XV: Machrihanish
​There is no doubt in my mind that even along the gorgeous coastline of Western Scotland, the worst part of a golf trip is the windshield time spent travelling between destinations. In an ideal world, travel time is minimal and an itinerary gives you time to unpack your bags and soak up a destination for a few days- I love golf, I really do, but there is an EXTREMELY short list of courses I would ride shotgun for eight hours in a day to experience for the first time, but given the opportunity, it turned out Machrihanish was on that list…..
The mythical linksland of Machrihanish
What may have been lost in the cross-hairs of the past twenty years is that golf is a game and games are meant to be fun- Championship length, mundane fairness and a premium on precision has challenged the spirit of game, robbing players of the thrills, laughs and wonder which upheld the sport for so long. It’s of little wonder that golfers in search of the game’s beating heart make the pilgrimage to the remote Kintyre Peninsula where Machrihanish Golf Club’s 6,200 yards of unspoiled linksland unravels centuries of the game’s purest joys.
Perhaps the most dramatic first tee in all of golf?
Beautiful thrills are magnetic fields for golfers- the apex point where a setting’s beauty is equalled only by the ecstasy of the shot at hand, and the famed opening tee shot at Machrihanish is one of the world’s finest examples immediately out of the gate! With Ocean left and all of Scotland to the right, the sweeping dogleg left immediately gives you the chance to be brave, asking the age-old question of how much can you bite off before you can’t chew anymore?
Standing on that first tee is a magical feeling, waves lap up on the shore, seagulls squawk and a dunescape of epic proportions unravels on the horizon- one of the most romantic settings in golf, and only a morsel of the impending joy.
I mean, come on.......
Putting the landscape and golfing terrain of Machrihanish into words is a daunting prospect and I could do no better than designed Old Tom Morris’ words; “The Almighty had golf in his eye when he designed this place”. Traversing the beautifully random lumps, bumps and hollows, climbing over and threading between the mythical dunes of Machrihanish is a magical experience– despite being only 130 miles as the crow flies from Glasgow, a feeling of isolation and peace quickly settled in and I couldn’t have felt further away from the world.
Although a traditional out and back layout, the routing takes you by the hand and guides you around the property in a manner which you would walk without your clubs– it’s a magical walk both scenic and raw in equal measure. Machrihanish is one of the most idyllic setting for golf in the world, one which has enchanted golfers for centuries and writers have spent countless words adoring. To put it simply and at risk of understating it, I was completely and utterly spellbound.
The rumpled lay of the land greens are as interesting as any
When people speak on Machrihanish and its qualities, they will often default to the aforementioned first tee shot, the rumpled land and heaving dunes or perhaps the blind tees and approaches, however it was the mesmerizing green sites and complexes which had me grinning ear to ear. The greens are so distinct and artistic, a seamlessly natural showmanship to each with their contours draped so naturally across the landscape – funnels, bowls, halfpipes and wild seas of waves make golf a hell of a lot of fun.
Standout green complexes and rolling terrain bring with it some of the most entertaining shots in golf. On the front 9 in particular, just about every approach is compelling- the towering approach at two, the dune to dune short par three fourth, a blind approach to a green tucked behind a towering dune at seven, and the challenging uphill short iron into the eighth. Truth be told, singling out holes at Machrihanish is a daunting proposition, for 15 holes there was little time to catch our breath enamoured by the chess match with the wily old links. However when pressed, two holes on the front side shone brightest:
The wonderful blind shots navigated by its iconic marker-posts
Blind shots are a fundamental component of traditional golf in the dunes and my two favourite holes harboured elements of obscurity. The third hole presents a completely blind drive over the crest of a hill with the fairway cambering downhill. Summiting the peak presents one of golf’s great reveals with a beautiful green fronting the ocean, and leaves a tricky approach to a sunken green smothered by bunkers.
The fifth hole is one I will think about forever – offering an opportunity to cut the corner with a driver down a slither of fairway or lay back and leave a blind approach means either way the hard shot needs to be hit at some point – the semi punchbowl green is immeasurably easier to hold with a shorter club!
Machrihanish's green sites are complex and beautifully natural
It is often said that the closing stretch at Machrihanish leaves something to be desired, purely a function of running out of the rumpled dunescape which the majority of the course occupies. Although the final three holes felt like a little bit of a slog, it is a small price to pay for the magic that came beforehand.
What makes Machrihanish so special is it’s no fuss or frills, lay of the land golf. Perhaps the most natural course I have ever seen and for the majority oof the round it felt as though greens had been identified as ideal spots, with tees and fairways mowed to connect them. The magic of the layout is its ability to utilise such a wide range of landforms, both big and small, to present an unimaginably wide variety of questions to golfers. I’m not sure I have ever felt so connected to a golfing landscape whilst equally compelled by the variety of golf it delivers.
The humps and hollows are spellbinding
Machrihanish will be a place my mind often wanders to – it’s landscape, layout and feeling of outright isolation and peace etched in my brain. When I return to my desk, it will be a setting and a feeling I long for and my golfing soul craves. No matter what happens to the world of golf, new technology and new build courses included, people will make the journey to Machrihanish chasing the thrills of and wonder of the golf shots, and its idyllic sense of place. What an incredible slice of the world.