I have visited Scotland a couple of times to play golf..in Ayrshire actually. Played Belle Isle both times as well as the most amazing Brunston Castle...wow what a course. One of the holes actually has a gorge on the fairway and if you end up down there it's lierally a 90 deg shot out..

Has anyone alse played there, and what are your views on it?

Sounds interesting, Philip, where is Scotland?

Easy to miss it John, Scotland is that area on the weather map that is usually under rain cloud, even google earth has no pictures beacause the satellite couldn't get past the cloud cover.

It does help to get plenty of stop on the ball though!

Brunston excellent course , I agree. £15 pound green fee, hosted the under age Scottish Open. Still trying to remember where the gorge is? no doubt I missed the fairway on that one.

Belleisle (James Braid design) another excellent course and slowly recovering from outsourcing their greenkeeping. When Green get back to thir best, it will rate back amongst the excellent courses in the area (though with Turnberry, Royal Troon, Old Prestwick, Dundonald and Western Gailes in the area quite a lot to live up to).

I was only joking, Philip as I spent ten glorious years driving back and forth to Scotland with my truck, golf clubs at the ready, for the chance of an odd game here or there.

It is the quality of such fine links as you have up there that has produced many excellent Scottish amateurs, one especially I remember well, as I once partnered him in the Lytham Trophy one year. R.D.B.M.Shade whose intials prompted the well known reference to him as "Right Down the Bloody Middle Shade"

John we will have to catch up at an event. I would love to talk to you about your amateur matches. Never that good myself but have met some true gentlemen that played in 50's-80's at top amateur level. It would be nice to chat on the 19th.

Would love to do that, Philip, all I can do these days is chat about the past, the future is not so interesting.

You must be able to get into the better class of competition with your handicap, they usually ballot at one handicap but I am sure you would be successful on some occasions.

http://www.brunstoncastle.co.uk/

The course is in dially, Ayrshire in the Girvan area.

The gorge is about the 12th hole I think, dips down quite a bit and 90 deg up the other side...you can't miss it, it goes from one side of the hole to the other!!!

we played it in november a couple of years ago we absolutley loved it it is a cracking course i would love to play it again

Ah tes, I think it's the 15th with the historic stones on the edge of the fairway? About 200 yard carry over it from the tee.

Pretty hilly course in a good way, makes good use natural countours. 

Greens are pretty tricky too, fast and hard to read.