In the pantheon of great golfing destinations, Scotland’s Ayrshire coastline stands out as a true hidden gem.
While the east coast of the country often commands the international spotlight, Ayrshire quietly boasts some of the finest links golf in the world, and in astonishing proximity.
Players can travel between the iconic Prestwick, the charming Western Gailes, the modern test of Dundonald Links, and the prestigious Royal Troon in no time at all. And with Trump Turnberry gettable in under an hour too, it’s a wonder more golfers haven’t made this pilgrimage.
Tom Irwin and Mike Robertson recently embarked on their own whirlwind 48-hour golf adventure through Ayrshire as part of the new NCG Top 100s series, and what they found was nothing short of extraordinary.
“It’s pretty hard when you come to Ayrshire to try and decide where to play,” Irwin explains. “There is just so much good golf on offer. Trying to pick the right combination of courses to visit is part of the fun and part of the challenge in coming to this coastline.”
The duo played four courses over two days, Royal Troon, Western Gailes, Prestwick, and Dundonald Links and each one offered its own unique flavour of the game. The pair were immensely impressed with each of the golf courses but one slightly stuck out above them all because of its pedigree.
Irwin was particularly struck by the quality of the experience at Royal Troon. “This has got to be the pick of the experience,” he says. “Coming to a current Open Championship venue… It is a more exacting challenge than the other courses we went to in Ayrshire and the conditioning is up a notch. That isn’t to put down any of the other courses at all.”
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Western Gailes, by contrast, felt like a place for purists. “It’s the place you’d love to be a member and love to play every day,” Irwin said. “A brilliant, brilliant place to spend time golfing.”
Prestwick, steeped in history as the birthplace of The Open Championship, offered a rare connection to golf’s roots.
Irwin noted: “The cool thing about our sport is that you can go all that way back in time and very little has changed. There’s 12 original green sites there, the original clubhouse and so much of the original memorabilia. It’s a fascinating place to visit regardless of the golf.”
Dundonald Links, meanwhile, brings modern flair and luxury to the Ayrshire portfolio. “It’s an epically cool place,” said Irwin. “The lodges are amazing, there’s lots of cool stuff going on off the golf course, and the course itself is a proper test of golf on a brilliant patch of land.”
Campbell, the starter at Dundonald Links, believes this quiet brilliance is part of the region’s character, but it is also a missed opportunity. He said: “In a 10-minute stretch, you’ve got Royal Troon, Western Gailes Golf Club as well as Prestwick, here (Dundonald Links) and it’s only 30 minutes to Trump Turnberry. I don’t think we shout enough about it.”
Ayrshire’s Endless Links Options
And yet, their chosen four only scratch the surface. “We picked four courses but you could pick any from about a dozen up there,” Irwin added. “The whole coastline is awesome, I love it.”
His sentiment was echoed by Robertson, who summed up what the whole of Ayrshire is about: “At Dundonald, there is golf everywhere you look. In every direction you loo,k there’s golf and it’s all links golf. We’ve obviously played a lot of headline venues, but Ayrshire as a whole is incredible, and Royal Troon is the cherry on top of the cake for me.”
Watch 48 Hours In Ayrshire
Now have your say on golf in Ayrshire
Have you played golf on the West Coast of Scotland before? Which are the courses, in Ayrshire, you’d most like to play? Have you played at Dundonald Links, Western Gailes, Prestwick or Royal Troon? Let me know your experiences of golfing in Ayrshire by leaving a comment on X.
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