Castle Stuart

Most people journey to Scotland to play the established traditional links courses, but the newest kid on the block is bringing them back to Scotland.

Castle Stuart opened last year to great fanfare, as it is the second ambitious project by Mark Parsinen, the visionary behind Kingsbarns near St. Andrews. Located just outside of Inverness and minutes from the airport, Castle Stuart is the latest must-play course in the Highlands.

With a decidedly American approach, Parsinen teamed up with Gil Hanse to build a course that is designed to send golfers home with a smile.

The generous fairways mean most tee shots provide an approach from the short stuff. Almost every green has the gorgeous backdrop of the Moray Firth, which often includes Fort George, the Chanonry Lighthouse or the Kessock Bridge.  Yet my favourite view is looking down 130 feet at the starting holes.

The beautiful art deco clubhouse, the service-oriented bag drop-off and conveniently located driving range together give the course a modern feel.
This is Scottish links from an American's POV, which means great seaside sandy-based terrain combined with the level of service one finds at home.

Welcome to Castle Stuart

Walking to the first tee

Hole #11, a par 3, yet another green using the Moray Firth to play tricks on the eyes

Over half the holes have greens that appear to be on the edge of the Firth

The 13th tee box for the amateur golfer at 363 yards ...

The 13th tee box for the pro golfer is above the bench and back 50 yards

The fairways may be generous, but the bunkers are punitive

A great view from the top plateau looking 130 ft down to the starting holes of each 9

The beautiful art deco clubhouse

Lastly, Loch Lomond declined the Barclays Scottish Open this year, opening up an opportunity for Castle Stuart to host the tournament. Traditionally held the week before The Open, the return to a links course should attract a few more North Americans looking for a warm-up before Royal St. Georges in July.  Many are curious to see how the course stands up to the pros as they tackle Scotland newest great course at 7400 yards from the championship tees.

Next up: Royal Dornoch

Update on Friday, August 19, 2011 at 9:46AM by Travel Impresarios

The World Rankings for 2011 were just released and Castle Stuart made its debut at #56.

Check it out - Golf Magazine's World Rankings

Royal Aberdeen

Our second round of the trip is at the esteemed Royal Aberdeen, the 6th oldest golf club in the world. Founded in 1780, it was not until 1903 that King Edward VII bestowed the Royal title. It has a long storied history including the institution of the "Five Minute Rule" -five minutes max to search for stray golf balls, which is way too long when playing in April, since the varied, primarily fescue and marram grasses are still young.

It is a classic links course high above the east coast of the North Sea. Nine holes out and nine holes back of bumpy and unpredictable hard fairways. Shot selection and placement are critical to scoring well.

The course was in excellent condition as there has been special attention paid to it, as the club gears up to be host the Walker Cup this September.

Next up: Castle Stuart

Welcome to Royal Aberdeen

Great first hole hitting towards North Sea and & oil maintenance boats

An example of the bumpy and unpredictable fairways

Tee shot at #7

Pete and our caddy, Ewan pose on the sand dunes high above the Sea

Remnants of the old railway protect the 15th green

The gorse is at its most brilliant yellow in the spring

Standing on the 16th tee box

The approach at 18 with the clubhouse standing watch