North Berwick

It is surely impossible for anyone who carries a love of the game to resist seduction by this combination of the unique, the unusual and the downright obtuse that is North Berwick Golf Club. For those unfamiliar with this area of golfing paradise, the region immediately to the east of Edinburgh must be visited at your very earliest convenience.
 
Within a short drive of the Scottish capital lie, to name but a few, Muirfield, Luffness, Gullane (all 54 holes), Dunbar, Longniddry, Archerfield. None, though, are quite like North Berwick. What began as a six-hole layout when the original club was formed in 1832 grew and grew until reaching something close to its modern form in 1895. Local clubmaker Ben Sayers refined the course in 1932 and what stands today, bar a handful of extended medal tees, has changed little since.

From the stern, stolid clubhouse, and the first and last holes with their shared fairway, to the way the course begins and ends in the town, the similarities with the Old Course at St Andrews are striking. This is a place, it seems, that has always lived hand-in-hand with the game, where golf is as much a part of daily life as the town street and parish church.

2024 notes: In recent years, as enjoyment has become more valued, and difficulty less so, North Berwick has gradually climbed the rankings lists. The exquisite links is just the same as it always was.


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In 1832, North Berwick Golf Club was founded by 10 members, making it one of the earliest golf clubs to be established. 

The club adopted the West Links as its home course, which remains largely unchanged to this day.

North Berwick played a significant role in the early development of golf. It is known for introducing several iconic features to the game, including the "Redan" hole, a par-3 with a distinctive sloping green that has been imitated by golf course architects worldwide. 

The defensive features of the Redan have inspired copies and tributes from designers the world over, and forewarned is forearmed.

At little over 6,400 yards, North Berwick is not a long course by modern championship standards. But then with stone walls, burns, deep bunkers, rocks, blind shots and some vicious green contours to contend with, it hardly needs to be.
 
With its crumpled, fast-running fairways and fantastic greens, it represents what links golf in its original form is all about. If you have not done so already, start planning now to make the pilgrimage to East Lothian to worship at this shrine of Scottish golf.
 
The enormous 1st green, unseen from the fairway below, falls away to the rocks that in turn lead to the beach. At the 2nd, an elevated tee tends to foreshorten the distance to a fairway that lies across the corner of the beach and tempts the unwary into hitting on an overly aggressive line.
 

A stone wall comes into play on the 3rd, with the aiming point for your drive being the gap in said wall. It is the hardest hole on the card for a reason. The 4th is a relatively simple par 3, but with a two-tiered green that is 50 yards long, and four pot bunkers surrounding it, there is still some danger. The 5th is a generous par 4, while the 6th is another gentle short hole. Just 140 yards from the Blues, the distraction at the 6th is the view behind the green.

The 7th has a burn that runs across the fairway in front of the green, akin to the opener on the Old Course at St Andrews. You then come to back-to-back par 5s at the 8th and 9th, with the latter having a true risk-reward nature to it. Two bunkers split a wide fairway in two. Drive between the hazards and the out-of-bounds fence at the furthest end of the course and the green might just be within range in two. The safer, but much longer, route is to head right. 

The tee on the short 10th (titled 'Eastward Ho!' reflecting that the homeward nine has just begun) offers a magnificent view down the links and of the Firth of Forth. It is one of several such vantage points from where the silhouetted granite form of Bass Rock can be admired, as can Fidra Island, the inspiration for Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island.

The 11th is the third par 5 in four holes, and it is the hardest hole on the closing side of the course. After the short par 4 12th, you get to the 13th, where the green is adjacent to a wall that separates the putting surface from the rest of the hole (the advice of David Huish, the club’s pro: don’t argue with it, it’s older than you are). With stone walls, burns, deep bunkers, rocks, blind shots and some vicious green contours to contend with, it doesn't have to be long.

Highlights on the way home arrive thick and fast. The 14th, ‘Perfection’, is particularly memorable. The drive does not need to be long but must be threaded down a valley to set up a completely blind pitch towards the sea. Apart from identifying the right line, the difficulty lies in judging the strength to allow for a kick down towards the large green. With just a wedge in a your hand, this is a strange experience.
  
Then comes the famous 'Redan', where the raised green is set diagonally across the line of play. The further to the left you go, the longer the carry over a pair of fearsome bunkers to the green beyond. The temptation is to aim over these hazards at the flag. A better idea is to play slightly to the right, ideally with a draw, and allow the contours to gather your shot back towards the hole. 

The 16th hole features a green the like of which should not and could not ever be replicated elsewhere. It comprises, from front to back, a raised plateau, then a trough some five feet deep, then a similarly elevated, yet smaller, rear section. After the headache-inducing challenge of overcoming the green at the 16th comes the only par four of over 400 yards on the back nine. The real challenge here lies in the uphill second which needs to be carried every inch of the way over the brow to the hidden green beyond.

The last hole is every inch a miniature version of the 18th at St Andrews. In theory, with a double fairway to aim at and measuring well under 300 yards it ought to be a doddle. But with parked cars lining the course boundary on the right and the clubhouse looming behind the green, it rarely is. 

Where is North Berwick located?
North Berwick Golf Club is located in the town of North Berwick in East Lothian, Scotland. It is based on the east coast of Scotland and that area is filled with golfing greats, including Gullane, Muirfield and Archerfield Golf Clubs.

The golf club is only a five minute walk to North Berwick Station, which sits at the end of the railway line. Trains run to and from Edinburgh on a regular basis. The venue is also just an hour from Edinburgh Airport, which is the busiest airport in Scotland.

What golf facilities does North Berwick offer?
Along with the West Links, North Berwick has plenty to offer when it comes to other golfing facilities. The Children's Course is a 9-hole par 3 course that is great for a warm up before you take on the West Links. There is also a range and a short game area to work on different parts of your game.
 

What are the green fees at North Berwick?
The price of a green fee at North Berwick changes throughout the year, depending on the season. It is also different depending on whether it is a weekday or weekend. 

 

For more information on current green fees at North Berwick, visit their website here. 

Visit North Berwick's website here.
Go Back To NCG's Top 100s Homepage.