Golf Empire founder, Ed Battye, has played the majority* of these links courses in Scotland and below he lists them in order of his personal preference. Many of the courses also have a golf course review.
We certainly do not claim this to be a definitive list so please don't be offended if you disagree with the order or your blood boils because your personal favourite languishes far too low. It's merely one man's opinion on the many fabulous links golf courses of Scotland. Hopefully this provides more interest than a list created by a panel which can often dilute the flavour of any given ranking. However, we are very interested in your opinions so please leave your comments below.
You may also like to read our Living on the Links Spectrum article.
You can see the equivalent for England, Wales and Northern Ireland plus now you can see our Top 100 Links Golf Courses of the United Kingdom.
"There’s very little that hasn’t been written about the golfing mecca that is St. Andrews. Golfers (and indeed non-golfers) flock to this corner of Fife from all over the World to savour the delights of the ‘Grey Auld Toun’ and for most it is mainly to play, or at least see and walk, The Old Course; the spiritual home of golf and where it all began for our beloved game."
"It’s Christmas Eve. Well, not quite, but it certainly feels like it. It’s the evening before we are due to play Royal Dornoch for the first time. We are in an eatery in the historic town debating just how good tomorrow could be as we embark on playing unquestionably one of the World’s greatest golf courses."
"Not all golf courses are created equal and that can certainly be said about Trump Turnberry. For here you will find the most spectacular stretch of coastline on any golfing land that I have ever seen. The natural setting and scenic beauty of the iconic Ailsa course, an Open Championship venue four times over, is simply sublime."
"If Muirfield is regarded as the King of East Lothian then North Berwick is undoubtedly Queen. Sometimes words cannot accurately describe a course and do it total justice, you just have to go and experience it for yourself in order to get a proper flavour of the place. The West Links at North Berwick is one of those."
"Oh my word! The Balgownie Links at Royal Aberdeen is something else. It’s different gravy - an unbelievably good golf course. Not only is it the best in Aberdeenshire it’s one of the best you will play. Period. It is the epitome of an authentic, genuine and pure links golf experience."
"You don’t need to think strategically to play Castle Stuart but to play Castle Stuart you need to think strategically. The above summarises this modern links perfectly and in my opinion is a sign of greatness. Castle Stuart is great. It’s a thinking man’s course for sure but the more naive golfer will still get maximum enjoyment from this wholly manufactured course."
"We’d already driven for over six hours and covered more than 350 miles before boarding a ferry in Oban sailing to Lochboisdale. The Lord of the Isles took a further five and a half hours before it eventually docked a little after seven that evening. We were tired and hungry, in need of food and sleep."
"Cruden Bay is a golf course that dances to its own beat. It’s gripping, riveting, absorbing and most importantly its individuality shines through. Cruden Bay is one of very few courses that has a real personality. It’s laid out over a unique, special and infinitely fascinating piece of land."
"The Kingdom of Fife has long been associated with world-class links golf. The region is the spiritual home of the game and Kingsbarns fits seamlessly into the modern day environment. Located just seven miles down the coast from St. Andrews it is in a prime location and the layered landscape that the holes are played over simply add to the visual feast on offer at this sensational layout."
"Muirfield is one of the most historically important golfing venues in the world. Not only has it staged The Open Championship on 15 occasions but it is also home to the Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers. The HCEG is one of the oldest and most influential clubs in golf."
"Western Gailes is a thing of true beauty. Something extra special. Near perfection at times. It’s a classy links course that only a fusion of nature and time is able to create and where man merely offers a guiding hand. This is close to being as good as it gets at times."
"Playing Royal Troon less than a fortnight after Henrik Stenson and Phil Mickelson had produced what is arguably the greatest golfing duel in history, and certainly the best final day of an Open Championship, was a special occasion. With the spectator grandstands still in place I really got a feel for the course that I’d witnessed on television just days previously."
"I recently took advantage of the 3-round ticket that the Carnoustie Golf Links offers. For the sum of £200 this entitled me to one round on each of the three courses. The focal point of the trip was of course the main championship course, a notoriously testing links that has hosted The Open Championship on seven occasions."
"Prestwick has been on my hit list of golf courses to play for quite some time and I’m ashamed to say it has taken me far too long to visit this iconic links. From everything I’d read and heard I was expecting it to be ‘my type’ of golf. After several visits to Ayrshire without visiting this much-lauded venue I finally made it to the birthplace of The Open Championship."
"The first thing to state is that Trump International Golf Links is undoubtedly an exceptionally good golf course. The second thing to say from the off is that it’s categorically not the “World's Greatest Golf Course” as the owner makes out and their website brashly proclaims."
"If you’ve not played the Carnegie Links at Skibo Castle since around 2008 you’ve not really played “Skibo”. The current version of the layout was designed by Tom Mackenzie under the watchful eye and guidance of PGA Professional and Director of Golf at Skibo, David Thomson, around a decade ago."
"Playing at The Machrihanish Golf Club is perhaps not as romantic a prospect as it was several years ago. None-the-less it’s a fabulous golfing experience. Located close to the bottom tip of the Kintyre Peninsula near Campbeltown its remoteness, and therefore its magical appeal, is not as obvious as it perhaps was decades ago."
