Edzell Golf Club (Old Course) – Review and Rating

The front nine are the easier holes, much appreciated, as we needed some warm-up. Easier, but by no means boring.

After a few straightforward holes, you reach a stretch of really fine holes starting on the 7th, a par four with a big gully on the fairway, making for a tricky tee shot. The 8th is maybe the most beautiful of all the holes. A dogleg right to a green quite a bit below the fairway, it tempts you to try to shortcut over the trees. If you do, you face a difficult approach. If you manage to split the fairway bunkers guarding each side, you are rewarded with a scenic approach to the green below, surrounded by beautiful trees, especially in the fall. A very nice hole.

The 9th is a very long par four, with a creek guarding the fairway to the right. As you approach the green, the fairway slopes deceivingly to the right, leading balls to the water far below. And if you manage to find the green, it has two levels making for tricky putting. The 10th is a par four, with a raised green guarded by a line of sand traps. One of my favorite holes on the course, also one of the most scenic.

The 14th, called “majuba” after a famous battle from the Boer war, is a short par three over a gully to an elevated green. The point is to conquer the hill, just like during the battle. If you’re short, the steep hill will get you. If you’re long, you face a hellish downhill putt. Maybe that’s why they named it after a battle that was lost. One of the best holes on the course.

The finishing four holes take you “straight back to the clubhouse” as our guide stated it. Straight back turned out to be not so straightforward. This stretch of holes provided for a very nice finish to a course we grew to like more and more for every hole played (disregarding our rapidly increasing score).