Scotland's top 18 golf holes: Hole #1

Scotsman golf writer Martin Dempster has produced a short-list of contenders for each of the 18 holes on our fantasy course - the rest is up to you.

Read the descriptions below, then click on the 'vote now' link to cast your vote.

TODAY: VOTE FOR SCOTLAND'S BEST OPENING HOLE . . .

Machrihanish

• The shot over the Atlantic

Measuring 436 yards off the blue markers, this par-4 is a truly exceptional hole which requires the round's opening shot to carry the Atlantic. It is a tough start, particularly into a breeze. It is often referred to as 'one of the best opening holes in the world' and is aptly named The Battery.

Muirfield

• Tiger Woods negotiates Muirfield's opening hole

This 444-yard par-4 is one of the toughest opening holes on the courses used by the R&A for The Open Championship. Large bunkers guard the left side of a narrow fairway and heavy rough awaits anyone who tries to bail out to the right. An accurate drive, therefore, is essential.

Turnberry

• Turnberry's heavily-bunkered first fairway

At 354 yards, this may be a short opening hole but it certainly shouldn't be underestimated. It is one of the most heavily-bunkered holes on the course, hence the reason the majority of the competitors in last year's Open Championship were taking irons off the tee.

St Andrews (Old Course)

• Santiago Luna of Spain negotiates the Swilcan Burn

The fairway may be generous but, as Ian Baker-Finch found out when he notoriously hooked his first round tee shot out of bounds on the left in The Open in 1995, it can still be missed due to the nerves people feel standing on this tee. A second shot over the Swilcan Burn is also testing.

Gleneagles (King's Course)

• A raised green crowns the first hole at the King's Course

Another hole where the fairway is pretty wide but those bunkers on the left are like a magnet and you'll struggle to make par from one of them. The approach is to an elevated green with many falling into the trap of not taking enough club for that shot.

WHICH IS BEST? CLICK HERE TO VOTE NOW