"Over breakfast at the guest house in Dornoch where we were staying conversation is struck up with a fellow guest; an American from Chicago and a member at Royal Dornoch. When informed that we were heading to Brora for the day he says, “It’s a very special place, the course simply builds and builds and the back nine is truly outstanding.”"
"The members of Moray Golf Club, founded in 1889, must rightly be very proud of their two fine links courses laid out on some fabulous tight and sandy golfing terrain to the south of the Moray Firth. The Old is an unheralded classic links designed by Old Tom Morris with deep revetted bunkers, undulating gorse lined fairways and some excellent green complexes."
"It was an impulsive, crazy… and some would say utterly ridiculous… decision that took me to The Machrie in the Spring of 2018. Having entered an open competition at Gleneagles, near Perth, on Saturday 13th April a friend and I had debated at great length about where to stop off ‘on route’ from West Yorkshire for a game of golf on the Friday."
"Expectations were high as we arrived on the first tee at The Nairn Golf Club, a stalwart of golf in the Highlands and a darling of all the Top 100 Great Britain & Ireland course rankings. The love for Nairn, a traditional championship links founded in 1887, quickly becomes apparent as the opening seven holes flow gracefully along the southern edge of the Moray Firth."
"Panmure is a classy and historic golf club with a wonderful natural links course located near Carnoustie, Angus, in the East of Scotland. It is the sixteenth oldest golf club in the world dating back to 1845 and is one of the 26 clubs that originally helped purchase the Amateur Championship trophy first played for in 1885."
"Except for the undeniable beauty of the 12th hole there’s nothing truly outstanding at Southerness. Please note that this isn’t meant with negative connotations though because everything about this true links course is of a consistently high standard and is undoubtedly one of Scotland’s sleeping gems."
"There is something about Elie that puts you under a spell. It is a truly magical links that, after just one round, has won a place in my heart and mind forever. If ever the phrase ‘less is more’ applied to a course it would be here at The Golf House Club, Elie in Fife. The harmony between golf and nature is at its beautiful best here and a joy to experience."
"Located within touching distance of the Atlantic Ocean on the Kintyre Peninsula Machrihanish Dunes is the first true links course to open on Scotland’s west coast in over one hundred years. And if this is anything to go by let’s hope it isn’t another century before we get the next one."
"I probably lack the savoir faire that The Renaissance Club expects from a golfer but regardless of this I recently seized an opportunity to peg it up behind the closed gates and allowed myself to be indulged for a day. Renaissance is geared towards a niche clientele, one that moves in entirely different circles to me."
"No less than three courses, ranked by number reflecting their age, constitute Gullane Golf Club. It is here you will find an expansive oasis of links golf located in the small East Lothian town that the club is named after. The town itself is a perfect base for golfing in East Lothian with over 20 quality golf courses within easy reach."
"Murcar is a championships links in the very finest Scottish tradition. It was originally established in 1909 by neighbouring Royal Aberdeen professional, Archie Simpson, and later refined by James Braid some twenty years later with only minor alterations since."
"Luffness New serves up an uncomplicated yet delicious feast of pure and traditional links golf laid out naturally across unbelievably firm and fast turf, some of the best I’ve golfed on. Thanks to the gentle, but not insignificant undulations, I could play here for eternity."
"There’s very little that hasn’t been written about the golfing mecca that is St. Andrews. Golfers (and indeed non-golfers) flock to this corner of Fife from all over the World to savour the delights of the ‘Grey Auld Toun’ and for most it is mainly to play, or at least see and walk, The Old Course; the spiritual home of golf and where it all began for our beloved game."
"In an area steeped in history and tradition Dundonald Links has, in the space of just over ten years, commanded the respect of golfers who flock to this part of Scotland to tackle Open Championship venues and other prestigious links courses."
"Montrose, recognised as the fifth oldest course in the world, epitomises everything that is great and superior about links golf. It’s a golf course that has every ingredient required to create a classic true links experience."
"There’s very little that hasn’t been written about the golfing mecca that is St. Andrews. Golfers (and indeed non-golfers) flock to this corner of Fife from all over the World to savour the delights of the ‘Grey Auld Toun’ and for most it is mainly to play, or at least see and walk, The Old Course; the spiritual home of golf and where it all began for our beloved game."
"Fraserburgh Golf Club, the seventh oldest in the World, delivers no frills, classic links golf on a very impressive scale. Those planning a trip to North-East Scotland may rightly include Trump International, Royal Aberdeen, Cruden Bay and Murcar Links on their itinerary. However, without a visit to Fraserburgh their repertoire of quality links golf will not be complete."
"I recently took advantage of the 3-round ticket that the Carnoustie Golf Links offers. For the sum of £200 this entitled me to one round on each of the three courses. The focal point of the trip was of course the main championship course, a notoriously testing links that has hosted The Open Championship on seven occasions."
"The Gailes Links at Irvine belongs to Glasgow Golf Club, a club steeped in history and the 9th oldest in the world. Golf has been played over this fine links since 1892 and until 2016 it is the only Scottish final qualifying course for The Open."
"No less than three courses, ranked by number reflecting their age, constitute Gullane Golf Club. It is here you will find an expansive oasis of links golf located in the small East Lothian town that the club is named after. The town itself is a perfect base for golfing in East Lothian with over 20 quality golf courses within easy reach."
*The following 2 golf courses have not been played and therefore there is no review for them at present:
Dumbarnie Links & Turnberry King Robert The Bruce.
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