Wick

Wick is the oldest golf club in the Scottish Highlands, with the northern venue having opened back in 1870.

The club moved to its current location at Reiss Links three years later, with the course being extended to 18 holes in the 1900s.

It is a classic out-and-back links layout, with the back nine taking you right by the coastline, especially on the final few holes, and offering up stunning views out to the North Sea.

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Dating back to 1870, Wick Golf Club is the oldest golfing venue in the Scottish Highlands that continues to see golf played to this day.

After playing on a 6-hole layout at Bignold Park for the first few years of the club’s history, a new course was designed at Reiss Links, where the club has remained ever since. 1908 saw the course extended to 18 holes for the first time in the club’s history, under the eye of John Sutherland.

As with many courses in the United Kingdom, the Second World War was damaging for Wick, with Reiss Beach being heavily mined in case of an enemy invasion. The course was quickly brought back to life in the years following the war.

Shortly after the turn of the millennium, Ronan Rafferty – the European Tour’s Order of Merit winner in 1989 – was drafted in. The Northern Irishman made significant changes to the layout to optimise the dunes that the course sits across.

Thanks to the dunes, Wick, like many others in this part of the world, is a stunning links course which plays right along the coastline of Scotland. Also like many others, it is a classic out and back links, with the majority of the back nine being played with the beach and North Sea on its left side. At 6,100 yards, Wick is not that long from the tips, but this par 69 features just two par 5s, along with a quintet of cracking short holes. 

After a gentle start – which sees you take on a 285-yard par 4 with barely any trouble around the putting surface, you do then get straight into the toughest run of holes at Wick. It starts with the first of the par 3s – the 170-yard 2nd. Although distance isn’t necessarily the problem here, the two bunkers guarding the surface, along with the swathes of thick rough and fescue behind the green, make it more difficult than it might first seem. The longest hole on the property then follows. The 3rd is almost 560 yards from the tips, but it has a generous landing zone for your tee shot. Only the longest hitters will be getting home in two here, so lay up to the right distance before knocking it on with your third. 

The 4th is the longest of the par 3s, coming in at 200 yards from the tips. Like the 2nd, there is a pair of greenside bunkers to avoid, but it is a relatively large putting surface to attack. A trio of tricky par 4s take you through the middle part of the front nine. 5 and 6 are both more than 400 yards, with the former having a burn that runs across the fairway at approximately 230 yards. Stay short of it and it will be a long approach. 6 has a wide fairway, but the best line in to the green is from the left side. The 7th might be the shortest of the three at 385 yards, but with a burn running down the left side, two fairway bunkers and a small putting surface, it isn’t any easier... 

Once you’ve got through all that, you get a pair of birdie chances to round on the front side. The 8th is the last of the par 5s, but at 507 yards, it is much shorter than the 3rd. Again, it is a rather generous fairway so you can be aggressive off the tee, and if you’re within reach, then have a crack at the green with your second. Anything long does run the risk of trundling into the River of Wester though. The river is also part of the backdrop on the shortest hole on the course, the 9th. At just 140 yards, this will be a wedge or low iron for most. Although the approach to the 9th green needs to carry a burn, there is enough space between the burn and the green for anything slightly mishit. 

You make the turn south to begin the journey home from the 10th tee. A slightly elevated tee box, one that was part of Rafferty’s changes in the early 2000s, has made this hole into a dog-leg left, and one where you need to work out how much of the corner you are going to try and cut. 11 is the first of the two par 3s on the closing side at Wick. At 172 yards, it is similar to the 2nd, though the burn at the back left of the green comes into play for anything pulled. 12 and 13 are both slight dog-leg left par 4s, and both 375 yards from the tips. The latter has a burn by the putting surface that must be avoided. The last of the par 3s comes at 14 – a 150-yard challenge with a green that is guarded by four bunkers in front of it. 

The closing stretch at Wick features a quartet of par 4s, the first of which is the Stroke Index 1. The 15th may only be 384 yards, so it isn’t the longest par 4 on the course, but the fairway gets tighter the further down you try and hit your drive. The green is elevated, and anything missing it will leave a tricky up and down for par. 16 takes you right down by the beach for the first time, and plays as a dog-leg right moving slightly inland towards the green. The back tees no both 17 and 18 overlook the beach, with the former offering another generous fairway, with the danger of the small bunker on the right side. The final hole at Wick is a dog-leg left, bending around the practice area that runs down the left side. That area is all OOB, so the miss is out to the right and towards the 1st fairway if needed. Anything long of the green might make it into the clubhouse, so make sure to work out which club is needed for the final approach.

Where is Wick Golf Club located?

Wick Golf Club is one of the northernmost golfing venues on the mainland of the United Kingdom. It sits a couple of miles north of the town of Wick in the Scottish Highlands, next to the village of Reiss. John o’ Groats, famously the most northern point of the United Kingdom, is just 13 miles to the north of Wick Golf Club. Thurso is 20 miles to the west of Wick, while Inverness – some 110 miles away down the A9 – is the nearest major city.

Wick John o’ Groats Airport is two miles from Wick Golf Club, but the airport only runs flights to Aberdeen. Inverness is also home to the nearest major airport. It is slightly closer than the city itself thanks to sitting on the western side of the city, but it is still 105 miles from Wick Golf Club. Wick has its own train station, but services to and from Inverness are infrequent.

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

Thanks to its location in the northeastern corner of Scotland, Wick is somewhat on its own when it comes to venues on the NCG Top 100s: Scotland list. Reay is the closest, but that is still 30 miles to the west. Brora is around 50 miles to the south along the A9, with Golspie a further ten miles down the road.

What golf facilities does Wick Golf Club offer?  

Along with the 18-hole coastal links layout, Wick also has its own practice area, which sits between the closing hole and the beach. It is around 200 yards long, and there is also a short game area and putting green for those finishing touches to your game before you take to the course.

What are the green fees at Wick Golf Club?

The price of a green fee at Wick 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 Wick, visit their booking site here.