Swing vote: take your golf clubs to the Highlands

Apart from a certain referendum, Scotland is also hosting golf’s Ryder Cup this month, Chris Folley takes his clubs to the Highlands
Tartan tees: Boat of Garten golf club in the Cairngorms
Chris Folley12 September 2014

At The Gellions pub in Inverness, there’s no doubt where political sympathies lie. A saltire declaring “the bar that says yes” hangs above the door, with the date September 18, 2014. On ceilidh nights, local band Schiehallion turn up the volume and tartan fervour. I briefly feared for the reception I might get for opening my obviously London gob but, fortunately, good times were the priority ahead of any swift ejection of an Englishman from the premises.

The Highlands is Scotland at its most traditional, and a dependable support base for Alex Salmond. Even the Loch Ness monster has got in on the act, with “Yessie” T-shirts selling like hot cakes.

But this month, “yes” in Scotland is about more than the referendum. It will also mean a warm welcome to golf fans from September 26 to 28, when the Ryder Cup returns to Scotland for the first time since 1973. The honour goes to Gleneagles, an excellent choice not only for the PGA National course where the cup will be contested (it also has the King’s and Queen’s) but for its sumptuous hotel and spa facilities set in 850 acres of Perthshire countryside.

As impressive as Gleneagles and illustrious counterparts such as St Andrews are, though, for a great Scottish golf experience it’s hard to beat the Highlands. Within 15 minutes of getting off a flight at Inverness, my golfing partner and I were heading to the practise range at Castle Stuart, opened five years ago and already a three-times host to the Scottish Open.

It’s a 6,553-yard links course, with wonderful views out onto the Moray Firth. Tall grass hugs most fairways, though this is a tough enough course without having to get friendly with that kind of stuff. The amenities are splendid too, with the art deco-style clubhouse home to an excellent bar and restaurant.

Home comfort: a bedroom at Dornoch’s five-star Links House hotel

After the aforementioned night out in Inverness — and cosy stay at the Eilandview B&B near Inverness — we were heading south towards the Cairngorms and Boat of Garten. En route, arms were twisted to visit the Tomatin whisky distillery in the Monadhliath Mountains.

I’m a rare whisky drinker but the tours are fascinating. After a wee dram it was off to Boat of Garten, in the heart of the Cairngorms and next to the River Spey.

This delightful place is known as the Osprey Village, due to the said bird of prey that live nearby, and has the added attraction of the Strathspey steam train arriving from Aviemore. Everything is lush, green and forested, so the parkland course is a world away from the linksy feel of Castle Stuart.

It’s only 5,876 yards but there are testing holes. Even in summer you can still see snow on Braeriach, the third highest peak in the UK, and it’s a weird feeling to be lining up your putt while the steam engine chugs away. Boat of Garten is also considered one of the best courses in the UK costing less than £50 to play.

The coup de grace of this whistlestop tour required heading back north, past Cromarty Firth, to Dornoch. There’s a wonderful remoteness about Dornoch — it’s just 80 miles south of John O’Groats — which only adds to its appeal.

Royal Dornoch is up there with the great tracks in the eyes of so many in the game. The feeling that you’re onto something special comes at the first tee, where starter Roddy Dingwall — splendidly grey-bearded and kilted — talks you through the holes.

Come the elevated third tee, the course spans out in front of you, with Dornoch’s golden sandy beach sweeping round. Heather and yellow gorse flutter in the breeze. Occasionally the silence is punctuated by chatter between caddie and player — many are likely to be Americans wooed by the reverence paid by greats such as Tom Watson: a letter from this year’s US Ryder Cup captain can be seen in the clubhouse, declaring a round at Dornoch to be “the most fun I’ve ever had on a golf course”.

It’s very much the Scotland they want to see, and the opening last year of the five-star Links House hotel, a stroll from the first tee, fits in perfectly. The eight rooms at this rebuilt church manse dating to 1843 are named after the top salmon rivers in this corner of the Highlands — think gorgeous wood and tartan, with stag’s heads on the walls.

Links House has also gone big on the gastro angle with its 24-cover Orangery restaurant run by chef Darren Miranda. Afterwards you can retire to the drawing room with its tables groaning with books on Scottish history, golf and whiskies.

We were soon taking our drinks outside, though, to a putting green built in between the main house and mews. A nice touch as the clock approaches midnight, next to a roaring outside fire.

There was time the next day for another distillery visit, to Glenmorangie, down the road in Tain. Single malt takes pride of place for a company which since 2004 has been part of the Louis Vuitton group. Tradition, though, remains — the historic tale of the distillery workers, The Sixteen Men of Tain, is proudly told here.

Good judges say Royal Dornoch is the best course to have never hosted a British Open — and with the town having a population of just 2,500 and limited infrastructure it may remain that way. But should it come to potential fruition, that’s one “yes” campaign I’ll be supporting.

DETAILS: SCOTLAND

Eilandview, doubles from £50 B&B, Eilandview.com. Links House, doubles from £320 B&B, linkshousedornoch.com. For information on the Ryder Cup and Scottish golf see visitscotland.com/golf

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in

MORE ABOUT