 2010 Ryder Cup, and had happy memories when watching that event on TV.  Watching the 2014 event, I hope I'm not thinking back to my 8 at the 3rd after failing to get out of a bunker (that I should never have been in) and my tired 7 up the long 18th etc.  Maybe the scars will have healed by then, but for now, at least I've played the course as part of our challenge.  However, I doubt I'd rush to play it again.

Gleneagles Pitch and Putt Course - course no 451

The Gleneagles Hotel has a 9 hole pitch and putt course measuring 550 yards, ideal for complete beginners or early risers like me, before breakfast and a day's golf. Polly, Craig, Stu and I were due to play the PGA National Centenary Course at Gleneagles later in the morning of 26 September 2011, and it had been raining heavily overnight so this was a chance to gauge the likely underfoot conditions.  The longest hole on this course is only 81 yards, so only a wedge and putter are needed and it only takes 30 minutes or so to play.  I went round in level par 27 after birdies at the first couple of holes and 16 putts in total. 

This is a view of the 49 yard 9th hole, with the hotel in the background.  Quite a place overall.

PGA National Academy Course - Course no 450

This is a short 9 Par 3 hole course forming part of the impressive 5-course complex at Gleneagles  Hotel in rural Perthshire.  Polly and I played here on 25 September before our round on the next morning with Craig and Stu over the PGA National Centenary Course at Gleneagles.  The Academy Course, or the Wee Course as its still more generally known, is parkland/moorland in nature and at only 1481 yards, Par 27 is intended mainly as a training course for beginners.  Accordingly, it's not too testing, but some of the holes require straight hitting, so be warned.  This is the 3rd, a 174 yard Par 3.  The plateau green is easy to miss and with the flag tucked away back left and my ball buried in the rough to the right and short of the green, I did well to escape with a bogey.

This is the  7th, a 194 yard Par 3 played from an elevated tee with the Hotel and the 1st tee of the PGA Centenary Course in the background.  I had a 33, net 28 on the course or net 1 over par, with 14 putts.  I thought this small course was overpriced at £25 and offered poor value.  By all means play it if your playing one or more of the 3 main courses at Gleneagles (the Kings, Queens, and PGA National) but you might want to keep your cash for the Dormy clubhouse that serves all of the courses.  At over £100 for a 2 course meal for 2, plus a few drinks, you may need it. 

Gatehouse GC - Course no 449

I still had time for a quick 9-holer after my round at Newton Stewart before driving home, so inspired by a write-up in Derek Adams' "Nine-Holer Guide" I played the excellent Gatehouse GC course in the village of Gatehouse of Fleet on 23 September 2011.  This author's assessment of the Gatehouse course is that "the challenging nine-hole course is one of the most scenic and well maintained courses in south west Scotland."  For me, this is a considerable understatement. 

Bearing in mind that I was already tired from previous golfing exertions, I'd been hoping that Gatehouse would be short and flat.  Well, one out of two isn't bad, but although there's some serious slopes to contend with at Gatehouse, this  daunting view from the 1st tee pushed my tiredness aside.  It was immediately obvious that Gatehouse would be hugely challenging, with gorse, whin, blind shots galore all ready to frustrate even the most skillful golfer never mind a 10-handicapper like me.    There's a steep path up to the clubhouse from the small car park and as you walk up, you pass some houses far below to your left and see the 9th green high to your right, so any hope that this would be an easy walk is quickly dispelled.  The clubhouse is modest and cosy, just as you'd expect for such a small village course.  Who needs the big championship courses and their fancy prices when wee courses like this are to be found throughout the country?  The 1st hole here is 206 yards steeply uphill, requiring absolute accuracy to avoid an opening bogey or worse. By the time I'd guessed (correctly) where the green might be (bearing in  mind it was a Par 3!) and  escaped with a bogey, I'd also realised that this course was in amazing condition.  Wigtown and Bladnoch had been soaking wet, even before the overnight rain and the Newton Stewart course had taken a hammering from the deluge, but here was a hilly moorland course, firm underfoot, with perfect fast running greens and manicured fairways.  I'd even stopped on one of the holes to admire how well a bunker had been raked by the greenkeeper!  For goodness sake get a life, Alan.

