Royal Dornoch Golf Club Championship Course Key Information
A uniquely memorable course offering a fine and varied test of golf and captivating views. Royal Dornoch is a northern gem.
The incredibly friendly welcome one receives in the clubhouse at Dornoch adds to the experience at this great northern links. This is a proper town club and there’s no stuffiness or pretension to be found amongst the incredible history and memorabilia on display. It’s one of the country’s great golfing hubs where true lovers of the game meet to share tales of their experiences on the links.
REASONS TO PLAY ROYAL DORNOCH
– Incredible views across the Dornoch Firth
– The most northerly course in our Top-100
– Tremendous changes to holes on the plateau, the 7th and 8th
RANKINGS
UK & Ireland Top 100 Golf Courses 2025/26 - 5
45 miles north of Inverness, there’s a sense of splendid isolation to be found on the fairways at Royal Dornoch Golf Club, where you'll enjoy one of the very best golf courses in Scotland that consistently ranks in the top 10 in Golf Monthly's Top 100 Golf Courses UK & Ireland rankings.
The earliest confirmed evidence of golf in Dornoch dates from 1616 meaning 2016 marked 400 years of the sport in the town.
The Golf Club was founded more recently, in 1877, and in 1886 the members invited Old Tom Morris to travel north to Dornoch to lay out a more formal course over the links. He was responsible for creating Dornoch’s famous plateau greens with their perplexing upturned saucer shaping.
I've fallen foul of the plateau greens many a time, especially on the renowned 14th, Foxy, where I have strong memories of feeling chuffed at making it greenside in two, then watching my first chip/pitch roll back to my feet, electing to putt the next one, inevitably sending it 40ft past the flag and two-putting for double.
On the flipside, on my last visit, where I was paired with golfers from the USA and Canada, I remember them being amazed as my slightly misstruck teeshot somehow bounced up through the tiny gap between two of the front bunkers before finishing three feet from the flag, from where I tapped in and celebrated the two with a Paul Lawrie beer from the halfway hut.
Links golf always somehow finds a way of giving and taking away in almost equal measure.
Tom Watson, an honorary member of the club, described the links as, “one of the great courses of the five continents.” The philanthropist and industrialist Andrew Carnegie said of his home in Dornoch, “If there is heaven on earth, it is here.”
Are the plaudits and praise justified? In a word, yes. This is a captivating place that will leave an indelible imprint on the memory.
The first eight holes follow the ridge of dunes skirting the inland perimeter of the course. All of these are tremendously memorable but the two par 3s stand out. Both the 2nd and 6th are devilishly difficult short holes where missing left or right of the putting surface can spell disaster.
The 9th turns to trace the coastline back towards the town. It’s a testing run of holes, from the long par-4 11th, to the bunkerless 14th “Foxy” with its rascally plateau green, to the dogleg 17th where you must decide whether to play short from the tee leaving a long shot in, or to fire over the marker pole into the unknown.
Royal Dornoch is not a club that rests on its laurels and it is constantly looking for ways to improve its offering. The new 7th provides great evidence of this – a slight change in direction now sends you more out to sea, towards a green sitting at the top of the hill with only the Dornoch Firth and the expansive sky behind.
Following those dramatic improvements to the 7th hole, work was undertaken to enhance the 8th hole. The tees have been shifted to change the playing characteristics and a significant amount of gorse and soil has been removed to open up the vistas of hills and sea.
And most recently, the club has embarked on one of the most significant clubhouse upgrade projects of any club in our Top 100, with the eagerly awaited £13.9 million building set to welcome Dornoch guests from the start of the 2026 season.
What's new for 2025/26? What our panellists said…
It is your typical links out/in layout where you battle hard into the wind and try to score where the wind is helping. The visuals are as good as it gets. Once you get to the 3rd hole and round the corner to see the course open up, it takes on the life of one of few courses that take your breath away. The sea and the heather present links golf at its best on the eye. If you love links, love sea views and love tough golf courses then this could be the one for you.
It’s a thrilling journey of exceptional course design, variety and pure enjoyment. The course is close to the complete package for a perfect links experience: demanding par 4s, short strategic holes, par 3s that demand creativity over power, reachable par 5s, and holes that embrace the coastline. Every detail of the course reflects an unwavering commitment to quality and tradition. The fairways are impeccably maintained, with that firm, tight turf that allows for the classic bump-and-run shots so beloved in links play. Each lie feels as though it’s been carefully crafted to present a perfect challenge, encouraging golfers to engage fully with the natural landscape.
Royal Dornoch Golf Club Championship Course Location
Visit the Royal Dornoch website for more information
Royal Dornoch Golf Club Championship Course Scorecard
Best Courses Near to Royal Dornoch
Best Places to Stay Near Royal Dornoch
Dornoch Castle Hotel - Book now at Booking.com
Situated directly opposite the inspiring 12th century Dornoch Cathedral, the Castle Hotel is just a short walk from the golf course. Characterful and historic, it also has an excellent restaurant.
Royal Golf Hotel - Book now at Booking.com
The ultimate in convenience, the hotel is set basically on the first tee of the Championship course and many of the rooms have great views over the course. It offers stylish and comfortable accommodation.
Links House at Royal Dornoch - Book now at Booking.com
For supreme luxury, the Links House is simply beautiful. It's furnished with old-school furniture and original art works. The breakfast is to die for and you're only 200 yards from the 1st tee.
Royal Dornoch Golf Club Championship Course Gallery
Royal Dornoch Championship Course Historical Top 100 Ranking UK&I
- 2025/26 - 5
- 2023/24 - 6
- 2021/22 - 6
- 2019/20 - 7
- 2017/18 - 7
- 2015/16 - 8
- 2013/14 - 9
- 2011/12 - 12
- 2009/10 - 17
Frequently Asked Questions
IS ROYAL DORNOCH GOLF CLUB OPEN TO THE PUBLIC?
Royal Dornoch Golf Club is indeed open to the public and takes visitors 7 days per week subject to availability. Dornoch is one of the best links courses in the UK and is world renowned, so getting a tee time can sometimes be difficult so make sure you plan well in advance.
Visitors can make a booking on the Royal Dornoch Golf Club website
HOW MUCH DOES IT COST TO PLAY ROYAL DORNOCH GOLF CLUB?
The Championship Course at Royal Dornoch has a green fee of £320 during the summer months and £175 during the winter. Summer twilight rates are £190 and adult members of Scottish Golf Clubs can get a 25% discount on the standard green fees after 2pm.
