golf in Fife - questions

[birdieman]

Going to Fife in July - can any Fifers out there tell me which is the best course of these 3 - Crail(Balcomie), Elie or Lundin links?
Have heard from more than one person to avoid the Devlin and Torrance at St Andrews Bay cos they're crap -is that fair?
Of the St Andrews Links Trust courses which is better - the New or the Jubilee.
Is it true that Kingsbarns offers a cheaper rate for Scottish based players?
Thanks.

 

[twostrokepenalty]

Elie is Superb
L Links very good
Crail not as good as the other two but still worth a round.

All three are a good test and should be in good shape in the summer.

Fully agree on the Bay courses.

The new is the best course in St Andrews, more testing than the old in my opinon (Grew up playing all the links courses at St And) and always in good condition.

No Idea about Kbarns!

 

[birdieman]

thanks for that.
Staying near Elie so will give that a try for sure.

 

[Golfer2112]

Devlin course at St Andrews bay is a pretty good layout, Torrance not worth the effort.

Balcomie is a great wee course, Elie is a classic. Haven't played L Links.

New course at St A is probably the best of the bunch.

Have fun.

 

[madandra]

I played the Torrance yesterday and was bitterly disappointed with the course. The greens were bone dry and patchy and the mounds of rough hide wasteland behind them. I think Sam has screwed up big time puting his name to this. But I guess if he can lie through his teeth about the Slazenger K1 driver he can take a wedge for this dump.

P.S. The facilities are second to none and the staff were fantastic but the course let it down.

P.P.S We got 2 bacon rolls and tea, a basket of balls for the range the round of golf and a main course for dinner for £60 because we used 2 for 1 vouchers ..... So I guess you get whet you pay for.

 

[birdieman]

thanks Madandra, won't be going there. Really want to play Kingsbarns but the green fees are obscene. They only sell day tickets, who has time for 36 holes anyway? Costs £240 or something like that, that's more than my club membership for a whole year!
Golf in Scotland is traditionally a game for everybody, not just rich Yanks and Japs, so come on Kingsbarns, get a grip, what about your average UK club player who makes a normal wage! £240 is ridiculous and plain greedy.
Dont care how good the place is, it ain't worth that much.

 

[John_Findlay]

Couldn't agree more, birdieman. I've been aching to play Kingsbarns since I watched the Dunhill Links up there last year but the green fees have always put me off. Website says £160 per round. Don't they do that? I heard a rumour they do a reduced fee for locals (members of an SGU club) but not sure if that's true.

Still too dear though. e.g. I played Royal Dornoch last week. £103 for a day ticket which allows you to play both courses and worth every penny!

Anyway. Fife. Ladybank is good too if you want to play an inland course.

 

[birdieman]

I also checked Kingsbarns website, you are correct, they do offer a single round at £160 - still far too much £££ however.
Royal Dornoch at £103 for a day ticket is just about do-able.

 

[birdieman]

A colleague informs me that Kingsbarns will do a round for about £62 if you are a member of a Scottish Golf Union affiliated golf club, good old Kingsbarns, I take it all back!

 

[John_Findlay]

Excellent news !! Will be back on the list of courses to play now.

 

[Mitch]

The £62 spent at Kingsbarns was possibly the best money I have spent on a round of golf - and that includes the rain that didn't stop all day.
Well worth a visit. Great layout, fantastic condition and stunning views. Also, lots of nice little touches like being greeted at the clubhouse door, all the flag positions on the stroke-saver for the day, free balls for the range and the excellent starter who also dishes out goodie-bags.

Elie is also worth a visit, and I would place it ahead of Lundin Links and Crail. Its not very long, but the greens are its real defence with the pins very difficult to get at.

 

[John_Findlay]

Kingsbarns is a beaut. I watched Paul Casey when he shot (I think) 8 under last year (including an eagle 2 full shot into the hole.) Boy, can he hit a ball!

What's the story, Mitch? Do you just tell them you're a member at an SGU affiliated club and they offer the £62 green fee?