Playing golf in Scotland? These 10 tips will prepare you better.
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As I recently wrote, my son and I had an epic golf trip together to Scotland, giving us many memories on and off the golf course.
After having the opportunity to play some amazing (and legendary) golf courses, it got me thinking about how to best prepare for the links-style layouts – which offer a different kind of testing from the more parkland courses that most beginners tend to play.
With a little change in mindset and some preparation, see how you can play your best if you happen to travel to Ireland or the United Kingdom for some golf.
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1. Choose a place to visit
To avoid exorbitant driving prices, I suggest you choose a place in the country you are visiting so you can spend as much time there as possible. We chose to stay near Edinburgh, which was a great city with lots of great courses in the area.
2. Upgrade your gear
When you play 18 holes in Scotland, you better prepare yourself for all four seasons. Just kidding, but you get the point – you'll need to come equipped with things like rain gear, a jacket, pants, an umbrella, and maybe gloves.
We were very lucky that it didn't rain more than a sprinkle, so our umbrellas stayed in the car. But it was windy and very cold most days, so layering was essential. I wore a golf vest most of the time, which was good because it kept me warm without restricting me while playing.
3. Traveling? Pack lightly
We were traveling and carrying our own clubs, so having a light golf bag was really important. After doing some research, we found that the PING Hoofer Lite was the best choice for us, as it has enough pockets to hold everything we need, and is very light.
4. Learn to overcome the spirit
The wind was crazy at times, making us rethink which club to use on many different shots. One thing we had to figure out was the drop shot – meaning taking 5 to 10 yards on a full stock for more accurate distances.
To do this, we had to move the ball position slightly back into position, help generate lower ball flight, and then drop the front foot back slightly to help align the shoulders to align them. Finally, the weight should be forward, helping to naturally limit the length of the back to about three quarters.
5. Watch out for fescue
The length of the fairway is something I have never seen before, most of it is almost impossible to find your ball, let alone hit.
So when you find fescue like this, choose the highest club, and, in setting, lean your weight forward and let your lead shoulder drop. Depending on both the weight and the shoulder, it will allow the clubhead to look down behind the ball due to the increased angle – ensuring that you make contact with the ball as much as possible before the grass.
6. Don't let the bunkers fool you
Deep pot holes are challenging, but they can be really fun to play in, too – as long as you have the right technique and understand how the ball gets out of the trap.
To do this, I suggest practicing in the sand before taking a trip to Scotland. So set your ball forward and the end of the club pointing more towards the center line of your body. When taking a shot, avoid the tendency to pick the ball up and let the top of the club do the work by diving down and cutting through the sand.
A good person to learn from is “The Short Game Chef,” Parker McLachlin. I really like the way he teaches, as he allows small mistakes to be made while producing great results. Here is a link to his tutorial.
7. Prepare to put more
Links-style courses often allow players to be creative in the short game – so success from the green is essential to controlling distance. If you can do it relatively well, you can put yourself in a good position to get a low score.
You must be willing to increase the length of the backstroke when you are long, meaning you can just let the putter fall naturally to deliver the right speed and distance.
8. Use the bump-and-run
Given the roughness of the world in Scotland, hitting bump-and-run shots is also key to getting low scores on these types of courses.
To get a basic burst and run, you must hold the ground, reduce your stance, and lean in the direction of your weight and lead shoulder. From there, just use a slower putting stroke, allowing the bottom of the club to brush the grass. While the ball will go into the air less, it will roll more than it carries – giving you more control of your shot.
9. St. Andrews attracts individuals
Since we had not planned our trip in advance, it was very difficult to get into some of the most famous courses like St. Andrews. We entered the lottery twice to play there, but we didn't make it the first two times. On the third try, my son actually got in!
I ended up selling it to him, and it was a great day together. It was great to watch the lessons learned from playing all the other courses, which allowed him to shoot his best round of the entire tour.
10. Keep trying
When you play these types of tough courses, having a positive attitude plays a big part in your success – you just need to be patient, persevere, and take what the golf course has to offer sometimes. It's easy to push and try to force tough shots when you find yourself in trouble, but doing so will only cause bigger problems.
Regardless of how you score on a given day, just enjoying yourself and accepting what you can control will hopefully lead to better golf.
For more tips on my Scottish golf trip (and all things golf) head over to my Instagram.
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