The Highlands
This past May I had the chance to visit the Scottish Highlands for the first time. It was my second trip to Scotland but the first time I ventured into the Northwestern region of the country known as the Highlands. Known more for producing whisky than golf courses, 47 distillers are sprinkled across the region producing some of the finest single malt whisky in the world. The Highlands also holds a special place in Scottish folklore, the Loch Ness Monster or Nessie; a creature said to inhabit Loch Ness in Inverness, the capital city of the Scottish Highlands. Legends of the long-necked creature help to attract more than half a million visitors to the area each year; all hoping to get a glance of the fabled creature.
It’s hard to imagine but golf in the Highlands is often the 3rd wheel in any conversation. When people talk Scotland and golf, typically, St. Andrews and The Open courses which reside in the Scottish Lowlands dominate the conversation. After all, the Lowlands are home to the game of golf so it’s understandable why golfers might overlook the Highlands when planning a trip to Scotland.
I’m here to tell you, don’t overlook the Scottish Highlands. The Highlands are the Scotland you have watched on T.V. and imagined your whole life! Think big skies, mind-blowing landscapes, superb food and hospitable people and you have the Scottish Highlands. The local landscape is a natural playground which begs to be explored, while the region’s turbulent history has left behind some of the most beautiful castles in the world.
Mark Parsinen – A Visionary
The Highlands and its mind-blowing landscape didn’t escape the attention of Scotland’s legendary course architects such as Old Tom Morris and James Braid. However, more golfers than ever are visiting the Highlands thanks to Castle Stuart Golf Links, the new kid on the block. 10-years ago, Mark Parsinen fulfilled a dream to transform a plot of old Highlands farmland along the Moray Firth into a proper golf links.
Seen as a risky investment at the time, Parsinen believed in the Scottish Highlands and knew that if he built it, golfers would come! Not only did Parsinen bankroll the project but he co-designed Castle Stuart with Gil Hanse and Jim Wagner. Hanse and Wagner’s hands-on approach in which they lived on-site during construction convinced Parsinen to give them the freedom to create a course reminiscent of the ancient links which he had envisioned for Castle Stuart. Sadly, Mark Parsinen passed away on June 3rd, 2019 during my preparation for this article. However, he can rest in peace knowing he left his mark on the world proving a classic links course can still be created in this modern age.
Castle Stuart
Castle Stuart Golf Links, an 18-hole championship links golf course overlooking the Moray Firth featuring a perfect mix of classic sod-walled bunkering and “blow out” sand areas which has become the calling card of Gil Hanse designs. The surroundings include many notable landmarks which makes Castle Stuart one of the best walks in golf. In fact, as you pick your target line, you’ll often hear your caddy make reference to one of the many local landmarks of the Moray Firth.
For the holes immediately abutting the sea, the Kessock Bridge, Chanonry Lighthouse, Fort George (home of the Black Watch) and Castle Stuart itself are often seen as you measure the distance for your next shot. As you make your way around the course and climb atop the old sea cliff these same landmarks are presented from an even more spectacular vantage point.
Scottish Open
Castle Stuart wasted no time building a championship pedigree, hosting it’s first of four Scottish Opens in 2011 only 2-years after opening. You probably remember Phil Mickelson’s victory there in 2013 when he defeated Brandon Grace in a playoff and then went onto win the Open Championship at Muirfield only a few days later.
The television coverage provided by the Scottish Open proved to be the perfect platform to showcase Castle Stuart’s natural beauty and charming landmarks. After successfully hosting the Scottish Open 3 years (2011-2013) in a row, a new era of destination golf had begun in the Highlands. Like a single malt whisky, Castle Stuart is only going to get better with time.
For my trip to the Highlands, I flew into Edinburgh on Friday morning picking up a rental car at the airport and made the 3-hour drive to Castle Stuart; once you get out of the airport it’s pretty much all motorway between Edinburgh and Inverness. As a side note, whatever you do don’t rent a car from Green Motion we had a reservation with them and after waiting in their queue for nearly 2 hours, we had such an awful experience we dumped our pre-paid reservation and headed over to SIXT Rental which had us on the road to Castle Stuart in less than 20 minutes, thank you SIXT!
Accommodations
As far as accommodations, Castle Stuart has only 3 options on-site – the Golf Lodge, the Farmhouse, and the Castle Cottage. Each option comfortably accommodates up to 8 people and all are conveniently located near the Clubhouse where a traditional Scottish breakfast is served each morning. The on-site accommodations are always in high demand and if you’re not traveling with a large group don’t really make sense. Luckily, we found Liz and her Sandown House, a luxury Bed & Breakfast only a few minutes down the road from both Castle Stuart and Nairn Golf Club. Originally a dairy farm, Liz and her family have transformed Sandown House into a luxury Five Star guest house located in the heart of the Scottish Highlands.
Planning a golf trip to Scotland is considered by most golfers to be the trip of a lifetime. While St. Andrews is always going to be number one on everyone’s list, you’ll definitely want to make time to explore the Scottish Highlands.
Rob Spellman, is an avid golfer and publisher of Golf Aficionado Magazine, he is a member of the Golf Writers Association of America and the Golf Travel Writers of America.