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Located along the stunning Fife coastline, Kingsbarns Golf Course is one of Scotland’s most prestigious golfing destinations. 

Renowned for its breathtaking views, challenging layout, and world-class facilities, this modern links course offers an unforgettable experience for golf enthusiasts from around the globe.

A World-Class Golfing Experience

Kingsbarns Golf Course, situated just seven miles from St Andrews, is a relatively young course compared to Scotland’s historic golf venues. 

Opened in 2000, it has quickly gained a reputation as one of the finest links courses in the world. 

Designed by Kyle Phillips, the course seamlessly blends natural terrain with strategic bunkering, undulating fairways, and challenging greens. Every hole offers magnificent sea views, ensuring an enjoyable yet demanding round of golf.

How Much to Play Kingsbarns Golf Course?

For those wondering how much to play Kingsbarns Golf Course, green fees vary depending on the season. For the 2025 season, the standard green fee for a round during peak season (April to October) is £378 per person. Off-season rates are typically lower, providing an opportunity to experience this outstanding course at a reduced cost. 

The fee includes a warm-up session on the practice range and use of the excellent clubhouse facilities.

A Key Stop on the Golfing Map

Kingsbarns is not just a popular venue for casual golfers; it also plays host to significant tournaments. It is one of the three courses used in the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship, attracting top professional and amateur golfers. The course’s immaculate condition and dramatic coastal setting make it a highlight of the golfing calendar.

Plan Your Visit

Playing at Kingsbarns may require advance booking due to high demand, especially during the summer months. 

This is where Hawkswood Country Estate’s golf concierge service can help.

We can help you book tee times, arrange transportation to the course and even help you with the hire of golf clubs.

We also provide stunning self catering accommodation in Fife, located just 20 minutes from Kingsbarn Golf Course.

Not only is the estate a wonderful hub where you can relax during a golf tour, you can practice on our short game areas and driving range. Each accommodation also has a private hydrospa, where you can recover after a day on the course.

So whether you are planning a golf tour where you visit several courses or you’re just planning to play at Kingsbarns Golf Course, Hawkswood Country Estate offers luxury accommodation, conveniently located in the heart of the Fife countryside.

Contact Hawkswood Country Estate today.

If you want to make the most of golf holidays in Fife, then planning ahead is very important.

You should decide what courses you want to play. After all, there are around 50 golf courses in Fife so it is unlikely you’ll get to experience them all during one golf tour.

It also makes sense to pre-book your accommodation, golf club hire if needed and transport to and from the golf courses.

Hawkswood Country Estate is located in the heart of Fife, making it the ideal hub for a golf holiday in Scotland. As well as offering luxury accommodation, we can take some of the stress out of planning your golf trip, through our golf concierge service.

We can help you book tee times, arrange transport to the courses and even help with golf club hire.

Why Fife?

Fife is known as the “Home of Golf”, and it is easy to see why 

As well as offering beautiful scenery, Fife is home to around 50 golf courses that attract golfers from around the globe.

You can take on championship standard courses, practice on nine-hole courses and even take in the history at the World Golf Museum.

There is something for everyone to enjoy during golf holidays in Fife.

Iconic golf courses in Fife

Fife is home to a host of prestigious golf courses that cater to all levels of expertise. 

The Old Course at St Andrews, with its rich history and iconic Swilcan Bridge, is a must-play for any golf enthusiast. 

Nearby, courses like the Castle Course, Kingsbarns Golf Links, and Crail Golfing Society showcase the beauty of coastal golf, offering stunning views of the North Sea alongside challenging fairways.

For a true hidden gem, venture to Leven Links or Lundin Golf Club, which combine exceptional layouts with a more relaxed atmosphere. These courses embody the charm and tradition of Scottish golf, making them perfect additions to your itinerary.

Luxurious Accommodation: Hawkswood Country Estate

Your golf holiday in Fife deserves a luxurious base, and Hawkswood Country Estate delivers exactly that.

