Prestwick St Nicholas - Ayrshire & Arran - Scotland

Prestwick St Nicks understandably goes under the radar but is worth well worth a try. It has a great mixture of par 4 lengths, is a little cheaper and won’t beat you up as much as some bigger names. It’s very friendly as well.

The early highlight is the short, driveable 3rd with the sea just behind. After that you cross a road and the land opens up, there are a couple of blind shots but I found plenty of room. It wasn’t the best links course for putting from fairways but its greens were very true and surprisingly fast.

Other highlights are the short 10th which has the sea as a backdrop, then the driveable 15th which has a wall behind. 16’s then a dramatic downhill par 4 but unfortunately the last couple of holes are hemmed in.

Ayrshire clearly has lots of options and I was happy with my choice of St Nicholas. It’s a different experience to the bag tag courses and is a fun compliment to Turnberry and co, although obviously build a visit around those first.

My friends and I recently enjoyed a round at St Nicks as part of a trip in South Ayrshire.

From start to finish we were made to feel welcome by the club, be it the attentive hosting in the clubhouse, the unassuming pro shop or the fairly relaxed dress code.

The course itself was a pleasure to play, seeming perfectly suited to its stature as a thinking mans golf course (short in length but not in stature) and includes some really delightful holes for those who particularly enjoy shot making and the occasional blind shot - the 1st, 2nd, 6th, 8th and 16th really stand out as ‘fun’ holes that remind you why you love the game (any holes not mentioned were still more than pleasant, if sometimes unremarkable).

The condition of the course was also faultless, with well manicured tees and fairways throughout, and greens also running true and firm all the way round.

Overall Prestwick St Nicholas is great value for money, presenting a variety of well thought out and well presented golf holes on a scenic piece of land, with a welcome every bit as warm as you could expect in this part of the world. I would highly recommend a round here if the opportunity presents itself, and I hope to venture back one day soon myself!

What a surprise we had whilst in the area to play more well known courses. A lovely mix of types of holes which undoubtedly would play much differently depending on the prvialing wind. Loved the challenge and the greens were perfect, would recommend anyone play here for a fraction of the green fee of some other marquee courses.

A round at PSN is pure enjoyment! There is a wide variety of holes, some classic, some quirky and some bland. The Firth of Clyde is visible on every hole and on a sunny day this is a lovely place to be. The very best holes here are scattered through the course: the wonderful par three 2nd, the 3rd played towards the sea and two venerable stone cottages, the terrific 8th round a water-filled quarry, the lovely par three 10th and the extraordinarily hard 16th. The quirkiness lies in the final stretch which is squeezed into a very narrow piece of land between the clubhouse and the houses. The 17th in particular suffers from this proximity, although the gorse down down the right is brutal. I can not say I like the 18th - a long uphill par 3 with bushes down the left and (horror of horrors) the car park on the right! When you play here be sure to park at the far side of said car park as many a ball must surely find its way there! Assuming your vehicle (and you) survive unscathed you will leave PSN determined to return.

Prestwick St Nicholas is a good course at the start and finish. The first 3 holes are great, as are the last 3 or 4. The holes in the middle are flat and a bit boring. Worth playing for the right price.

St Nicholas is a quality, very enjoyable Links course and fits in nicely with a trip to the nearby star attractions. It's nice to have fun on a shorter, traditional links, with a more affordable and less taxing day in between the highlights. In some ways the course mirrors that - the highlights come at the start and finish of the round. However, this works well in that you can relax a little in the middle of the round but still finish on a high - much better than uneven quality nines, or weak start and finish as with so many Links where the architect had to get you out to the golfing ground.

The more links golf I play, the more I like courses like this. They are one of a kind and simply not made anymore. The start and finish (1-3, 16-18) on the clubhouse side of Maryborough Road are the quirkiest and most dramatic. However, the other holes (4-15) provide both variety and solid quality golf and round the cocktail off well. The challenge of two 450-yard plus par 4s like Coila (7) and Tam Jack’s (13) with fairly straightforward green sites are balanced by two short ones like Bellrock (6) and Kingcase (15), where you can easily have little chance of par after an ill-judged tee shot. Let others dismiss the par of 69, their loss!

