Scotland’s Kilmarnock Golf Club

Kilmarnock (Barassie) Golf Club is part of the rich pickings for golfers along the west coast of Scotland. It is located on the outskirts of Troon and was founded in 1887 as a full fledged eighteen-hole course. It has offered the golfer an outstanding links course for over an hundred years. Recently the club has increased the challenge with the addition of nine more holes. The golf courses of Glasgow Gailes, Western Gailes, Prestwick, Royal Troon and Irvine Bogside are all within thirty minutes drive from here.

The Kilmarnock Course has been the venue for many prestigious tournaments. In addition to hosting final qualifying for the British Open Championship, it has also staged the British Amateur along with Prestwick Golf Club and European Youths Championship, as well as the 2001 British Ladies. The Open Championship at Royal Troon in 2004 saw Barassie play host to the Junior Open Championship.

The club has undergone considerable changes over the past few years with the addition of nine more holes with which to test the golfer. Now with its 27 holes, there are actually three course layouts here. The original layout has changed with the additional nine holes becoming part of the championship course. It is characterized by large undulating greens, deep bunkers and doglegs.

The main course, Barassie Links now incorporates nine of the original and nine new holes and offers one of the most challenging links layout in Scotland. This has added a different dimension to Barassie with a Par of 72. It has also lengthened the eighteen-hole Championship Links. It is now less than 7000 yards and the new holes provide some wonderful challenges. The best is the par 3 fourth hole or the quirky double dogleg par 5-eighth hole.

The Dundonald Course, like the Barassie Links, is made up of the new nine holes and the remaining nine holes from the traditional course. The combination shortens the course to 6107 yards and this layout offers a par of 69, with only one par five and is complemented by perhaps the best nine-hole course in Scotland.

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