XXI: Royal Dornoch
Sixty years ago, Herbert Warren Wind penned an essay with the New York Times which proved to be a seminal moment for golf in the Scottish Highlands and the innocuous town of Dornoch. ‘North to the Links of Dornoch’ delivered a wonderful memoir of the old-world Scottish charm of Dornoch town and the excellence and beauty of its rugged seaside links, sowing the now fruitful seed for Dornoch to become the North Star of Scottish golfing pilgrimages.
Dornoch’s notoriety has grown exponentially and perhaps only The Old Course in St Andrews could possibly match the number of words spent on its alluring greatness, however every word of Wind’s stands true today and always will – father time will be no match for Royal Dornoch’s enduring character and magnetic joys.
Nothing quite like the allure of those flags!
From Scottish golf’s beating heart in St Andrews, it’s crown lies four hours North. On a golf trip all roads North lead to Dornoch and as we wound up the country we changed roads precisely twice – the second turn only five minutes before we reached the iconic clubhouse of Royal Dornoch….
Passing through Inverness, Scotland’s Northern-most city, both physically and metaphorically there was a change in speed – the rolling countryside of the Highlands opened up along its winding roads and like rural New Zealand the headcount of sheep and cattle far outnumbered the vehicles on the roads- in many ways it felt a lot like home.
Dornoch's first green hints at the impending test.....
When you’ve read endlessly of a place, pouring over people’s recollections of their dance through the dunes, standing on the first tee of Dornoch is a wildly strange feeling – we couldn’t have been further from home, in fact looking back it would have taken us around 50 hours to be home in bed from Dornoch and I held unimaginably high hopes for it being worth every second.
Many have written off the opener as gentle, but Royal Dornoch’s first tee got my heart rate as high as any, in part due to the deep fescue chomping at the fairway and the traps at around 200 yards, but like The Old Course, primarily due to the proximity of the first tee to the pro shop and lingering golfers – even in the serenity of Northern Scotland first tee nerves remain undefeated!
Dornoch's three plateaus present gorgeous views across the links
Architecturally, Dornoch’s three defined tiers of linksland are what present the uniqueness, up and down flow and much of the layout’s variation. The top tier houses the opening two holes, the 3rd and 5th tees, the 7th, 8th, the 16th green and the tee and fairway of the 17th. The second is much smaller, but home to many of the iconic moments in Dornoch’s allure – the 3rd, 4th and 5th and 14th greens. The low-lying plateau runs straight out along the sea and is the prototypical picture of ideal rolling links golf of the 9th-15th.
Much of Dornoch’s brilliance and ability to captivate golfers is because of these three tiers and their varying landscapes, however it’s the holes where tees and greens are laid out on different tiers which define Dornoch as a true one of one.
The impending test of the 2nd green
It’s rare to find a do-or-die approach shot as early in the round as the second tee at Dornoch – the terrifying one-shotter’s tiny volcano green sitting perched up ready to kick balls into the abyss on all sides stands as a proper and brutal introduction to one of Dornoch’s most lauded and acclaimed personality traits, as well as the bearer of many sleepless nights. Despite being a traditional links in every way, Dornoch plays completely different to any other due to the number of greens which tower over fairways and on many occasions the opportunity to run the ball up to the hooded greens is limited.
In many ordinary cases the frequency of elevated surfaces and uphill approaches could be perceived as a problem or detractor, however Dornoch’s majestic putting surfaces blend seamlessly into the land, attractive, uncontrived and natural rejectors of all things less than ideal.
The majestic swooping dogleg at 3
When I think of moments in golf I will never forget, the walk through the gorse to the third tee box as the splendour of one of the finest links courses on the planet unravelled around us sits high on the list. Rolling dunes, crashing waves, undulating fairways and a brisk sea breeze – this was truly an idealistic depiction of links golf in its most natural form and one of the most breathtaking walks in my golfing lifetime. I imagine that Herbert Warren Wind couldn’t quite believe what he was seeing as he found himself on the third tee, but I know that after taking a moment to soak it all up, one of the most demanding tee shots on the course awaited as he attempted to thread one through the chute of gorse and the bunkers!
The fifth oozes temptation
The stretch of holes from 3-7 keeps every promise that has ever been written on Dornoch and delivers every ounce of magic and quality I had dreamed up – every square inch of the land utilised at its highest capacity. After navigating the countless hazards of the sweeping dogleg left at three, the fourth packs the heaviest punch – a brute of a par four.
Throughout the round, Dornoch finds ways to balance tough-nosed brawn with opportunities to score, but not at the cost of risk and reward. The iconic fifth is one of the world’s great short fours – the type of hole which looks beautifully scoreable on paper but endlessly complicated from the tee. I’m told the secret is to lay one up, leaving a full swing into what looks to be the mount Everest of green summits, smothered by bunkers and the drop-off of all drop-offs on the right edge. The fifth is one of a growing list of holes which will keep dragging me across the world for another crack.​
The elusively short 6th
137 yards on a calm day is a wedge, but at Dornoch 137 yards might mean a five iron, part of what makes the sixth so scary. Feeling anything but its length it’s plateau green clings to the side of a hill fronted by pots and with absolutely no good miss. Much like the second, it’s a hole which at times is best approached with a good sense of humour!​
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The 7th rides out along the cliffside of Dornoch’s highest tier, offering splendid views across the course and out to see, with an infinity green out to the abyss. The 8th fairway plunges off a cliff to a green perched below and the quintessentially links 9th running flush against the beach opens a 6 hole seaside jaunt. I now realise I have unintentionally riffed on every hole of the front side – leaving one out would have felt so very irresponsible…..
The stunning approach off the ridge to the 7th green
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As we worked out along the isolated coast of Royal Dornoch from the 10th tee, navigating its bunkers and wrestling with the craft of its putting surfaces, I couldn’t help but feel that this was exactly how I would have described Scottish golf before I arrived. Rolling fairways, waving fescue, stacked bunkers, crashing waves and excellent holes chased only by more – there’s no bliss quite like links bliss. The crescendo of this coastal flurry is brawny, bunkerless and oh so confusingly mesmerizing.
The connoisseur’s choice, Dornoch’s 14th hole ‘Foxy’ is one of golf’s great lay of the land riddles – a double dogleg created from the teeing angle and calling for a draw off the tee and fade into a famously elusive green laying 8 feet above the fairway. Distinctive fingers of rough jut out defending the right hand side of one of the most beautifully natural and exacting holes on the planet.
The 17th gives a final dramatic taste of Dornoch's trio of tiers
Spiritual and religious connotations are brutally overused in a golfing context, however Royal Dornoch has joined my school of few, alongside The Old Course, Cypress Point and Prestwick which touched my soul just that little bit deeper. It’s connection to golf’s spirit of adventure and legacy it has carved out in paving the way for destination golf today is entirely remarkable. Natural, elusive and unspoiled, Dornoch is one of links golf’s spiritual outposts with an ability to transcend father time – its aura, individuality and ability to drag golfers from all corners of the world renders untouchable.