The 2nd is a scary looking blind 338 yard Par 4.  The marker pole is a good line and there's a wide fairway beyond it.  Go too far right of it and you might be playing this hole for a long time.  Find the fairway and you then have another blind shot to a small green.  Hit that, take your 2 putts and walk away with a smile on your face, just as I did.  On the 3rd tee, try not to question the sanity of the course designer.  Another blind tee shot awaits on this 288 yard Par 4, over a steep hill.  Find your ball amongst the severe undulations on this fairway, guess it's an 8 iron to the green and after your blind approach shot find your ball again and 2 putt, as I did. The 4th is a 316 yard Par 4 with (and you're probably ahead of me by now!) a blind tee shot over a marker improbably near to what I suspected was OOB forestry land.  Trust the marker, but I'd hit a slight hook and could only see the top half of the flag for my second.  OOB awaited anything long or right, so a bogey there was acceptable. 

Next comes the slightly downhill 120 yard Par 3 5th hole.  With the wind from behind, I'd an easy 9 iron to the green and 2 putts later, I was 2 over par with 4 holes to go.  However, the Gatehouse course has an absolute stonker of a Par 5 as its 6th.  It's 532 yards with a generously wide fairway, but is mostly uphill into the prevailing wind.  I'd hit a good long and straight drive but my ball was on a side slope and my second went way left, leaving yet another blind shot.  I limped off with a 7 to go 4 over, but all was not lost.  The 7th is a blind downhill 272 yard Par 4.  This was my best drive of the round, finishing just short of the green.  Aim at the marker sign in the trees and hit it as hard as you can.  I'd an easy par from there.  The photo above is of the 8th, a 186 yard Par 3 and my own favourite amongst the many really good holes at Gatehouse.  Long, right or short is asking for real trouble.  The wind was blowing straight up the hole and there's a slope to the left that feeds down to the green.  Find that and you've still a good chance of making par.  I'd missed the green on that side but the slope carried my ball down to the back of the green.  It was downhill and downwind to the hole from there, but a couple of good putts and I was  4 over with "only" the 9th to go. 

Derek Adams had the 9th as the course's signature hole and I'd probably agree (though how it's only Stroke Index 15 beats me).  This is the view from the Medal Tee and below, the only marginally more informative view from the Yellow tee.  The 9th is a steeply downhill 160 yard Par 3 and there's really very little to aim at from either position, so a final blind shot to finish with.  

When playing one of the bigger courses in Ireland some years ago I'd gone to the expense of buying a Course Guide. On reaching just such a hole, the Pro's tip was "Hit the green and two-putt if you can." There was no escaping the accuracy and succinctness of that advice, but some comments about the prevailing wind direction, depth and receptiveness of the green etc might have helped (or more likely, drained me any remaining positive thoughts!) The view from the 9th tee at Gatehouse reminded me of that hole. Just hit the green and two-putt is sound advice for any Par 3, but particularly here. Gorse, bunkers, the path to the clubhouse, OOB and the gardens of the houses beyond all come into play.  I managed to find the green with my easy 7 Wood tee shot and get my par for 37 in total, net 32, or net 1 under par, with 16 putts in total, without losing a ball. Indeed, finish your round with the same ball that you started with and count yourself lucky, given the large number of blind shots and bushes etc.  Have even half the fun I did and you'll have had a great time.  In my travels around all of the golf courses in Scotland there have been a few courses of the "seen it, played it, wouldn't rush to go back" variety and at the other end of the spectrum, courses that you know will stick in the mind for a long time.  Gatehouse is undoubtedly one of those course that will stick in my mind for a long, long time, for the right reasons.  I was pretty tired before I started my round at Gatehouse but it was only on my way back down the path to the car park that I remembered!

Gatehouse is just a wee village golf club in an area that is blessed by having many other excellent courses so if you ever get the chance to visit Dumfries and Galloway, by all means play the more famous courses such as Southerness, Portpatrick and Stranraer.  However, don't miss the thrills and spills at Gatehouse if you're in the area.  I'm normally not a great fan of blind holes, but given the contours of the land that this course is built on, there's no alternative, so just accept the challenge that the course offers and enjoy.

