Ginger Beer Golf Travel Blog
Ginger Beer Golf Travel Blog
Filter CategoriesAllScotland blogSpain blogSt Andrews Old Course ballot success rates 2022July 11, 2022Scotland blogMy analysis of post-Covid daily St Andrews Old Course ballot success rates for 2022, with a comparison to 2019 and a prediction for the 2023 season.St Andrews Links CoursesFebruary 18, 2022Ginger Beer Golf Travel Blog, Golf Resources, Scotland blog, St Andrews AreaWhen you visit St Andrews you are surrounded by the finest collection of courses available for public play. St Andrews Links Trust, manager and custodian of 7 courses and 117 holes of golf, can boast of overseeing the largest public golf complex in Europe with its jewel in the...Last Minute Tee Times St AndrewsSeptember 3, 2020Golf Resources, Scotland blogYour one-stop-shop of the best Old Course alternatives in and around St Andrews. With last minute tee time availability and click-through bookingSt Andrews Old Course COVID-19 updateAugust 12, 2020Scotland blogWhat is the effect of the past few months on St Andrews Old Course tee times in 2020/21? Updated: Aug 2020St Andrews golf trip: How to plan to get an Old Course ballot tee timeJune 18, 2020Golf Resources, Scotland blogPlan your St Andrews golf trip: 100% geared to ballot success. Find the best months, weeks & days to ballot. Based on 2019 & 2018 results.St Andrews Old Course as a Single Golfer: how to boost your chances of playApril 29, 2020Golf Resources, Scotland blogPlaying the Old Course as a Single Golfer & how to optimise your chances of a tee time. In an in depth analysis of 18,500 tee times I reveal the best months and days of week to try your luck as a 'walk-up'.St Andrews Old Course Ballot : how to boost your chances of successApril 29, 2020Golf Resources, Scotland blogSt Andrews Old Course Ballot - how to boost your chances of success. A unique in depth analysis of demand, supply & success data. I reveal the best month, day of week & group size based on 4000+ 'open ballot' tee times.How tough is St Andrews Old Course?April 1, 2020Golf Resources, Scotland blog, St Andrews AreaI compare 30 of the best courses in the St Andrews area, including St Andrews Old Course, Carnoustie & Kingsbarns. With tables and charts to show how tough they are to play and what a good (scratch) and average (bogey) golfer might expect to score on each course.St Andrews golf courses for beginners, high handicaps & juniorsApril 17, 2019Scotland blogDon't let the mighty "Big Boy" golf courses intimidate you into staying home or not enjoying some memorable Scottish links courses. A rewarding golfing experience awaits you, no matter what your handicap. In a series of 4 blogs, we focus on some of the major championship courses - the...Find an Old Course ballot partner: Single Golfer BallotBuddy ServiceFebruary 14, 2019Scotland blogAre you a single golfer and want to play St Andrews Old Course? Register on our free BallotBuddy service and enter the dates you are coming to St Andrews. If there is a date match with another single player we will hook you up. As a 2 ball you...Can I use a golf buggy (cart) at St Andrews?August 27, 2018Scotland blogThe subject of golf buggies (or golf carts) comes up regularly in my discussions with clients when organising their golf trips to Scotland, in particular the use of a golf buggy at St Andrews, and of course, how to reserve a buggy on the Old Course, the hottest topic...Sotogrande Golf Courses - 6 of the best reviewedMarch 17, 2017Spain blogSotogrande was the blueprint for the explosion of golf courses along Spain’s Mediterranean Coast and to this day retains its identity among so many imitations.
It was this feeling of Sotogrande as pathfinder for all that followed that lead Trevor Ledger to head south from his Scottish St Andrews...Real Club Sotogrande - a reviewMarch 17, 2017Spain blogThe trick of Sotogrande lies in the narrow entrances to greens and the very subtle contours once you are on ‘the dance floor’.