Nestled in the heart of Fife, we offer exquisite accommodation tailored to golfers. 

With private short game practice areas, driving range and five-star accommodation, Hawkswood Country Estate is the perfect retreat after a day on the links. 

Enjoy unparalleled comfort while surrounded by Scotland’s stunning countryside.

When most people talk about Carnoustie Golf Course, they mean the historic Championship Course, but there are actually four golf courses in Carnoustie.

In addition to the Championship Course, there are the Burnside Course, the Buddon Links course and the free-to-play, five-hole course The Nestie.

Carnoustie Golf Course green fees can cover single courses or give you the option to play the three courses as a package.

While the Burnside Course and the Buddon Links offer unique challenges and shouldn’t be missed, and the Nestie is a great place to practice, we’ll take an in-depth look at the Championship Course here.

Carnoustie Golf Course is one of the toughest in golf, which is one of the reasons it has hosted numerous Open Championships.

However, it starts off fairly gently.

The Cup hold offers a wide fairway, with a gentle slope which should help your approach to the green.

Hole Two – the Gulley – is also relatively straightforward. Make sure your drive is long and straight and you should avoid the bunkers.

Things get really challenging on Hole Three – Jockie’s Burn. The bunkers can make approaching the green difficult, while the water trap can catch any shots to the green that are underhit.

Hole Four also needs a cautious approach, to avoid the bunkers and ditch.

Other standout holes include Hole 16, Barry Burn. This par three is often played into the wind and actually achieving par is an outstanding accomplishment.

Hole 17 also contributes to Carnoustie’s reputation. Water traps and bunkers await any shots that are slightly mishit.

Hole 18, called Home, is considered to be the toughest finishing hole in the world.

There are challenging bunkers and the Barry Burn passes right in front of the green. This water hazard played a key role in deciding the winner of the 1999 Open Championship.

If you are up for the challenge of Carnoustie Golf Course, green fees make this one of the most accessible championship courses there are.

Book a golf tour with Hawkswood Country Estate and our golf concierge service is available to help you arrange tee times, hire equipment and even travel to the course.

So book your golf tour in Scotland and take on one of the most challenging golf courses in the world.

Fife is home to some of the world’s most iconic and historic golf courses, along with some lesser known hidden gems. Here is a selection of golf courses in Fife, Scotland. Each offers a unique challenge to golfers of differing skill levels:

The Old Course

The Old Course in St Andrews is arguably the most famous golf course in the world, with a history spanning over 600 years. 

Known for iconic landmarks like the Swilcan Bridge and the Road Hole (17th hole), the Old Course is a must-play golf course in Scotland.

Kingsbarns Golf Links

Kingsbarns is known for its beautiful seaside views and challenging links layout. This modern course was designed by Kyle Phillips and quickly gained a reputation as one of the best new courses worldwide.

The Castle Course

Opened in 2008, this is one of the newest golf courses in Fife, Scotland. The Castle Course sits on cliffs overlooking St Andrews Bay, providing dramatic scenery and a highly challenging layout.

Lundin Golf Club

Established in 1868, Lundin Golf Club is a traditional Scottish golf course with a mix of links and parkland holes. It’s known for its challenging layout, undulating fairways, and stunning coastal views.

Leven Links

One of Scotland’s oldest golf courses, Leven Links is known for its challenging closing stretch, including the famous 18th hole with a tricky burn (a small stream) in front of the green.

Scotscraig Golf Club

Scotscraig is the 13th oldest golf club in the world, with a layout that combines elements of links and heathland styles. It’s a classic, testing course with firm fairways and challenging bunkers.

Balcomie Links

The Crail Golfing Society is the seventh oldest golf club in the world, and Balcomie Links, designed by Old Tom Morris in 1895, is the highlight. This course is laid out along the coast with expansive sea views and traditional links challenges.

Elie Golf House Club (Golf Club House)

Elie is known for its unique layout and breathtaking coastal scenery. A round here starts with a periscope view from the starter’s hut, setting the stage for a memorable and unique experience.