Newton Stewart GC - Course no 448

The heavy overnight rain that had been forecast had duly arrived and was forecast to go off around 1000hrs on 23 September 2011.  I was a long way from home and I wanted to squeeze in another couple of courses before getting back, so although it was still chucking it down when I arrived at this 5546 yard Par 68 parkland course, I really didn't have much time to spare, so out I went, with wet suit, hat and umbrella all fully deployed. Needless to say there wasn't a queue for the first tee and it was only on the 6th, that I saw anyone else on the course, some 6 holes ahead of me.  As I left the clubhouse a member said I must be either very keen or completely daft.  I replied that I was probably both, and meant it.  I'd caddied for 36 holes at Renaissance on the 17th, played on the 18th, caddied on the 19th and 20th in the Sir Ian Botham and Darren Clarke charity event at Archerfield and played 27 holes over St Medan and Wigtown & Bladnoch on the 22nd, so my energy levels were pretty low.  As I climbed up the long hill to the 3rd tee at Newton Stewart I realised this would be a really tough physical challenge and maybe I'd have been wiser to at least wait for the rain to go off.  David Howell had been playing in the group I'd caddied for at Archerfield but any lingering thoughts of implementing some tips from watching this top European Tour player's smooth swing, course management and impressive iron play had quickly disappeared on that climb.  My challenge at Newton Stewart would simply be to get round the course without getting too wet and dispirited.  This is the 3rd hole, an uphill 172 yard Par 3, with a steep bank in front of the green.  I'd parred the 1st, bogeyed the 2nd and wasn't too hopeful here, but a good swing and I'd almost made the green, so a chip and and a tap in later and I was off to a reasonable start.  As forecast, the rain stopped around 1000 and although the course was saturated and heavy underfoot, I was playing OK and enjoying myself, despite being really tired.

The Newton Stewart course is mainly parkland but it climbs into forested moorland country from the 6th before coming down again from the 11th and this is a really pretty and interesting stretch of holes.  This is the 9th, an uphill dog leg left 338 yard Par 4, complete with a small herd of deer crossing the fairway.  I also liked the 10th, a 147 yard Par 3 played across a ravine and the aptly named "Soup Plate"  12th, a steeply downhill 185 yard Par 3, with the green surrounded by gorse and other bushes and trees.  Hit the green or lose your ball, simple as that.  I did the latter for a double bogey 5.

This is the 17, a 152 yard Par 3.  Nothing special looking, just another hole nearer to the clubhouse and a welcome rest.  I'd hit a 7 wood off the tee as by that time it was just about the only club that I could be sure of hitting reasonably straight.  I'd got my ball to the very back of the green, with a good 50 feet to go.  The greens at newton Stewart were really good, even after all of the rain but I'd not expected to hole the putt for birdie.  A closing bogey down the last and I'd got round in 82, net 72, or net 4 over par.   It ad been a real struggle physically, but I'd seen enough to judge that this was a really good course, well worth playing again if I got the chance.  Hopefully I'll be less tired the next time and the weather will be kinder.  Play this excellent course if you get the chance.

Wigtown and Bladnoch GC - Course no 447

I'd booked to stay overnight in Newton Stewart after my round at St Medan on 22 September 2011 before tackling some more courses in the south west, so I'd time to fit in a quick round over the  9 hole Wigtown & Bladnoch GC course.  This is a parkland course measuring 2731 yards Par 34 off the Men's White Medal tees.  The scorecard does not provide any measurements from the Yellow tees.  I'd experienced that oddity on another course some time ago, but I really don't understand why, when visitors and members' bounce games are required to play off Yellows, there were no yardages on the scorecards.  That criticism apart, this was a rather bland experience when compared with my adventures over the nearby St Medan course.  There had been some recent rain and the Wigtown & Bladnoch course was soaking wet, with balls plugging where they landed and my feet splashing their way through puddles of standing water.

I'm still struggling several days after playing here, to pick out the signature hole, but I liked this, the 4th, a short 275 yard Par 4 played from an elevated tee.  With the wind from behind, I'd ambitions of getting near to the green, but my ball plugged on landing and I was lucky to find it, three-quarters' submerged in the middle of the fairway.  I'd no such luck on the 356 yard Par 4 7th, where my tee shot found the light rough and was duly lost.  I can only assume it got completely submerged.  It was a bright sunny and warm afternoon, but I was the only fool on the course and even the greenkeeper had gone home.

This is the 9th, a decent 376 yard uphill Par 4.  I had a closing par for a 39, net 34 with 14 putts.   The weather forecast was for heavy overnight rain, so maybe I'd been quite lucky to catch this course before it got even wetter.  I've played it, but I doubt whether I'd want to play it again.