Royal Dornoch Golf Club sits firmly among Scotland's legendary links courses and it's easy to see why golfers happily make the journey north. The Championship Course is regularly ranked among the country's best and has held Royal status for more than a century, a badge not many clubs can claim.
Dornoch has golf in its bones, with evidence the game was being played here more than two centuries before the club was founded in 1877. Old Tom Morris took the course to 18 holes in 1889 and John H Taylor refined the routing a few years later to sharpen the challenge.
After the Second World War the Championship course was split and absorbed into the Ladies Course to create the Struie, before George Duncan added holes to help shape the Royal Dornoch Championship links we know today.
What you get now is proper Highland links golf. The turf plays firm and quick when the weather allows, the breeze off the Dornoch Firth is rarely a spectator and the greens reward placement and touch more than power. It's a walking course and the undulations are part of the fun, but you'll want to be comfortable on your feet. Miss the right side of a fairway and you'll often be chipping from tight turf to a raised target, so angles matter.
If you're doing the Highlands once, Royal Dornoch is the one to build the trip around. If it's on your list, speak to our team about including Royal Dornoch on your next Highlands golf tour. This is comfortably one of the best courses to play on any tour of the Scottish Highlands.
Who is this for?
Golfers who want to experience authentic Scottish links golf on a course that has shaped the game's history, set in a remote and beautiful corner of the Highlands with views that match the quality of the golf.
Who is it best for?
Best for golfers who enjoy thinking their way round, don't mind the wind and are happy to walk 18 on rolling ground. Also ideal for bucket-list travellers and golf groups willing to make the journey north for a course that consistently ranks among the world's best.