Not an obvious choice for a first-time visitor, but I believe the best golf trips are the most varied ones. Therefore, my recommendation is to combine a longer heather-framed course (Glasgow Gailes, Kilmarnock Barassie or Dundonald) with a quirky, undulated course like this one or Western Gailes, or if available and within your budget, Old Prestwick itself.

One last thing: watch out where you park your car, if you drive here. A sliced tee shot on the last long par 3 (227 yards) can easily find its way into the car park and then you do not want your car to be first in line....

Prestwick St. Nicholas is one of those links courses that you just cannot fail to fall in love with.

Even before you reach the car park you catch a glimpse of the course and its humpy-bumpy linksland. As it transpires these are the 17th and 18th holes so you must wait a little bit longer to enjoy these, but it is worth the wait and the journey to get there is just as enjoyable.

Holes one to three and 16 to 18 lie on one side of a small road that dissect these from the majority of the course and because these holes are indeed superb, and enjoy the best of the terrain, it’s very easy to say that Prestwick St. Nicholas has a great start and a great finish, and simply leave it at that.

Prestwick St. Nicholas will probably never be seen by a number of golfers heading to Ayrshire who are just interested in playing the big names and this can therefore rightly be called a hidden gem. Holes two, three, 15, 16 and 18 are of exceptional quality and although there are a few ‘filler’ holes out on the flatter part of the course this is a true links that I whole heartedly suggest you play. Don’t be fooled by the par of 69 and a yardage of just 6,044 as it plays every bit of its length and requires plenty of creative shot-making.

Ed is the founder of Golf Empire – click the link to read his full review.

What better way to spend a sunny Bank Holiday Monday than out on the links enjoying a 4-ball with three of your golfing mates? I just love this wee course – and PSN really was a wee course for some reason today, with the regular markers played from forward tee positions on many of the holes, reducing the overall length to well under the 6,044 yards indicated on the scorecard.

The firm and fast playing conditions meant every green could be reached in regulation, apart from maybe the long par four 7th and 13th, which are tough enough to get on in two at the best of times. The greens, as ever, were in great condition so my only gripe was with the aesthetics of having fairways cut in a striped pattern – surely that’s a parkland characteristic and not one to be used on a links, where “half and half” mowing lines are the accepted norm?

The opening and closing holes are still the best on the course, though the short, doglegged par fours at the 6th and 15th are also a couple of very fine holes. Regarding the long par three finishing hole, I wonder how many cars get damaged in the car park from sliced tee shots as golf balls twice clattered into the side of the clubhouse after we finishing our round.

In these days of Health & Safety, I’m surprised there’s no protective netting in place because there’s a real danger of being hit by a stray tee shot. Bear that in mind when you next play here – it's maybe best to park in the street outside and keep your wits about you as you walk through the car park to the pro shop!

Jim McCann

Although it measures just 6044 yards, there are some tight drives through gorse and there is almost always the wind to take into contention. The first three and last three holes are on the clubhouse side of Marlborough Road and feature some very undulating fairways.

You will be acutely aware of out of bounds on many holes. A big slice on the par four 1st will see you over the fence and heading for the sea. Behind the 1st green are the ‘Salt Pan’ buildings which were constructed in approximately 1790 and were used to extract salt after boiling the sea water.

The land is somewhat different on the other side of the road. The 7th and 8th holes play around a lake that was once a quarry. The 7th is a good hole – a long par four and rated index 1. The tee is right beside the adjacent beach and is very exposed to the elements. Accuracy is needed for the second shot on the 8th as your line is over the edge of the water.

The back nine opens with a par three, a par five and then another par three. The 11th has out of bounds along the right but if you play safe down the left then you need to avoid four bunkers. Holes 13 to 15 are probably the least interesting part of the links.

However, the last three are intriguing. Sixteen and seventeen have gorse and then out of bounds along the right and the 18th, a long par three of 227 yards, has out of bounds by way of the car park on the right.

This review is an edited extract from Another Journey through the Links, which has been reproduced with David Worley’s kind permission. The author has exclusively rated for us every Scottish course featured in his book. Another Journey through the Links is available for Australian buyers via www.golfbooks.com.au and through Amazon for buyers from other countries.