The Best £140 You Can Spend in Golf

When planning a golf trip, value for money is something that everyone is looking for - but that can be harder to capture these days with expensive packages and green fee inflation becoming commonplace in recent years. 

This often means that you need to be a little more creative with the destinations you're considering, but there are standout options available if you know where to find them.

We have previously shared details on courses that you can play on Scottish islands, which is an appealing prospect for those with a sense of adventure, but some of these magical places are easily accessible and would make for the ideal weekend getaway. 

The Isle of Bute is a particular favourite of ours, somewhere that we believe is genuinely underrated and is worth a visit, but it's hard to look beyond the Isle of Arran Golf Pass - which might just be the best £140 that you can spend in golf.

Located in the Firth of Clyde and visible throughout the Ayrshire coastline, the Isle of Arran dominates the skyline beyond the likes of Royal Troon and Turnberry.

It's a simple place to reach. You can catch a ferry crossing either from Ardrossan (just north of Troon) to Brodick, which takes 55 minutes, and from Claonaig in Kintyre to Lochranza, at the north end of the island, which takes 30 minutes.

When you arrive ashore, you will enter a place that is known as Scotland in Miniature. A geological fault line bisects the island, meaning that it combines both Highland and Lowland features, with mountainous peaks and dramatic glens to the north, and lush fields and rolling hills to the south.

The Isle of Arran is renowned for its beaches, walking routes and wildlife, offering activities for all ages, while its diverse range of food and drink makes it a culinary treat to explore.

But for us, the centrepiece is the golf itself, with the pass costing £140, which equates to just £20 to play a round on each of the island's seven courses, offering a significant saving on paying for them individually. 

Your pass is valid for 12 months, meaning you can complete your rounds during the year, but many golfers simply relish the chance to consume them all during one unforgettable golf break.

The layouts vary in length and difficulty, but they are more or less united in delivering the most spectacular scenery across the Firth of Clyde and Argyll.

Does this sound attractive to you? Well, here is a little more information about each of the courses that you can experience here.

Brodick Golf Club

When you step off the ferry in Brodick, the main town in Arran, this is the first golf course that you'll encounter. It's a short 18-holer on the scorecard, but enjoys a wonderful setting along the shoreline, with one short par 3 in particular requiring you to hit over the water. 

The course also enjoys stunning views of Goatfell - the highest mountain on the island - and the other striking peaks that make Arran such a distinctive location to visit.

Corrie Golf Club

Heading north to the village of Sannox, Corrie Golf Club presents a nine-hole course that takes you up into the hills, offering vistas back across the Clyde. Surrounded by those dramatic peaks that are a feature of this half of the island, this layout is a feast for the senses to discover.

Lamlash Golf Club

Open champions Willie Fernie and Willie Auchterlonie (both from St Andrews) had a hand in the creation of this 18-hole course that gazes out across to the breathtaking Holy Isle. This is an undulating, heathland-style design that is less than ten minutes away from Brodick.

The Ayrshire golf coastline - and those revered names such as Troon, Prestwick and Turnberry - are visible in the distance. Bring your binoculars on a clear day!

Lochranza Golf Course

If you have ventured to Arran from Kintyre, then you will have taken the ferry to Lochranza, where you will find the Lochranza Caravan & Camping Site. This place is also home to an 11-hole par-3 golf course that is a great way to work on your short game or unwind after more strenuous rounds elsewhere.

Machrie Bay Golf Club

Positioned on the western coastline of Arran, Machrie Bay is a fun and charming nine-hole course on the seaside that boasts views over the Kilbrannan Sound towards the Kintyre Peninsula.

It's a fine companion to the nearby main attraction to golf on the Isle of Arran...

Shiskine Golf Club

Shiskine is not only the finest golf course on the island, but it's also considered to be among the best and most enjoyable in Scotland. Championed by the likes of Ken Brown and Iain Carter, Shiskine is a 12-hole links that is thrilling to play and intoxicating to look across, with seemingly each corner of it being ready-made for a picture postcard view.

If you're someone who loves a bit of traditional quirk, then Shiskine is simply irresistible and the highlight of any golf trip to Arran.

Whiting Bay Golf Club

Finally, moving back across to the east of the island, Whiting Bay Golf Club sits above the village that it's named after and provides a fabulous time for visitors who love its short but testing 18-hole layout and the panoramic views that it offers across the Firth of Clyde to the Ayrshire coast and Holy Isle. 

It's a fine encapsulation of what golf on the Isle of Arran is all about.

And for more information on these courses and the golf pass, please visit https://www.golfonarran.com/.

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