Jack Nicklaus at St. Andrews – but not just for fun!

May 28, 2010 Mhairi

Arriving by helicopter, Jack Nicklaus stopped by at St. Andrews this week to host two golf clinics and to chat to the local school kids about the famous Claret Jug.

RBS, the organizers of the trip, wanted the famous golfer to attend the Open this year, however Jack politely declined stating that he had “said goodbye to the game of golf” already at St. Andrews in 2005 (the venue where he won two out of his three Opens).

Nicklaus added that “I didn’t say goodbye at the Masters I said goodbye at St. Andrews”. Obviously the home of golf is a place very close to his heart and he did not want to return just for the fun of it…

But that doesn’t mean you can’t play just for fun on the world’s most famous course!

Royal St. David’s – A Course Steeped in History

May 26, 2010May 1, 2010 PerryGolf Staff

You’ll appreciate the setting at Royal St. David’s from the minute you pull up into the car park in the shadows of the overlooking Harlech Castle. It’s a spectacular view as it’s perched on top of the hill and can be seen from almost every hole. The course itself is relatively flat, but don’t be fooled as the fairways are tight and the rough punishing, so it’s not for the faint-hearted. The greens are true and were exceptionally fast for April, and with the back nine playing straight into the wind, it wasn’t the best day for scoring when your game’s as rusty as mine, but I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it.

Royal St. David's in front of Harlech Castle

To add to the enjoyment, we played in beautiful sunshine, which if you’ve been following any of my blogs from my trip to Wales, you’ll realise was the case every day – the Welsh will tell you it’s like that 365 days a year.

There were only 3 of us playing, so a local member called Jim joined us to make up a fourball. Jim used to play for one of England’s most famous soccer teams (Everton) so as a big Liverpool fan (the two teams are great rivals) I gave him a bit of stick on our way around. In return, he gave me a valuable golf tip which sorted my driving out… and resulted in me not losing a single ball for the rest of my trip! Happy days!

By Keith Baird. Keith has been with PerryGolf for over 10 years and is one of our Golf Travel Specialists.

PerryGolf Welcomes Our First Travellers to Scotland for 2010 Season

May 21, 2010 PerryGolf Staff

John and Kristian Beall on the New Course, St Andrews

The Beall Group were PerryGolf’s first travellers of the 2010 Season. Mr. Beall travelled with his son and brother and they played some of the finest links courses that the East Coast of Scotland has to offer. Three out of the five courses which they played feature in the top 100 in the world…and the pinnacle of these was Muirfield. North Berwick and Cruden Bay were the others to make it into the top 100, but the New Course at St. Andrews and Royal Aberdeen are not far behind.

Caddies were requested at each course the group played and Mr. Beall found that these were pivotal in their enjoyment. Links courses are hard enough so why not take advantage of any assistance you can? The group had special praise for the caddies at Royal Aberdeen and Cruden Bay. Mr. Beall and his party also hired a concierge driver throughout their trip and he was always on hand to suggest local places of interest, make dining reservations, and was more like their tour manager than their driver. Mr. Beall had high praise for the driver and he became their friend as the tour progressed.

With regards dining, The Witchery in Edinburgh came highly recommended from the guys. It’s within walking distance of Edinburgh Castle and is an excellent place to finish off a day of sightseeing in Scotland’s capital.

PerryGolf would like to thank Mr. Beall and his group for their valued business and hope to welcome them on another trip in the future.

By Gary Sheppard. Gary has been with PerryGolf for 4 years and is one of our Golf Travel Specialists.

Gleneagles Hotel Win MICE Award

May 18, 2010May 1, 2010 PerryGolf Staff

Scotland’s Gleneagles Hotel is a must-visit for every golfer as it is an absolutely fantastic luxury hotel which is reflected in the fact that they are the winner of many awards; most recently the Meetings and Incentive Travel (M&IT) Gold Award for Top UK hotel.

The hotel was nominated in a shortlist which included The Grove, Chewton Glen and The Dorchester and received the coveted award at a ceremony held in London last month. They have won several awards for outstanding service (which is a vital in our industry); the spa has won the Condé Nast Traveler Readers’ Spa Awards for the last 2 years. Gleneagles Hotel is a resort which boasts every amenity – three top courses (the Kings, Queens & PGA Centenary), excellent restaurants and a fabulous spa. With a wide range of activities on site – from the shooting school to the off-road 4×4 driving – it is a superb experience for golfers and non golfers alike.

By Denise McKee. Denise has been with PerryGolf for over 10 years and is a member of our admin team.

Royal Porthcawl – My Experience

May 16, 2010August 12, 2015 PerryGolf Staff

One of the courses I played in my recent trip to Wales was the fantastic Royal Porthcawl; generally regarded as the top course in the country. It’s famous for hosting many amateur championships over the years and one of it’s most well known moments was being the course on which Tiger Woods famously lost to Gary Wolstemholme in the 1995 Walker Cup (his last defeat as an amateur).

After a great lunch, we headed out onto the course to be greeted by fantastic weather and barely a breath of wind. It was ideal for scoring, but sadly no one decided to tell me as I left more than a handful of putts and some brand new Pro V’s out there, but what a course it was! It’s not a long course, but it’s far from easy; with subtle hazards, dramatic slopes and fiery fairways and greens, it makes your approach shots extremely challenging.

I thoroughly enjoyed it from start to finish and it reminded me of some of the great, and more famous, Scottish links courses. It’s definitely one that should be on the ‘must play’ list for regular travellers to the British Isles, because it is as good as many of the Open rota courses – and with some other excellent links courses nearby, such as Tenby, Pennard, Pyle and Kenfig and Royal St David’s, it would be a more than capable centrepiece for a great trip, be it as a couple or as a group of guys.

To read more information on the course, please click here .

By Keith Baird. Keith has been with PerryGolf for over 10 years and is one of our Golf Travel Specialists.

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