13 Courses in 13 days: A golfing experience across the Land of Saltire By Javier Pintos On May 22nd I left Buenos Aires on a trip that in the company we believe is the seed for many more golf trips to “The Home of Golf”. Although we have been in the past to Scotland and we have sold the destination for the past 4 years, this trip was a stronger bet as we were leading a 34 golfers party and we added some more days at three new destinations we had not visited yet (Inverness, Aberdeen and East Lothian) and which we believe deserve to be considered when travelling to The Saltire for a golf trip. Scotland offers not only links golf at the highest level but a lot more for devoted golfers: playing courses were golf oldest Major Championship has been played, visiting places with over 200 years of history with our game and walking along towns that breath golf in every corner. Our first three days were in East Lothian playing Gullane no.1, Muirfield (The Honorable Company of Edimburgh Golfers) and North Berwick using it as a Fam Trip trying to discover every secret of this area in order to be able to tell our customers what to expect when visiting this corner of the country. And we believe it holds one of the biggest advantages: you are so close to Edimburgh that you can go after golf to walk the city, have dinner or just discover Murrayfield, the first Rugby Museum in the world. The golfing tour was about to start, it was an intense journey throught 13 classic venues, playing them, taking pictures, glancing at every detail and breathing golf in every step. May 23rd Gullane no.1 After a very long plane trip and driving for 30 minutes we arrived to the Gullane visitors Club House to meet our friend Andy Newmarch (Top 100 Golf Courses Manager) and James McCann for some catching up chat and lunch before some good golf. We started the game around 2pm in a sunny and pretty hot day, it looked like Florida rather than Scotland. The Course is really good and demands the need of all type of golf shots: low cuts, high draws, chip and run and some floppy lob wedge shots. But the fact is that you have to be accurate and creative with your short game. Some greens are really tough to get in so how good you are with the short game will tell how good you can score. First tee at Gullane no.1. Tee 7th with Muirfield GC on the back of the image. If we have to mark a hole as the best on the course it would be unfair: par 4 8th, par 4 11th, par 5 15th and par 4 17th are maybe the most creative in design and the ones that offer more difficulty. But I found par 4 2nd the best one: a very tough tee shot and then an upright approach shot to a very narrow and small green, where missing increases the difficulty in getting those 4 shots. A view of the Bar at Duck's Kilspindie House, with the Helmet of the British Army After the long day and the round of golf we had a and the one of an Argentine Soldier. great dinner at Kilspindie House, where it's owner Malcolm Duck offered us a very fun night with his inside games to be played while sharing some good beer and memories of the 1982 Malvinas War, where he served the British Army and he told us that it is a very strong memory when those years come back to his mind. It was a great experience for me as an argentine, listening to the story told from “the other side” and my conclusion is that the War was even more stupid than what I thought. There's a song called “Fortunes of War” perfectly well what the soldiers, from both sides, felt after the war ended. May 24th Muirfield (The Honourable Company of Edimburgh Golfers) You know when you are in front of a special day. And this one was a real special one, a golfing day to be remembered for ever. It started early with a breakfast at Archerfield with the Director of Golf, Mr Stuart Bayne. The place is stunning and has 2 great golf courses, one of them hosted an European Ladies Tour event won by rising star Carly Booth. Despite not being links courses, both of them are very nice designs and deserve attention. Once you have played Scotland's main courses, you may wish to have some alternatives and both courses at Archerfield are a great option to play golf and stay in a very high quality lodge. Finished our meeting and after a ride along both courses, we went to Muirfield for what was meant to be not only a special day as golfers, but also as part of the golf industry: once we experienced what Muirfield offers, it will be easier to tell potential golfers what they can expect when getting to play the 2013 Open Championship Venue. 2 Once lunch finished we changed our shirt and tie attire for the golf shirt and were ready for The Test: Muirfield is a golfing test from beginning to end, every shot offers a challenge and you have to be prepared to control frustration, because if not score can go really high. The course is as fair as a golf course can be, every hole has its character and you can remember each of them when you finish despite non of them will be famous for their beauty like maybe 15th at Kingsbarns. I loved every inch of it and if I have to call the best hole for me it is par 4 6th, which played 460 into the wind that day and were I needed driver-driver to reach the green. Holes 11, 13, 15 and 18 are also big ones, holes that you wish to play every day to become a better golfer. I have to say that par 3 13th shows to be harmless, but if your short iron goes the wrong way God save you! Once the round finished, you feel adrenaline so high that you want to play the course again, but this time it was not possible so we went to an Italian Restaurant at North Berwick for a nice dinner and to remember what had been a real golfing day. May 25th North Berwick and goodbye to Andy Newmarch We met in Marbella 2008 during my first experience with IGTM (International Golf Travel Market) and since then Andy and Me have become real close friends. We share the same passion for golf, for its history and for every golf course we visit. We write our reviews telling what we feel when meeting a new course or when playing an Open Championship Venue. We shared 3 very special days and I have to say thank you Andy for allowing me to stand on these First tees and telling how the experience is to all potential argentine golfers that want to stand on an Open Venue and feel like the pros. The day started with breakfast at the North Berwick Club House with Managing Secretary Chris Spencer, where we discussed possibilities with them and he also explained how the club works it out with members and guests. And he also gave us a little bit of history about the Club, the Redan Hole (par 3 15th) and other particular stories about the Golf Course. The round was fun although in the first 3 holes a dense fog made it tough to see the ball further than 100yds, but after that a 15°C sunny and windy day gave us one of the best golfing experiences you can enjoy, with a finishing hole that you can drive but where you can also smash the glass of one of the cars at the parking. Andy left to his home and we continued to Turnberry where we were receiving 35 golfers from Argentina ready to play in Scotland for the first time. 3 On the right side the famous par 3 15th, “Redan”. It gave the idea for many designers, being 7th at Shinnecock Hills as one of its more renowned “brothers”. May 25th - 28th: Turnberry playing Ailsa and Royal Troon (Old) After the East Lothian days, we moved to Turnberry to receive the big group that departed from Buenos Aires. It was a big challenge for WeGolf to host such a big group outside Argentina, but all the planning was done carefully so we just needed some friendly climate in order to enjoy world's best links at “The Home of Golf”. Despite a couple of the group arrived on Friday, the big part arrived on Saturday to Glasgow Airport. We were there to receive them and what we saw in their faces was pure emotion, excitement, joy and adrenaline before playing golf at places where the best golfers have done it. No golf that day, just some fun at the par 3 course in front of the Hotel, a perfect place for fun and some bets between friends. On Saturday night we hosted the welcome dinner at “Wildings”, that restaurant in which Tom Watson had dinner every night when he lost the Open Championship playoff to Stewart Cink in 2009. After maybe the best dinner you can have in the West Coast of Scotland, Mr Augusto Portais spoke to the group explaining the trip, the tournament and how everything was going to happen.