Open Championship Venues
Many golfers plan to play at least one of Scotland's famous Open venues on their trip. There are currently five Scottish golf courses on the Open Championship rota; the Carnoustie Championship course, Muirfield, the Old course at Royal Troon, the Old course at St Andrews and the Ailsa course at Turnberry.
We've listed a few key facts about each venue.
Carnoustie became the longest over British Open course in 2007, measuring 7,421 yards. Carnoustie accepts booking on a first come, first served basis from the summer before play. High season green fees in 2023 are £282 per person on the Championship course.
Royal Troon only accepts visitors on Mondays, Tuesdays or Thursdays, between late April and October. Bookings are accepted on a first come, first served basis from summer the year before play. High season green fees in 2023 are £315 per person on the Old course at Royal Troon.
The Old course at St Andrews has been recognised by the Guinness Book of records as the oldest golf course in the world.
You can not simply phone and request a tee-time on the St Andrews Old course, there are very specific ways to secure a guaranteed Old course tee-time which we explain separately. Advance bookings for the St Andrews Old course open in August the year before play. There is a two week window to submit applications. Standard green fees in 2023 during high season are £295 per person on the St Andrews Old course.
Turnberry accept bookings a year in advance, working on a rolling 12 month booking system. Anyone can request a tee-time on either of the two courses, including the Turnberry Ailsa course, the Open Championship venue, but residents receive preferential green fees. The standard midweek green fees on the Ailsa course in 2023 high season are £395 per person.
Muirfield only accepts visitors on Tuesdays and Thursdays, with all times being morning tee-offs. Muirfield have a very easy to use website which shows current availability of tee-times.
Tee-times bookings tend to open in the early Spring of the year before play and with limited high season times it's a good idea to be quick off the mark in making a booking. For more details see our blog post on booking Muirfield tee-times. The high season 2023 green fees at Muirfield are £325 per person.
Greywalls Hotel, directly adjacent to Muirfield, may also have limited Muirfield tee-times available to residents. These are normally for Mondays or Fridays only and are available as a 2 night dinner, bed and breakfast package at Greywalls. Golfers on this package do not have access to the Muirfield clubhouse.
The Ailsa course at Turnberry is the only Open venue that does not have handicap limits or require a handicap certificate to play.
Handicap limits for the other four courses are:
Carnoustie : Men 28; Women 36
Muirfield : Men 24; Women 24
Old course, St Andrews : Men 36; Women 36
Royal Troon Old course : Men 20; Women 30
Further information: