Machrihanish
Number 11. Played Summer 2010. Traditional links designed by Old Tom Morris.We arrived at the car park at 10:00. The view from here is spectacular, the pro shop is sitting up by the first with an unobstructed view across the ocean. The weather was fantastic and the island of Islay was visible in the background. We entered the small pro shop to find it stocked full of Machrihanish branded items - it is clear that the course has developed into a must play venue for many tourists. The added advantage of a flight from Glasgow taking 20mins has added to the appeal. We spoke to the very friendly staff and were asked if we wanted to go out early which we gratefully accepted.
After some strenuous stretching and a few practice putts and I was standing on the 1st looking at the beach, the sea and the fairway (which looked further away than it was!). However, whilst the first is a fantastic looking hole it certainly isn't as imposing as the pictures suggest. Because of the way the hole is shaped if you have a natural slice then there is plenty of grass to find, only if you have a tendency to hook the ball will this hole be truly scary. Both myself and G nailed our opening drives and, for me, it was the best shot of the day! The first is truly Machrihanish's signature hole and it was always going to be difficult to maintain this quality. The other 17 holes are fantastic tests of links golf, when you are walking through the dunes with the butterflies flitting around and the crickets providing their unique soundtrack you feel as though you have been transported back to the 1800s. There are no signs of any holes being man made, instead all of the holes seem to be have been placed within the dunes since the dawn of time. There are a number of blind tee shots and with the fairways rising and falling with the dunes you get the impression that you are the only players on the course at times. In my opinion, the front 9 were the highlight. I felt the back 9, which is further from the sea, felt a bit bland in relation to what had preceded it.
This is not a long course and when I played the wind was minimal, however the greens were difficult to judge. I was surprised by how forgiving this course was off the tee although tight I only missed 2 fairways in the whole day. It was certainly a challenge and one that should not be taken lightly. Finishing off with a gentle par 4 at the end we made our way across to the welcoming clubhouse. We sat for a while outside drinking in the remarkable scenery and it was with reluctance that we headed home.
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