http://anitadraycott.com Great Golf and Travel Writing Fri, 18 May 2012 17:46:16 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en I’m on the flight home from my week as a Scotland Golf Road Warrior. Been there, done that and would love to do it all over again. It was a very full week with lots of laughs, not enough sleep and too many triple bogeys. Allow me to share some of the highlights.   Lure of the Links For pampered North American golfers, the first encounter with a true links course may come as a bit of a ... ]]> http://anitadraycott.com/golf/blog/686/the-warrior-week-in-review   This birthday gal could not have had a better day. I don’t often wake up in a four-poster bed in a Scottish mansion on May 16, but today I did here at Mar Hall. I joined my fellow Warriors for a hearty Scottish breakfast, followed by 18 holes on the Earl of Mar Golf Course that runs along the River Clyde. Every once in a while an old tugboat would cruise by. The azaleas were ... ]]> http://anitadraycott.com/golf/blog/671/birthday-bash-at-mar-hall Lords and Lady of the Manor It’s been a full week here as we Golf Road Warriors tackled some of the best courses on the eastern side of Scotland. We’ve been wined, dined and warmly welcomed all along the way, and now for our last two nights, we’re comfortably ensconced here at Mar Hall Golf and Spa Resort. The baronial mansion overlooking the River Clyde, originally completed in 1845, has received a £15 million restoration to ... ]]> http://anitadraycott.com/golf/golf/courses-and-travel/666/666 American President Woodrow Wilson once described golf as “a game in which one endeavors to control a ball with implements ill adapted for the purpose.” Most golf travel bags fit his description to a tee. But Sun Mountain has designed a travel bag, called the ClubGlider that is positively brilliant. The key is the product’s spring-loaded legs and wheels, which are safely tucked in the undercarriage of the body. When extended, they enable the user to ... ]]> http://anitadraycott.com/golf/blog/661/easy-rider Most North American golfers who make the pilgrimage to Scotland have the usual bucket list of courses to play before they take up curling. But I’m willing to bet that Western Gailes Golf Club isn’t usually on their radar. Oh, but it should be. Formed in 1897, Western Gailes has hosted plenty of championships and has been often used for final qualifying rounds when the Open is played at Turnberry or Royal Troon. It’s been rated ... ]]> http://anitadraycott.com/golf/blog/655/western-gailes-will-blow-you-away We Road Warriors have a hectic schedule. However, in the interests of research, I managed to squeeze in a session at the Ugadale Hotel’s Serenity Spa in between rounds of grand golf, gourmet meals and vintage whisky tastings. The Ugadale Hotel in The Village at Machrihanish Dunes reopened in February after being restored to the former glory it enjoyed back in its heyday during the 1900s. Back then the Ugadale welcomed captains of industry and their ... ]]> http://anitadraycott.com/golf/golf/651/road-warrior-pampering True links aficionados put the venerable Old Tom Morris-designed Machrihanish Golf Club on their list of places to play before they die and now there’s another reason to take that long, winding road. to Machrihanish. This remote southern end of the Kintyre peninsula inspired Sir Paul McCartney, who has a farm in the area, to recorded his 1977 hit “Mull of Kintyre.” Locals will also tell you that McCartney’s ballad, “The Long and Winding Road,” ... ]]> http://anitadraycott.com/golf/golf/646/machrihanish-dunes-the-way-golf-began-and-should-be-going Even Ken Campbell, the PGA Golf Professional at the Machrihanish Golf Club, admitted that there was quite a strong “breeze” blowing this morning on the old course. “But we really only call in windy when the seagulls walk instead of fly,” he added with a wry smile. Although I didn’t see any gulls, I’m pretty sure they were hoofing it today. I won’t waste your time with a description of my performance on the venerable links, ... ]]> http://anitadraycott.com/golf/golf/639/a-few-drams-in-campbeltown In March 2010, thanks to VisitScotland and the folks at the Village at Machrihanish Dunes, I had a sneak preview of the new Machrihanish Dunes Golf Club at the southern end of the Kintyre Peninsula. I’d like to think I was one of the first to tread on those supernatural fairways. Now as one of the Scottish Golf Road Warriors, I’m on my way back, courtesy of the same hosts. I hesitate to say that Machrihanish ... ]]> http://anitadraycott.com/golf/golf/623/return-to-bonnie-scotland-and-the-two-big-macs Eat, drink, play For this self-confessed golf fanatic and hedonist it doesn’t get much better than my stay here at the St. Regis Punta Mita Resort (about 40 minutes north of the Puerto Vallarta airport). Let’s start with the golf. I’ve just played two of the most magnificent courses on the Mexico’s Riviera Nayarit. The Punta Mita Golf Club now boasts two Jack Nicklaus Signature courses. In June 2008, Pacifico was named the number one golf course ... ]]> http://anitadraycott.com/golf/golf/615/golf-hedonism-101-at-punta-mita