Archerfield Links Dirleton Course

Career Grand Slammer Gary Player and Masters Champion Ian Woosnam have already tested themselves against the classic test of links golf that is the Archerfield Dirleton Links. Golf has been played here for over 100 years and course architect, and Archerfield Links touring professional, DJ Russell has taken all the stunning natural attributes of the land and created a links course that does more than its fair share to uphold the glorious reputation of golf in this bejewelled corner of East Lothian. As you may expect Archerfield Dirleton Links can boast of threatening bunkers, rolling fairways all enclosed by the dunes that protect and challenge in equal measure.

The Archerfield Dirleton Links golf course is set in the magnificent Archerfield estate and is the better of the 2 courses at Archerfield. Unlike the Fidra, the Dirleton is set away from the trees and it is relatively flat. The bunkering is excellent with deep revetted bunkers providing genuine hazards from the tee. At several of the par-5s the fairway bottlenecks at driving distance, but you have to take them on if you want to reach the green in 2. Most of the par-5s also feature a bunker right in front of the green which means if you are going to go for it then you will need to be very accurate.

From the 6th you get a great view back over the Archerfield Dirleton Links golf course to the excellent clubhouse and the course really starts to come into its own. Many new 'links' courses are often 'Disney' versions of the real thing, but the Dirleton course looks like it has been around for ages. The contouring around the greens and the dunes and gorse around the fairways reminds you off some of the classic links at St Andrews. The greens themselves were excellent when we played them in January, a result of the course being built on proper sand based links land. Despite the par-3s being a bit uninspiring, there are a lot of great holes, but the back nine at Archerfield Dirleton stands out, particularly the last 3 holes which will test even the best golfers with the prevailing wind.

Special mention should go to the service in the clubhouse which is first class with clubs and shoes cleaned while you are refreshing yourself in the sumptuous bar upstairs. Defintely a course to add to your list.