Menie Estate,
Balmedie, Aberdeenshire AB23 8YE
Office
+44 (0)1358 743 300Pro shop
+44 (0)1358 743 300Website
Visit websiteGolf pro
Christopher Campbell (PGA, Head Golf Professional).The Course:
18 holes. Seaside links. Undulating terrain - several slopes to climb.
Surroundings:
Coastal duneland directly alongside Balmedie Beach and the North Sea.
Designer:
Dr Martin Hawtree
57.274681
-2.037320
9 mi N of Aberdeen.
Trump Aberdeen
Trump Aberdeen is home to one of the finest seaside links golf courses in the British Isles. Laid out behind Balmedie Beach on the Menie Estate, this relatively new addition to the panoply of great links layouts in Scotland contains a wealth of wonderfully crafted, memorable and challenging holes. The course occupies an area of huge coastal sand hills, as big as you'll find on any golf course in Britain, and rebranded by Trump as the "Great Dunes of Scotland".
Martin Hawtree's design is based on two nine-hole loops that weave through the dunes on either side of the functional rather than opulent clubhouse. There's plenty of undulation and elevation change along the way. Several tee-boxes, fairways and greens rise-up to provide views onto the North Sea, as well as far inland over the rich and rolling Aberdeenshire farmland. Other parts of the course plunge into sheltered valleys. Close-mown fairways and fast-paced greens are liberally dotted with revetted pot bunkers, and always back-dropped by the pale green, marram-grass covered dunes.
The creation of a golf course on these centuries old sand hills was not without some local controversy, further compounded by the addition of a few wind turbines just offshore. However, the resulting layout, ruggedly handsome rather than winsomely beautiful, has been widely acknowledged in the golfing world as a stunning addition to the links courses of the British Isles. Definitely worth going out of your way to play.
Pick of the holes: Almost a case of take your pick from any of the 18, but in terms of North Sea and coastal views, they don't come any better than those from the back tees of the par-4 14th hole and long par-5 18th.
Stay & Play at Trump Aberdeen: luxury onsite accommodation available, see Where2Stay section below.
Visitors welcome on weekdays and weekends during the golf season (March thru' Nov).
Must book in advance.
Credit cards accepted. Contact club for full details, discounts, Stay&Play packages, etc. [Last updated: 2018].
Soft spikes only. This is a walking course. Golf carts available for hire only with a valid medical certificate. Caddies available (book in advance).
Excellent (incl a double-ended driving range).
Donald Trump's connection to Scotland goes back to his mother, Mary Anne MacLeod, who was born on the Isle of Lewis (Outer Hebrides), off the west coast of Scotland. His grandfather, Frederick Trump (born Friedrich Trumpf), emigrated to the United States in 1885 and became a naturalised American in 1892.
World: 100th best course in the world (GOLF magazine, 2020/21).
GB&I: 14th best course in Britain & Ireland (Golf World, 2020/21).
Scotland: 9th best course in Scotland (Golf World, 2021).
Menie estate, Balmedie, Aberdeenshire AB23 8YE.
+44 (0)1358 743 300
Visit websiteThis opulent boutique house hotel provides superior and grand deluxe guestrooms, intimate bar and excellent dining facilities. With its secret stairways, traditional log fires, whisky snug and spectacular grounds, MacLeod House & Lodge (named after Donald Trump's Scottish grandmother) offers luxury and comfort in a secluded and dramatic location.
Trump Aberdeen
Newburgh-on-Ythan
Murcar Links; Royal Aberdeen; Cruden Bay; Peterhead (23 mi).
North Deeside Road, Pitfodels, Aberdeen AB15 9YA.
+44 (0)1224 861 000
Visit websiteSet in its own picturesque grounds on the outskirts of the historic city of Aberdeen, The Marcliffe Hotel & Spa at Pitfodels is a five-star Scottish country hotel offering 40 luxury guest rooms and suites. Since its official opening in 1993 by Soviet Premier Mikhail Gorbachev, this luxury hotel has earned wide acclaim as an ideal base for exploring the many riches that North-east Scotland offers ... not least an excellent array of world-class coastal and inland golf courses that includes Royal Aberdeen, Cruden Bay and Trump Aberdeen. The hotel is a member of the coveted Small Luxury Hotels of the World collection.
No
Deeside; Royal Aberdeen (6 mi).
Murcar; Newmachar; Trump Intl; Newburgh-on-Ythan; Banchory; Meldrum House.
Tournaments:
2021 Opens: whether by accident or design, four of the top five mens’ Open Championships played in the British Isles occupy consecutive weeks in July: the Irish Open (1-4), Scottish Open (8-11), The Open (15-18) and Wales Open (22-25). The recently relaunched English Open is scheduled for early-August.
Hoag Classic: Ernie Els defends his title in this prestigious PGA Tour Champions event, played since 1991 at the Newport Beach Country Club, CA (Mar 5-7).
Who's Who:
Brooks Koepka: won his second Phoenix Open title, with a chip-in eagle at TPC Scottsdale’s short par-4 17th included in his final round.
Annika Sörenstam: the legendary Swede makes a return to the LPGA Tour in the Gainbridge LPGA, to be played at Lake Nona, her home club (Feb 25-28).
New course opens for play at Barnbougle
Bill Coore designs 14-hole layout with “sporty” holes on dune ridge above Lost Farm.
New links course planned for Scottish Highlands. Landowner aims to appoint a ‘world-class architect’ to work on site next to Cromarty Firth.
New Faldo Design layout in Vietnam set for summer completion. Nine holes of the course at Thanh Lanh are routed across a the lake peninsula.
Dundonald Links Scotland: Construction work is in progress on new practice facilities and course changes at Dundonald Links in Irvine, Scotland, as part of a £25 million investment by new owners Darwin Escapes that also includes the construction of a new clubhouse with rooms, plus eighteen lodges. Read more ...
R&A submits planning application for new golf facility in Glasgow.
Look up the Top Golf Courses in Scotland.
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