As the appetite for golf in Scotland grows, new courses appear. The development of land is emotive stuff and can be disastrous. Those schemes which do get through though have given us some excellent courses.
As a child brought up in East Lothian I fondly remember spending days hunting rabbits on Whitekirk hill. The hill was a natural and ancient playground of bracken and gorse, rocky hillocks and grassy valleys – perfect stalking ground for a boy. But it can take an incomer to spot potential, and when George Tuer arrived from the south and bought our neighbouring farm at Whitekirk he looked on the hill with fresh eyes.
In 1995, with a modest budget, he and course architect Cameron Sinclair began to create a 6,525-yard ‘pay-as-you-go’ golf course with some of the best views in East Lothian. The hilltop exposure to the elements and the use of water hazards has produced an excellent challenge, which becomes still greater when the wind really blows.
By far the most successful of the new course in Scotland is the ‘Augusta’ of Europe, the verdant Loch Lomond Golf Club. Nestling alongside the loch, and over looked by Ben Lomond to the north, this course is laid out in 660 acres of spectacular parkland. The area is part of the estate of Clan Colquhoun, a clan that has been an integral part of Scottish history for centuries. Nature had presented the planners and developers with a site of extraordinary beauty. However the initial developers went over budget and bust in 1990 and it took the know-how of American Lyle Anderson and DMB Investment Company to recognise the full potential of the prize that lay before them.
In 1994, former Open champion Tom Weiskopf and golfing architect Jay Moorish were commissioned to design what is now an internationally famous course, currently ranked 39th best in the world. The end result, Weiskopf feels, is his lasting memorial to the game and few new courses have made such an impression so quickly. The 7,060-yard par 71 course has been cleverly laid out with a front nine set around the lock with hazards to the fore. Thereafter the full majesty of the parkland comes into play with mature woodlands, rhododendrons and azaleas abounding – all set in a lush and undulating landscape. The 18th hole has an almost perfect setting with the final putt set before the restored ruin of Rossdhu Castle and the shimmering loch a pulled shot away.
This manicured utopia can be heavy going for the less than proficient golfer- its length and complexity is ideal for championship golf, and the Standard Life Loch Lomond World Invitational is now well established. This year the tournament takes place from July 10- 15 (including practice days) and will be defended by world No 3 Colin Montgomerie, who won there last year. The ladies equivalent, the Solheim Cup, will also be played there on October 6 – 8 underlining the international standing which the course now enjoys.