When Robert Trent Jones Senior touched down in Spain with a couple of sacks of Bermuda Grass sprigs in the early 1960s, a golfing revolution was started.Real Club Valderrama - a reviewMarch 17, 2017Spain blogValderrama takes the best of Finca Cortesin, La Reserva and Sotogrande, shapes it beautifully and adds even greater use of the Alcornoques trees to complete the near perfect test of golf.
With Ryder Cup pedigree and many PGA Tour events, the fame of Valderrama precedes it everywhere. The actual playing...2018 Old Course tee time allocations - changes afoot at St AndrewsMarch 16, 2017Scotland blogAt the end of 2016 St Andrews Links Trust announced that the agreement with its commercial tee time partner Old Course Experience will cease at the end of 2017. It will assume responsibility for the distribution of all commercial Old Course tee times for the season commencing April 2018.Time...Finca Cortesin Golf Club - a reviewMarch 16, 2017Spain blogThis golf course genuinely fulfils the oft cited (mostly disingenuously) ‘challenge from every tee’.
In terms of quiet opulence and attention to detail, the golfing experience at Cabell Robinson’s Finca Cortesin cannot be bettered.La Reserva Golf Club Sotogrande - a reviewMarch 15, 2017Spain blogAll of the courses we played in the Western Costa del Sol had fantastic greens but La Reserva probably shades it for difficulty.
A part of the Sotogrande club, La Reserva is another Cabell Robinson design – this time from 2003. Comparisons to Finca Cortesin finish there though, this is...San Roque Old Course - a reviewMarch 14, 2017Spain blogThere is very much to like about the Old Course at San Roque – the wonderfully named (and bitchingly penal) Alcornoques (cork oaks) abound throughout the property.
Despite being a few decades younger that Sotogrande and Valderrama, it was part of the original ‘Golden Triangle’ of golf resorts in the...San Roque New Course - a reviewMarch 13, 2017Spain blogThe smaller greens and the reward offered for well struck pitch and run shots give San Roque New a variety that perhaps the other courses in the area do not.
In terms of infrastructure and positioning in the market, the San Roque New Course sits alongside the Old in terms...Kingsbarns Golf Links - Success StorySeptember 9, 2014Scotland blogKingsbarns is now firmly ensconced as a ‘must play’ on any visit to Scotland – right up there with The Old Course, Carnoustie and Turnberry; in fact it is hard to imagine any other golf course being mentioned as much in the same sentence as ‘The Old Course’. Kingsbarns...The best St Andrews golfing weekend everSeptember 8, 2014Scotland blogNever before have I played so badly yet enjoyed myself so much. The quality of our golf over the three days was patchy at times but the enjoyment was of the highest possible calibre. 4 good friends take a trip north and enjoy the best St Andrews golfing...Insights into playing Scottish links golf – a different gameAugust 9, 2014Scotland blogIt took me a number of years and visits to Scotland before I caught on that links golf was the traditional way to play the game and above all, that it was fun!
Insights into playing Scottish links golf courses, including speed of play, on-course protocol, gorse, bunkers, dogs(!), putting,...Scottish links golf courses for beginners, kids and high handicaps - Crail and CarnoustieSeptember 9, 2013Scotland blogDon't let the mighty "Big Boy" golf courses intimidate you into staying home or not enjoying some memorable Scottish links courses. A rewarding golfing experience awaits you, no matter what your handicap. In a series of 4 blogs, we focus on some of the major championship courses - the...Scottish links golf courses for beginners, kids and high handicaps - Gullane and North BerwickSeptember 8, 2013Scotland blogDon't let the mighty "Big Boy" golf courses intimidate you into staying home or not enjoying some memorable Scottish links courses. A rewarding golfing experience awaits you, no matter what your handicap. In a series of 4 blogs, we focus on some of the major championship courses - the...Scottish links golf courses for beginners, kids and high handicaps - Aberdeen, North Highlands and South West CoastSeptember 7, 2013Scotland blogDon't let the mighty "Big Boy" golf courses intimidate you into staying home or not enjoying some memorable Scottish links courses. A rewarding golfing experience awaits you, no matter what your handicap. In a series of 4 blogs, we focus on some of the major championship courses - the...