Golf has been played in this corner of Aberdeenshire for a very long time. Locals will tell you it dates back to 1791, though the course in its recognisable form came later, when the Great North of Scotland Railway extended the line to the village and helped turn Cruden Bay into a destination.
What you get today is a proper links ride along the coast, then up into the dunes where the ground starts to heave and twist under your feet. Expect blind shots, rumpled fairways, pot bunkers and greens that sit on little shelves or tuck into hollows. The North Sea wind is rarely a spectator, so you'll need to use the ground, flight the ball and accept that a "good miss" is sometimes the smart play.
Old Tom Morris is closely associated with the layout around the end of the 19th century, with later input often credited to Tom Simpson and Herbert Fowler. The routing takes you out along the shore before looping back through higher ground, and the variety is what sticks with you: short par fours that tempt you to drive the green, long par threes that demand everything you've got and par fives that twist through the dunes and ask you to think three shots ahead.
The 14th, a short par four called "Bluidy Burn," is one of the best risk-reward holes in Scotland. Drive it close to the burn and you've got a wedge in, but miss your line and you're scrambling. The closing stretch, particularly the uphill 18th, is a proper test when the wind is up.
Include Cruden Bay on your next Scotland golf break and we'll shape the trip around the courses that suit your group.
Who is this for?
Golfers who want an authentic Scottish links experience away from the crowds, with a routing that mixes drama, strategy and coastal scenery in equal measure.
Who is it best for?
Mid to low handicappers who enjoy reading the wind and the ground, and anyone chasing a bucket-list links round that still feels like a discovery rather than a pilgrimage.
