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| Home The Basics Detailed Info on how to plan your trip Scottish Golf AFSD - how to determine the real length of a golf course Helpful Websites Platinum Page Upscale places, products, services Aberdeen & Grampian Highlands Royal Aberdeen, Cruden Bay... Ayrshire Royal Troon, Turnberry, Prestwick... Northern Highlands Royal Dornoch, Castle Stuart, Brora, Nairn... Scotland's Golf Coast Edinburgh area, North Berwick, Muirfield, Gullane... St. Andrews area Other golf courses Machrihanish Pitlochry. Machrihanish Dunes.. Links Lite Great links golf for the not-so-great golfer Testimonials Donate |
Pitlochry You know you're in for a fun day on a Scottish golf course when the first hole is named "Distillery." No, there's no Scotch whisky (spelled whiskey in the U.S.) on the hole. But it's the site of an old distillery. This is Scotland, after all!.
The hole plays only 376 yards from the visitors' tees, and you tee off high above the green with all the trouble clearly in sight -- sneaky little burn (stream) to your right and the two sets of bunkers stretching right across the fairway. Take an extra club for your second shot because your second shot is uphill and a lot longer than you think. Oh, and watch out for the green. It's easy to putt right off the front of it.
Rather than describe each hole, I'll simply say you're in for an up and down day. No, hopefully your golf won't be up and down, but your changes in elevation certainly will be. Pitlochry is a very hilly golf course. The first time I saw it I wondered where the ski lifts were. Yes, it's very hilly, and that's a great deal of its charm. There are few golf courses anywhere that will give you the variety of shots and the spectacular views that Pitlochry will.
The golf course is only 5,700 yards with a par of 69 but, if you've ever played hilly golf courses you know how deceptive total yardage is. On many of the holes you'll be teeing off high above the green and on others you'll be far below. The very design of the golf course keeps even big hitters honest. If you're out of position on your tee shot, you'll have a difficult time making your par. Hole 15 is a good example of this. It's only 276 yards yet it sports a Stroke Index of 5 and some say it should have an S I of a few points less. The difficulty lies in the design. If your tee shot lands slightly right or left or short, you're going to have to execute an exacting chip shot to save par. The folks at Pitlochry believe it's the most difficult par 4 under 300 yards in the world. And after having played it a few times, I'm not going to argue with them. (By the way, if you have a good short game you'll do okay on this course.)
I love all the par 3s. They are physically beautiful and demand a good golf shot. Anything less than that will probably end up in a bogie.
The first time I played Pitlochry Golf Course I said it was a real hidden gem. People have been saying that for years. Well, now it's official. Golf World, the UK's leading golf magazine, listed "66 Hidden Gems in the UK and Ireland." Pitlochry was high on the list.
Pitlochry now has buggies available. Golf is a walking game. But if walking up steep hills is a problem, here is an opportunity to play a very hilly, very enjoyable golf course. Golf Nook Rating -- A solid PAR www.pitlochrygolf.co.uk |
