West Linton Golf Club Course Review

West Linton Golf Club Course Review

GF £35-£50
Par 69, 6,161 yards
Slope 113
GM Verdict – A traditional inland course in an attractive moorland setting with a good blend of short and long holes.
Favourite Hole – 16th, A long par 4 to a rolling fairway turning up towards a green surrounded by heather – a great moorland hole.

Only 17 miles south of Edinburgh, West Linton is a beautiful conservation village boasting a long and rich history. The golf club is a historic one too, having been formed back in 1890. It was a local schoolmaster Robert Millar who was responsible for founding West Linton Golf Club and for laying out the first nine-hole course those early members played over. James Braid came to make improvements in 1926 and to advise on possible future alterations, many of which were acted upon over the following years. The course was extended to 18-holes in 1972.

Located as it is on north Slipperfield Moor, the layout is moorland in nature with springy turf, heathers and pines a feature. It’s a traditional feeling course with some old-school design features like rectangular greens on a few holes.

There are a couple of strong par-4s on the layout. On the front nine the 5th “Muckle Knock” measures 470 yards off the white tees and will require three blows to reach for many. On the back nine, the 16th, “Crooked Jock” is perhaps the course’s most memorable hole – Another long par 4 it really makes the most of the moorland landscape with heather surrounding the green.

The layout finishes, somewhat unusually, with two par-3s – both of which are rather challenging. The 17th “wee knock” requires a bit more than that, measuring 196 yards over a gully off the back tees. The last, is even longer at 230 yards, back across the gully and towards the clubhouse. Two pars to finish is no mean achievement at West Linton.