Sherpa Reviews

The course gives you vast fairways that you can be afford to be aggressive teeing off into. The real test comes on the approaches, where sloping greens narrow entrances and steep runoffs punish the wrong shot selection.

Being around the green leaves you with uneven stances, tricky runoffs and varying sizes of rough and bunkers to content with. As such, you are often better off playing to an approach distance that you are comfortable with and can rely on, rather than trying a bomb and gouge strategy.

Dalmahoy rewards patience more than power, maybe thats because my driver head came off on the first tee (every golfers worst nightmare) and I had no choice but to play that way. The course gives you plenty of chances to score - particularly on the winter set up on the par 5s, but only if you stay focused and don’t chase too early. Fairways are welcoming, but approach angles matter more than you think, especially as the round develops. Pick sensible lines, commit fully when you do go for it, and accept that par is never a bad score here with some of the par 4s clocking well over 400 yards.

Golf has been played at The Machrie since 1891 and you quickly realise what every other golfer who visits has, that brute strength isn’t the main currency here. Distance helps, as it does anywhere, but the Machrie is really about imagination and control. The wind is almost always present, and the ground game is your friend. You’ll need to accept that sometimes the ball will kick in directions you didn’t quite plan but that’s half the fun. Play like Tom Morris, keep it low and keep it rolling & you'll be surprised with the results given how playable the course can be. Regardless of the score you’ll shake hands on 18 with a smile on your face.

This isn’t a course you come with a scorecard in hand and desperately try to shoot a score, none of your go to modern golf shots will work here anyway, this is golf of a bygone era and is best enjoyed trying to play the way old Tom Morris did. So, get creative with your shots, play match-play and try not to hit any sheep!

Mature trees, strategic bunkering, and elevated tees deliver challenge with elegance. The course is very playable but never passive, as soon as you take a hole for granted it will come back to bit you with hazards waiting where you can't see them off the tee and wind capturing your ball as soon as it escapes the shelter of the trees. Aim away from trouble and then aim further that way, and you might just get the ball to find a safety.

Each 9 holes plays like a completely different course. Use the low road front nine to dial in your irons and play smart, sensible golf. On high road back 9 it opens up and plays more links style, letting you open your shoulders and have some fun with the driver, all while enjoying spectacular views. Its a tough but rewarding course and the perfect setting for it.