Royal Dornoch and Castle Stuart named in the top 100 in the world
TWO Highland golf courses have been named among the top 100 in the world, according to a leading magazine.
GOLF Magazine’s biennial ranking of the Top 100 Courses in the World has seen Royal Dornoch ranked as the 10th best golf course on the planet.
Meanwhile, Castle Stuart near Inverness has been ranked as 66th in the top 100 list which was released this week.
Royal Dornoch was ranked as the third best golf course in Britain behind St Andrews, ranked third in the world and Royal County Down in Northern Ireland, which was ranked sixth in the world.
America took the top two places with Pine Valley in New Jersey ranked the best golf course in the world and Cypress Point in California claiming second place.
Royal Dornoch general manager Neil Hampton said it was a huge accolade to be named in the top 10.
“We are absolutely delighted to be named in the top 10 as we try our best to provide facilities that are the best in the world,” he said.
“It is always great to get recognition like this. In GOLF Magazine we always were around 15th.
“We feel that it is a good reflection on what we have done and the effort staff have put in in providing the best of service and the best of facilities.”
Hampton says the popularity of links golf courses with players in recent years had helped them rise in the rankings.
“Golf is going through a transitional phase where links courses are seen as the archetypal way to play, which is helping us.
“Courses in the top 10 such as Royal Melbourne in Australia and Royal County Down in Northern Ireland are links-style courses too.
“It helps what we do as we are a traditional links back golf course which is unique, with raised plateau greens and deep bunkers.
“You can also see the hole in front of you at every tee with views of the sea at all times.
“It has a lot of great features that have always been there, but people looking at links courses as the way to play is bringing us more prominence than before.”
Royal Dornoch will host the Home International in September. It will also host the Senior Amateur Championship in 2021 and the Scottish Amateur Championship in 2022.