Gailes Links is one of several stunning golf courses on the Ayrshire coastline of Scotland, in a true golfing paradise.
Located within a mile or so of four other glorious courses on the NCG Top 100s, Gailes Links offers golfers a glorious round of golf, in a stunning location.
It has all the hallmarks of a links venue – the crisp turf, treacherous pot bunkers, undulating greens, and of course, the train line running parallel to the course!
History
The club originates from Glasgow Golf Club, which was founded way back in 1787. Just over a century later, the site of Glasgow Golf Club, now known as Glasgow Killermont, was becoming overcrowded. The members eventually settled on the land that Gailes Links now calls home, with the club being founded in 1892.
Only a couple of years later, trains started stopping outside the club to make it easier for golfers to get to the course on the Glasgow-Ayr line. Around the same time, Willie Fernie – the 1883 Open Champion – was drafted in to revamp the course and to update the layout.
Willie Park Jr then redesigned the course shortly before the First World War. The lay-out remains as he drew it up to this day, with some of the holes being lengthened, only to deal with improving technology in clubs and balls.
The Tennant Cup, the oldest open amateur strokeplay event in golf, takes place at Gailes Links each year, while the club has also been a host for Final Qualifying for the Open Championship in recent years.
What makes Gailes Links special?
Gailes Links is a stiff test of golf, but if you can put your ball in the right places, then it is also scorable, and that’s what makes it an enticing prospect.
As with a lot of links courses in the United Kingdom, and especially Scotland, there is the chance that you might hit a drive onto the railway line at some point. 14 might be the first time you see the tracks on your right, but it won’t be the last time on your way home…
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If you tie in a trip to some of the other stunning courses in the region, then you have yourself a brilliant golfing holiday.
Where does it rank?
42nd in Scotland, 6th in Ayrshire
Where is it?
Gailes Links is located in a truly wonderful region for golf, on the western coast of Scotland. Kilmarnock is less than ten miles to the east of Gailes Links, while Ayr is around 15 miles to the south, along the coastline. The city of Glasgow, Scotland’s most populous city, is 30 miles to the northeast. For international visitors, Glasgow Prestwick Airport is just ten miles to the southeast from the club, but Glasgow Airport – which is 40 miles north – provides a much wider array of flights and destinations.
Get in touch with Gailes Links
For more information about the club and course, visit their website or call them on 0141 942 2011.
You can play at Gailes Links on the NCG Top 100s Tour in the 2026 season!
- Book your spot to play at Gailes Links on the NCG Top 100s Tour on May 5th, 2026 here.
- You can also play at Western Gailes in our Ayrshire Spring Swing – check that out here.
Now have your say
Have you ever had the pleasure of playing at Gailes Links? Let us know your thoughts with a post on X, formerly Twitter!