Scotland: Royal Aberdeen: Balgownie Links

Scotland: Royal Aberdeen: Balgownie Links

March 17, 2020 Off By BBF

Royal Aberdeen is an ancient golf course just north of the town of Aberdeen in the Bridge of Don. The tagline for Royal Aberdeen is “home of the 5 minute rule” because this golden rule was first invented at Royal Aberdeen golf course… in 1783. When you play Royal Aberdeen Balgownie Links it becomes clear very quickly why this is– with narrow winding fairways lined on either side by deep fescue grass you understand that if you did not limit the search for a lost ball to 5 minutes, you may never actually finish a single round of golf.

The view of the first tee

Other than the Old Course in St. Andrews, Balgonie might just be the oldest golf links you’ll play in Scotland as it was established in 1780. In fact the Aberdeen Golf Club boasts the first reference to the “golf hole”. In all actuality the course you will play is not from 1780, the current location and course was developed in 1888 designed by Robert and Archie Simpson.

Windmills are your friend. This photo taken at 930 pm in June

Royal Aberdeen isn’t particularly majestic or super memorable, but it is certainly a must play because of the history of the golf course. Keep an eye out for the large windmill just off the property of the golf course. Although it’s construction was hotly debated, the caddies mention that they actually really like it because it makes it easier to read the wind from anywhere on the golf course. Keep in mind windmills always turn themselves into the wind.

Ratings:

Bucket list rank (from 1to 5 buckets): 3 Buckets

Caddies: 7

Location: 7

Spectacle/ visual: 6

History: 8

New/ancient: Ancient

Playability : 7 it’s hard, a layup is your friend

Memorability : 6

Service/etc: 6

Shopping: 6 the golf shop is austere

CategoryEurope: Scotland Three Buckets

About The Author

BBF or “Big Ball First” comes from a golf saying for hitting a shot fat. Or hitting the “big ball first” in that you hit the ground (the big ball) before hitting the golf ball. In the BBF blog, it’s a metaphor for traveling the planet, soaking in exclusive experiences, and pointing people to the Awesome, the Great, the Good, and the not so good out there. We’re hitting the big ball running with tales from international golf courses, with fine wine, fine food, did I mention golf…well, especially the ‘buddies bucket list golf trips’. The hope is that like minded people will enjoy the stories, and hopefully use it as a reference point. If this blog helps people prioritize the experiences they want to have on our planet then we will have succeeded on our mission. We only have so many go’s at “bucket list” travel experiences. Especially the bucket list buddies golf experiences. My hope is you can refine your experience based upon my learning, and take your “big ball first” experiences to the next level.