One of the biggest tournaments on the European Tour calendar is set to move venue in a bid to lure some of the world’s biggest stars. The tournament, which is held the week before The Open Championship, is currently based at Loch Lomond GC and has been there since 1996. Loch Lomond is one of the best courses in the world but as it is a parkland style course; some bigger name players prefer to practice on a links course the week prior to the Open Championship. There has been speculation as to who the main contenders are and it seems as though it has been narrowed to 2 potential candidates – Castle Stuart near Inverness or The Renaissance Club in East Lothian. The Renaissance Club is the more mature of the two, having been open for two seasons, a pretty remarkable stat for the two main contenders for this highly regarded event.
Castle Stuart, which runs along the banks of the Moray Firth in the Scottish Highlands, was recently voted the best new overseas destination by Golf Digest. The course, which was co-designed by Mark Parsinen (Kingsbarns) and American architect Gil Hanse (Craighead Links at Crail), opened in 2009 and it has already taken its place amongst Scotland’s greats. Not only has it made the Highlands a much more appealing destination, but Scotland as a whole. With Royal Dornoch (Scotland’s #3 course) and Nairn (#14) its best and closest neighbours, 3 or 4 nights in the Inverness area make for a great addition to any Scotland tour.
Castle Stuart Golf Links
I recently had the opportunity to play it for the first time and loved every minute of it. Other than the fact that the rough needs some time to mature – to make it more of a challenge – you wouldn’t know it was only a new course. With reasonably wide fairways, you might be forgiven for standing on the tee and thinking it looks relatively straight forward, but with the impetus put on getting the right angles from where to approach very tricky greens, it’s definitely a thinker’s course. If you’ve been to Scotland before and you’ve played the more famous British Open rota courses, but you’ve never made it up to the Highlands, now is the time…and Castle Stuart should definitely be on your list as one of the ‘must plays’.
By Keith Baird. Keith has been with PerryGolf for over 10 years and is one of our Golf Travel Specialists.
The Kingsmills Hotel in Inverness is the perfect place to be based when playing the three great courses of the Scottish Highlands, Royal Dornoch, Nairn and Castle Stuart. The hotel has recently added The Kings Club, which is a separate building around a hundred yards from the main hotel. It is perfect for couples and groups of guys alike with luxurious and spacious bedrooms decorated in tasteful warm colours. All of the rooms are identical and all have either a balcony or a patio depending on which floor they are on.
Whilst the fact the reception area adjoins the restaurant, which I thought was slightly strange and could spoil the evening ambience (it does work well for breakfast) there’s another dining option in the main hotel, so this feature doesn’t detract too much from the quality of the Kings Club. With it being in the perfect location to commute to the golf courses, and with Inverness city centre nearby, it makes sense that almost anyone going to this area stays there. As the main hotel is only a slightly less expensive option, and with the Kings Club being so impressive, I’d urge anyone staying in Inverness to opt for the more modern and luxurious option as you won’t be disappointed.
By Keith Baird. Keith has been with PerryGolf for over 10 years and is one of our Golf Travel Specialists.
Jim Frank, the well traveled golf writer visits some of the links in the Highlands of Scotland, which can be so different from their more famous sisters to the south;
The wild weather at St. Andrews during the Open Championship didn’t surprise me as I’d just returned from a week in Scotland where I faced my own share of wind, rain, sun, clouds, and nearly every other condition Mother Nature can throw at traveling golfers.
And like the Open at the Old Course, it was great stuff.
I did spend some time in St. Andrews before the … Read more
About the Author: Gordon Dalgleish is the Co-Founding Director of PerryGolf, the leading provider of international golf vacations. You can find him onGoogle+
We have always sought “innovation” at PerryGolf and tried to offer interesting and unique ways to enhance the golf travel experience. Our exclusive charter of the 226 passenger Le Diamant (formerly Song of Flower of Radisson Cruise Lines) for Ryder Cup 2010 is one such example. Set against a backdrop of limited accommodations in South Wales, and with the alternative of long road journeys from England along the invariably congested M4 corridor (and that is in normal traffic times), we arranged to charter and berth Le Diamant in a quiet area of Newport Docks less than 5 miles from the venue. All packages include official Ryder Cup tickets and transportation in association with Ryder Cup Travel Services. Regular shuttle transportation, available exclusively for PerryGolf passengers, will operate from the ship directly into the official transportation area and bypass the public park and ride facility. The ship offers cabins and suites from 200 to 400 square feet. If you have plans to attend the 2010 Ryder Cup at the Celtic Manor Resort then this solution really does by far provide the most comfortable and convenient accommodations available.
Ryder Cup - Le Diamant
Packages are available from $4,795 per person, and include 5 nights accommodation onboard Le Diamant with all meals including house wines with dinner, general admission tickets to the 2010 Ryder Cup (Friday to Sunday inclusive) plus Thursday practice round and Opening Ceremonies, daily shuttle transportation to and from the matches, captain’s cocktail party, all shipboard gratuities and port taxes.
We also offer two exciting pre Ryder Cup tours to Scotland to whet the appetite in advance of the matches. We encourage you to join us for 3 nights in Scotland at either Turnberry Resort (with golf at Royal Troon, Western Gailes, Ailsa Course Turnberry and St Pierre Wales) or Gleneagles Hotel (with golf at Kings Course, PGA Centenary Course, Kingsbarns and St Pierre Wales), in advance of the event. All tours are VERY inclusive of accommodations, all breakfasts, almost all dinners, wine with dinners, greens fees or alternative sightseeing program, ground transportation plus air transportation between Scotland and Ryder Cup Wales, and all taxes and gratuities on included items.
Another event operating immediately in advance of the Ryder Cup is the Heritage Fourball in the Highlands of Scotland. Teams of three amateurs and one PGA pro are invited. Why not arrange to bring your golf pro? Following on the success of our event in 2008 which saw teams competing from Scotland, Europe and the USA, the 2010 Heritage Fourball Championship will again be played over 54 holes September 26-29. 2010 courses will comprise Royal Dornoch, Nairn and two rounds over the much heralded new links (rated #1 best new international course 2009 by Golf Magazine) at Castle Stuart. Gross and Net Champions will be awarded but, as always, we expect the most memorable prize will be the unique camaraderie enjoyed with old friends and new. Several evening social functions are naturally included in the entry fee of $2,895 per amateur with complimentary entry for your PGA pro. The tournament format will also mix teams on one of the days. Spouses or non-golfing guests are also most welcome, the cost for them fully inclusive of two full days sightseeing program and all tournament social functions is $1,450.
Whichever combination you might choose, we hope you will make a date to join us in Scotland and Wales at the end of September for one of the world’s greatest sporting events!
The wild weather at St. Andrews during the Open Championship didn’t surprise me as I’d just returned from a week in Scotland where I faced my own share of wind, rain, sun, clouds, and nearly every other condition Mother Nature can throw at traveling golfers.
