View looking towards the 17th and 18th holes of the Old Course, St Andrews, with the club house o...

Best Golf Courses in Scotland

23 ranked courses in Scotland

Scotland has 23 courses in this guide, and 20 of them are links; the other three are the parkland courses at Gleneagles and Loch Lomond and the coastal course at Ardfin. The Old Course at St Andrews, played since 1552, ranks highest. Royal Dornoch, Carnoustie, Trump Turnberry, Muirfield, Royal Troon and Kingsbarns follow it in that order. Eight of the 23 are private, and seven of those take visitors: Muirfield on Tuesdays and Thursdays by written application, Royal Troon on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays, Royal Aberdeen and Western Gailes in set windows, Carnegie Club at Skibo Castle with limited weekday play in summer, and Gullane and Prestwick by booking. Loch Lomond is members and guests only. Three are public: the Old Course, which needs a handicap certificate and an advance booking or daily ballot, Carnoustie and Kingsbarns. Seven are semi-private: Royal Dornoch, North Berwick, Cruden Bay, Brora, The Golf House Club in Elie, Machrihanish and Nairn. Five are resort courses: Turnberry, the King's Course at Gleneagles, Ardfin on Jura, Cabot Highlands in Inverness and Trump International in Balmedie, whose two courses are open to the public all year.

— Top 10 Rankings

Top 10 Best Golf Courses in Scotland

Updated

  1. The Old Course at St Andrews
    St Andrews, Fife, Scotland, United Kingdom links Par 72
    5.0
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  2. Royal Dornoch Golf Club — Championship Course
    Dornoch, Sutherland, Highland, Scotland, United Kingdom links Par 70
    5.0
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  3. Muirfield
    Gullane, East Lothian, United Kingdom links Par 71
    4.8
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  4. Royal Troon Golf Club — Old Course
    Troon, South Ayrshire, Scotland, United Kingdom links Par 71
    5.0
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  5. Carnoustie Golf Links (Championship Course)
    Carnoustie, Angus, United Kingdom links Par 72
    4.7
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  6. Trump Turnberry — Ailsa Course
    Turnberry, South Ayrshire, United Kingdom links Par 70
    4.6
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  7. Kingsbarns Golf Links
    Kingsbarns, Scotland, United Kingdom links Par 72
    5.0
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  8. Gleneagles — The King's Course
    Auchterarder, Perth and Kinross, Scotland, United Kingdom parkland Par 71
    4.0
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  9. North Berwick Golf Club
    North Berwick, East Lothian, United Kingdom links Par 71
    4.6
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  10. Ardfin
    Isle of Jura, Inner Hebrides, United Kingdom coastal Par 72
    4.6
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— More Courses

More Courses in Scotland

About Golf Courses in Scotland

Fife and Angus make the classic trip: St Andrews, Kingsbarns, Elie and Carnoustie. Gullane and North Berwick sit together, and Troon, Prestwick, Irvine and Turnberry fill the Ayrshire coast, with Machrihanish a separate stop. Dornoch, Brora, Inverness and Nairn suit one Highlands trip, Cruden Bay, Balmedie and Aberdeen another, and Gleneagles, Luss and Jura each stand alone.

Ranked courses
23
Course styles
links 20 · parkland 2 · coastal 1
Access
private 8 · semi-private 7 · resort 5
Opened
1552–2012
Playable without membership
15 of 23

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