Scotland's Oldest Golf Course: Here are the 10 oldest Scottish golf courses you can still play - including Elie and North Berwick
When you tee off at any of these course you become part of a golfing tradition that dates back centuries.
Known around the world as the ‘Home of Golf’, Scotland has long been a dream destination for anybody who has ever picked up a club.
Dating back to the late Middle Ages, the game was first established and developed in Scotland, although there is some discussion about where it was actually invented.
Today the R&A, based in St Andrews, governs the sport worldwide alongside their sister operation in the USA.
The St Andrews Old Course is the best known of over 550 public and private courses in Scotland and participation in golf remains high, with little of the elitist that exists elsewhere in the world.
Many of the courses on offer date back to the very foundations of the game, with holes that have remained relatively unchanged for lifetimes.
Here are the 10 oldest courses in Scotland, which track the history of the game, according to Scottish Golf History.
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Today the R&A, based in St Andrews, governs the sport worldwide alongside their sister operation in the USA.
5. Kinghorn - 1812
Another Fife golfing great, the recent discovery of a letter from 1812 containing an account of golf being played there makes Kinghorn the fifth oldest course in Scotland. Officially founded in 1887, the original nine hole layout was designed by the legendary Tom Morris and expanded to 18 holes in 1906.
Photo: Google Maps
6. Scotscraig - 1817
When Scotscraig Golf Club, in Tayport, was founded in 1817 it only had six holes, but expanded to 18 holes by 1904. The club has regularly hosted qualifying for the Open Championship and members have played for the oldest medal in golf for over 200 years.
Photo: Google Maps
7. Montrose Links - 1818
Golf at Montrose Links actually dates back to 1562, making it by some measures the fifth oldest in the world. However the first record of play on the modern course was in 1818.
Photo: Google Maps
8. Kingsbarnes - 1823
The Kingsbarns Golf Club, in the East Neuk of Fife, dates back to 1793, with the first newspaper report of play on what was then called the 'Cambo Links' in 1823 when there were no more than seven holes.
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