Tain

Tain Golf Club is one of several golfing venues on the NCG Top 100s: Scotland list to be located in the Scottish Highlands.

It sits on the coast of the Dornoch Firth, and was originally designed by the great Old Tom Morris, with 11 of those holes still in play today.

The course is a solid test, and a mixture of links and inland holes. Out of bounds looms large throughout on this 6,400-yard challenge.

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The club dates back to 1890, making it one of the older venues on the NCG Top 100s: Scotland list. However, it was originally known as St Duthus Golf Club – named after the patron saint of the town.

Old Tom Morris laid down the original course, which was 15 holes. It would soon be extended to 18 holes after more land was acquired within the next few years.

The clubhouse was constructed in 1911, and at the same time, the club changed its name to the Tain Golf Club, which it has been known as ever since.

Tain Golf Club sits between the gorse and broom that separates the town from the sea, and it is a course that is hard to categorise. In part, it is a links layout, elsewhere it has a distinctly inland feel, especially at the beginning and end. The fairways are lined by whins, a sea of yellow in the late spring, and this can lend a claustrophobic feel to driving. Yet there is invariably more room than you realise, and gaps between the bushes mean that a ball thought lost can often be found, if not easily played. Of the original 15 holes laid out by Old Tom Morris, 11 survive in the 18 played today on this 6,400-yard par 70 layout.

The opening hole is a tricky par 4. It is only 380 yards, so distance is not the problem – OOB and a ditch down the right side are. The approach to the green is blind, so work out your line before hitting your second shot. The first of Old Tom's holes, the 2nd, is one of the best par 4s, doglegging to the left down an uneven fairway, crossing the River Tain, then rising slightly to a large green. You then tee off over the river on the 3rd, and with OOB down the right side of this 435-yard par 4, it is one of the hardest challenges you will face during a round at Tain. The 4th is then the opening par 5 on the course, and comes in at 540 yards from the Whites. It is a dog-leg right, and the ideal tee shot is down the left side of the fairway to open out the hole. The only sand in play is down by the green, with three bunkers guarding the putting surface.

The first short hole then follows, and this 180-yard test features a green that is raised above the fairway. This means your approach has to carry all the way to the putting surface, all it will fall all the way back down the false front and leave you with a tricky chip up to the dance floor. 6 is a good scoring opportunity – a 310-yard par 4 which is arrow-straight. If you avoid the two fairway bunkers, then you will only have a flick of a wedge into a receptive green. 7 also has an inviting fairway, just don’t push your tee shot as you will find the OOB area to the right of this hole. Three mounds sit in the fairway, but they do not full obstruct your view of the putting surface, one that has a drop behind it and two bunkers to the left.

Like the 5th, the 8th is another par 3 at Tain that has a false front. At 190 yards, it requires a long iron or perhaps more, making it difficult to hold this green. The 9th is one of Old Tom’s finest works on this course. Only 350 yards or so, it doglegs to the right at little over 200 yards, the fairway pinched in by a bunker, trees and bushes to prevent any thought of bringing the green within easy reach. Should you have a clear shot to the green, you will not be able to see the bottom of the flag that sits in a sunken green, nor for that matter a bunker that eats into the left of the putting surface. 10 is a solid par 4 that moves slightly to the left following the tee shot. There is plenty of space to the right of the fairway, but that will make this hole play even longer.

The hole that most will remember best is the 11th, Alps, which was added later. There are shades of The Machrie here, with a relatively straightforward drive setting up an entirely different approach played over a marker post atop two gigantic sandhills to a bowl-shaped green beyond in front of the sea. 12 plays along the coastline of the Dornoch Firth. With OOB left and the water right, it is a tee shot that demands accuracy. At 385 yards, it also needs some length as well, to leave as easy an approach as possible. The 13th has OOB on both sides as it plays between two fields to bring you back to the closing stretch. That makes it a tough driving hole, but as a par 5 of only 500 yards, you could opt to play safe and take three shots to get there.

The 14th is the Stroke Index 1 at Tain, with this 440-yard par 4 testing every part of your game. It requires another strong drive, with the view to the green then being slightly obstructed. That makes it tricky, as it is a narrow entrance, with bunkers on either side. The green also falls off both at the front or back, so long shots in to this green will have difficulty holding the surface. The 15th is another hole at Tain that has the boundary running down its right side. Add in a severely undulating fairway, and you have a great driving hole. It is only 350 yards, so driver might not be necessary, but the further down you hit your tee shot, the easier the approach will be!

Tain then has back-to-back par 3s late on. The 16th plays to what feels like an island green, as the River Tain runs round the front and both sides of the putting surface in a horseshoe shape. There are also three bunkers and drop offs from the green to make it an even more difficult prospect. 17 is some 70 yards longer, pushing towards 215 yards from the tips. Throw in that the river cuts across this hole twice, and then runs around the right side of the green, and you have a cracking penultimate hole. The closer at Tain has the river running down its right side to begin with, before the hole moves slightly to the left and away from the water hazard. The green on this 425-yard par 4 has four bunkers, dotted on the four corners of the green, to provide one final test.

Where is Tain Golf Club located?

Tain Golf Club is one of several amazing golf courses situated in the Scottish Highlands. It sits to the east of the town of Tain, and on the coastline of the Dornoch Firth, with views across the water to Royal Dornoch. The A9, the major road which takes you up to the Highlands, runs alongside the western side of the town of Tain, just a couple of miles from the entrance to the golf club. Inverness is the nearest major city, around 35 miles to the south.

Thanks to its proximity to the city, the nearest airport to Tain is also in Inverness. The country’s biggest and busiest airport – Edinburgh Airport – is almost 200 miles to the south of Tain Golf Club. Tain Station is just a couple of miles from the golf club, with trains running between Inverness and Wick, with several services each day.

Are there any other NCG Top 100s: Scotland venues nearby?

Tain might well be up in the Scottish Highlands, but there are plenty of other venues on the NCG Top 100s: Scotland list in close order. To the north, over the Dornoch Firth, lie Skibo Castle and Royal Dornoch, with both its Championship and Struie Courses. There is also Golspie and Brora within a 25-mile drive to the north. Fortrose & Rosemarkie, and Cabot Highlands are both within 40 miles to the south.

What golf facilities does Tain Golf Club offer?  

Along with the golf course along the coastline of Scotland, Tain also has its own driving range, which sits parallel to the opening hole. The practice putting green is between the clubhouse and 1st tee, with the short game area on the other side of the clubhouse.

What are the green fees at Tain Golf Club?

The price of a green fee at Tain Golf Club 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 Tain, visit their website here.