Everyone I spoke to who have played Cruden Bay enjoyed the course immensely, so I was looking forward to playing after our weekend in St Andrews. It’s a very easy 2 hour drive from there and there are a couple of other fantastic golf courses in the area including Royal Aberdeen.
Here is a link to the Club’s website: https://crudenbaygolfclub.co.uk/the-course/
This is a bit of background: Cruden Bay is situated on the east coast of Scotland 23 miles north of Aberdeen and 8 miles south of Peterhead. It is claimed that golf was played in the village of Cruden Bay as early as 1791. The original course, on the present site, was commissioned by the Great North of Scotland Railway (GNSR) following the expansion of the railways at the end of the 19th century, designed by Old Tom Morris of St Andrews, and opened in 1899.
We played in pretty good conditions I guess: 50-60 degrees but quite windy - well what do you expect on a links course? Hardly anyone around playing; we counted maybe 8 other groups; I guess covid restrictions on travel have really hit hard. Played the front nine quite well; holes 3 and 4 are real birdie opportunities and then you make a turn back to the Clubhouse and the golf course really starts. There’s a lot of cross over golf around holes 7-8-15-16 so watch out if it’s busy. Getting to hole 9 involves quite an ascent, although the views are terrific from there. The wind was across us for most of the course, then really in our face for the last 6 holes. The par three 11 measures 150 and played 180; 13 and 14 are incredibly narrow and 14 and 15 are blind shots as well - I’d say these 3 were amongst the toughest holes I have ever played.
This is Gill and me at the 9th, the highest point on the course:
I did manage a birdie on 18 so left feeling a lot better, for an overall 80. The white tees measured 6236, with ratings of 71.1/125, so I was maybe 3 outside where I should have been. My putting was better on the front 9. I think if I had better course knowledge I might have edged that score down a bit. A good excuse to go back. You can also play the St Olaf’s 9 hole course which is located in the center of the Championship course; I believe that is included in your ticket.
We had lunch in the Clubhouse before we played. The staff are terrific in there, and the food is not so bad either. Great views of the course too. Very friendly pro in the Proshop too.
We stayed at The Kilmarnock Hotel.
Here’s a link to the hotel’s website: https://www.kilmarnockarms.com
The hotel is a classic nice old squeaky floorboard, nothing fancy place with really nice staff. Parking is not easy! Dining room is pretty good. We had a room right on the main road but it wasn’t too noisy. The bar seems to one of the few social things to do in town, so a few locals were in despite the pandemic, but still all a bit weird. (August 2021). Traditional Scottish breakfast ie loaded with carbs and fried stuff was excellent; Finan Haddock also on the menu, quite excellent.
The harbor is a 5 minute walk from the hotel, and the beaches are walkable too, and are just amazing. Slains Castle is an easy hike. Apparently Bram Stocker stayed at The Kilmarnock and got the inspiration for Dracula from the Castle. We walked from the hotel to the harbor then to the Castle in back - only took an hour or so, and was a fine warm up for the golf in the afternoon. The Castle is really just a pile of stones with some walls still standing, and for some reason is a bit spooky.
For the sake of clarity, that’s me outside the hotel on the left and Slains Castle on the right…
There is another hotel in town, St Olafs, and a couple of B&B’s, so check them out too.
If you have some time, you can drive to The Bullers. Whereas the cliffs and rocks at the Castle are habited by Terns and Gulls, the Bullers have a nice Puffin population, apparently as we never saw any. Also, take note of the warning signs: the paths really are extremely narrow and have sheer drops on either side in some places.
Here’s a link to the Bullers: https://www.visitabdn.com/listing/bullers-of-buchan
I really enjoyed Cruden Bay. I thought the people in the hotel and at the golf club were super friendly, and the golf course was sensational. One of the very best I have ever been fortunate enough to play. I would be very comfortable planning a trip around Cruden by arriving to play in the afternoon and again the following morning.