Mortonhall Golf Club

Mortonhall Golf Club lies to the south of Edinburgh, beside Braid Hills. The estate – part of the Moor of Pentland – was given to Sir Henry St Clair of Rosslyn by Robert the Bruce in the early 14th century. The Trotter family acquired the land in 1635 and it was Sir Henry Trotter who originally leased the ground to the club when it was formed in 1892.

Three famous golfing figures left their architectural mark on Mortonhall during its formative years, Willie Park Junior, J H Taylor and James Braid. When an additional 30 acres were purchased in 1975, Fred W. Hawtree, the renowned course designer, was commissioned to layout a number of new holes and upgrade all the others.

Mortonhall starts in a narrow valley called the Kyber Pass which then leads to one of the finest driving holes in all of Scottish golf. The view from the elevated tee of “Moorfoots” is simply stunning, with the Elf Loch below, to the left of the landing area and trees all the way up the right of the fairway.

There’s a touch of old-fashioned golf design at the 6th, which crosses the fairway of the 4th hole then concluding the front nine, “Neuk” looks an easy short par four at 334-yards on the scorecard but in reality, its’s a really tough, uphill hole that doglegs sharply right to a plateau green protected by a ridge that runs at an angle across the fairway.

On the inward half, there’s a fine set of holes between the 12th and the 15th (which were created by Hawtree in the late 1970s) before “Quarry,” the only hole left from the original nine hole course. The 17th is very scenic, played over Elf Loch with the Kyber Pass looming in the back then the round finishes with a tricky, severely doglegged last hole where bogey or worse can easily be carded by golfers who push too hard for a par.

Mortonhall is rightly regarded as one of the best parkland courses in the Lothians with many holes characterised by mature Silver Birch, Pine, Fir, and Sycamore trees that define wide, open fairways, leading to large, beautifully tended greens. In recent years, Mackenzie & Ebert completed a major bunker renovation ensuring the course remains fit for purpose in the new millennium.