Tee Time in Scotland

Written By: Tom Chillemi - tomsgolftours.com | Issue: 2016/08 - August

Scotland

We arrived in Edinburgh and were picked up and driven to St. Andrews by Toms associate Stewart Smith, PGA.  He was the Professional at Prestwick, one of the British Open courses, and knows everyone and everything about golf in Scotland.

In Scotland, Tom put together a great mix of courses that made both of us very happy.  We played three rounds at St. Andrews One, The Old Course, Eden and Jubilee.  

We lucked out on The Old Course where we had a beautiful, although very windy, day.  This made us very happy.  Almost everyone walks these courses very comfortably. Usually with a caddy, although pull carts (trollies) abound.

We enjoyed a quaint B&B, The Old Orchard at Colinsburgh which was right next to St. Andrews.  It’s worth staying there just to meet Shirley the hostess.  If you aren’t too tired after golfing, St. Andrews is a wonderful town to walk around in with many sites to see.  

As for food, it was fantastic.  We highly recommend Dunvegan’s, The Central, Cromars had the absolute best fish and chips, and The Ship Restaurant in Elie.

Ireland

After a fantastic time in Scotland we were really looking forward to Ireland. 

We made the short flight from Edinburgh to Cork, Ireland, and drove to Killarney – our base for several rounds of golf.  

We played The Dingle Golf Club was about an hour from Killarney and the westernmost golf course in Ireland.  The drive was incredibly beautiful along Dingle Bay and you don’t want to miss stopping in Dingle Town afterwards to explore, and a stop along Inch Beach is a must for local fresh seafood. 

The next day we drove about 30 minutes to Dooks Golf Club which is Tom’s favorite hidden gem.  He was right.  A fantastic links golf course.  The course is absolutely beautiful.  The views are incredible.  We probably took more pictures on this course than any other course in Ireland.  If you visit Ireland you don’t want
to miss Dooks. 

Our last course was the Killarney Golf and Fishing Club Killeen Course.  It is about 10 minutes from the hotel.  This is where the Irish Open is played every few years. This course is like playing in a park and is just beautiful. 

While in Killarney we stayed at the Four-Star Arbutus Hotel.  Everything Killarney has is easy walking.  There are so many pubs and restaurants to pick from, not to mention great shopping.  We loved Danny Manns for the food and Irish music and the Sceal Eile restaurant. 

After our last day of golf, we drove about two hours to Shannon Airport, where we departed for home.

This was a wonderful trip that I would recommend to any golfer.  Tom did a fantastic job of having everything ready for us including tee times, lodgings, and transportation.  Best of all it was at a great price.

If you would like to be part of a group to either country, please contact me and I will handle all the details for you. – Tom