Going for Golf

Dundonald Links

You don’t have to go far to find a completely contrasting clubhouse. But don’t make the mistake of going to Dundonald in the hope of finding Dundonald Links because it’s not there. However, it’s not all that far away and is well signposted, so there are no excuses really.

After the imposing entrance, the Dundonald clubhouse, which resembles a super-stretched Portakabin, is something of a letdown until you enter it and discover a surprisingly spacious, well-appointed, comfortable facility. Anyway, if the clubhouse is something of an anticlimax, the course most certainly isn’t.

From the moment you step onto the first tee and take in the wonderfully wide and welcoming opening fairway, you sense that you’re in for a treat. Designed by Kyle Phillips, whose other notable creations include the much-heralded Kingsbarns, the course is a stunner.

Enjoy that glorious feeling of splendid isolation as the imposing dunes and mounds on either side provide both protection and a screen from the rest of mankind. Only occasionally are you reminded that there is a world out there, such as on the elevated 13th tee, where you can watch golfers playing neighbouring Kilmarnock Barassie and Western Gailes.

The inviting fairways encourage you to take out the driver but don’t take liberties as the course will exact revenge by means of well-placed bunkers. The real challenge, however, comes at the business end of each hole, where you’ll encounter fiendish slopes around the greens and subtle borrows on them.

Constant changes in direction spin you around but miraculously return to the clubhouse at the ninth and 18th. The four par-fives, all of which are superb, are aligned differently so that the help and hindrance of the seemingly incessant wind balance out.

A nice touch is provided by the scorecards which have the distance the pins are from the front of the greens printed on them each day. At 7,100 yards from the back tees, it is eminently suitable for serious tournaments, like the European Tour Qualifying School, which has been a visitor for the last four years, and the prestigious PGA Professional Championship, which was hosted earlier this year.