Dunbar Golf Club: A Review

A couple of weeks ago I had the opportunity to visit and play golf at Dunbar Golf Club in East Lothian with a couple of friends. As well as having a great day’s golfing, I used the opportunity to use the course and my playing as the subject for my second golf course review.

Golf Course: Dunbar Golf Club

Location: East Lothian, EH42 1LL

Web: www.dunbargolfclub.com 

Holes: 18

Par/SSS: 71/72

Type: Links

Yardage: 6597

Location:

Dunbar Golf Club is situated in East Lothian about 30 or 40 minutes east of Edinburgh on the A1. It is a links course (used as regional qualifying for the Open Golf Championship). The course runs along the edge of the Forth estuary and has been in existence since the year 1856.

It's original design has been altered on several occasions by such great golf course architects as Old Tom Morris, Ben Sayers and James Braid. It has history!

Layout:

Being a links course it is quite flat but there are always the natural undulations on the fairways and greens which can give inconsistent, or at least, unexpected bounces. It is also full of small, nasty little bunkers.

Condition:

The condition of the course was generally good. The expected tight lies in the fairways were always fair. The bunkers contained rough shell sand and was generally of a good depth. Unfortunately, I can definitely vouch for the truth of that fact as I tested far too many during the round!

The greens ran true but were a little rough with bare patches and on a whole the grass on the green was a little inconsistent. I’m happy to forgive this fact, however, as I suspect it had been burnt by the sun during the unusual Scottish summer we’ve been having.

Overall:

Dunbar is a good demanding course which favours the shot maker over the longer hitter. There are approximately 100 bunkers around the course, including the many fairway bunkers, which makes the course a good challenge or seriously frustrating depending on how you’re playing and your frame of mind on the day! The bunkers are designed so if you hit into one it's virtually a guaranteed drop shot. So avoid if you can!

I had played the course a couple of years ago in a very strong wind but today there was only a slight breeze (1 or 2 clubs). This was especially evident around the turn (holes 9,10,11 and 12)

These are probably the hardest sequence of holes (especially with a wind ) and if you can score well here it can make a good round.

The first three holes and the 18th hole are slightly away from the shore line and consequently are a little sheltered from the on-shore breezes. The other 14 holes, 7 out and 7 back, run along the shoreline and are subject to the lovely tidal breezes.

The are a few blind shots such as into the 7th and 13th greens and off the 9th tee. Some local knowledge is useful here so try and chat to some members before you head out if you’re new to the course.

The 7th green is situated over a rise and slopes away from the player's approach. Stopping the ball is difficult - don't be too aggressive.

The 13th green is similarly over a rise but the green slopes toward the approach.

The 9th hole tee shot should be kept left. If you go to the right of the marker the ball can be gathered into a gully which makes the next shot blind and difficult. Again, something I know for fact.

The scenery is fantastic with views east towards a lighthouse and views west towards the town of Dunbar and further towards the stunning bass Rock. To the north, The Isle of May and Fife are visible on a clear day.

My Game:

This was definitely a round of two halves for me. But…I’m still recording it as progress overall. My ball striking was sound and I didn’t have too many bad putts which is always a relief!

My statistics that I calculated after the fact, on the other hand, were so weird and made me rethink. I hit 12 greens in regulation and had 38 putts. Eh? A bit strange that I had previously felt so happy with my putting.

I soon realised that the reason for the disparity was that my approach shots to the green, although well struck, were not getting particularly close to the hole. Oh well - I never could cope with links golf!!

I was happy that my sessions with the iPing putting aid have improved the consistency of my short putts. I’m going to keep going with that and see whether I note any further improvement.

As time went on, tiredness set in and a few of my shots felt the force of my lethargy. I think this accounted for my 4 over score. Still, breaking 80 is still satisfactory in my book.

As an added bonus, the clubhouse of Dunbar Golf Club is comfortable and welcoming. The food was great (we all partook in different variations of delicious burgers) and, most importantly, the company was excellent. A good course that’s definitely worth a revisit.