Fife’s courses vary from the historic to the modern, offering a combination of breathtaking scenery, challenging links layouts, and a touch of golf history that’s unmatched anywhere else in the world.

The range of must-play golf courses in Scotland makes it a Mecca for the golfer.

At Hawkswood Country Estate, we host regular golf tours and our golf concierge service can help your golf vacation run smoothly.

Contact us today.

Scotland is globally recognised as the home of golf.

So any golfer, amateur or pro, should experience a golf tour of Scotland at least once.

And with 550 golf courses around the country, there is a lot of choice for the golfer in Scotland.

The Old Course

No golf tour in Scotland is complete without a round on the Old Course in St Andrews. Rated as the best golf course in Scotland, and possibly the entire planet, the Old Course is a classic Links course.

The Old Course is a challenge to all golfers, no matter how experienced they are. That is one of the reasons the Old Course has hosted the more Open Championships than any other golf course.

Follow in the footsteps of golf’s greats by visiting the Old Course during you golf tour in Scotland.

Dumbarnie Links

Dumbarnie Links in Leven is a fairly new course, opening to the public in 2020.

But it has quickly gained a reputation as a fun yet challenging course, with a few fast Par 3s, as well as some dog legged Par 5s that give you options on how to best approach the green.

Less than a year after opening, Dumbarnie Links was chosen to host Women’s Scottish Open – a major vote of confidence in the new course.

Carnoustie Golf Links

Carnoustie Golf Links is considered to be one of the most difficult golf courses in the world.

This natural seaside links course offers beautiful views of the sea, which should help you deal with any frustration the course may cause.

The signature hole at Carnoustie is the 6th. This long par 5 includes some large bunkers, which can be difficult to avoid.

If you have the skills and nerves to take on Carnoustie, this should be part of your golf tour of Scotland.

Ladybank Golf Course

Rated as on of the best island golf courses in Scotland, Ladybank Golf Course was originally built as a six-hole course in 1879, before being extended in 1910 and 1962.

The small greens that are a Ladybank trademark mean that accuracy is all-important. The natural shelter of the treeline and relative flatness of the course makes this accuracy a bit more easier to achieve.

Booking golf tours in Scotland

At Hawkwood Country Estate, we cater to the golfer.

We offer luxurious accommodation, short game area and driving range where you can practice your game and private hydrospas where your muscles can recover after a day on the course.

With our golf concierge service, we can help you arrange tee times on some of the best golf courses in Scotland.

Find out more about the luxury accommodation at Hawkswood Country Estate.

The Old Course in St Andrews is the oldest and most famous golf course in the world.

Golf was first played on the links area that would become the Old Course in the early 15th Century. 

In 1552, the Old Course was opened to the general public. Of course, it wasn’t known as the Old Course until 1895, when the New Course opened in St Andrews.

Over the years, many of the most celebrated golf course architects the world has ever seen have redesigned and added to the Old Course, creating the challenging links course we know today.

The course has numerous challenging hazards, many of which have been given ‘affectionate’ nicknames by golfers.

These include The Road Hole Bunker on the 17th hole, called “the most notorious golf hazard in the world”. The Hell bunker on the 14th hole is 250 square meters. The Stroke bunker on the 12th hole is so called because if a golfer goes into it, they are guaranteed to lose a stroke.

The most experienced golfers find the Old Course to be a challenge, but one they shouldn’t miss.

Indeed every golfer should play on the Old Course at least once, and no trip to St Andrews is complete without a visit to the course.

At Hawkswood Country Estate, we cater to golf trips.

Our golf concierge service can help you book tee times, hire golf equipment and travel to the course in our luxury Mercedes mini coach.

After a day on the course, you can relax in your own private hydro-spa, before having a night’s rest in one of our luxurious bedrooms.

If you are looking for a golf trip to St Andrews, book Hawkswood Country Estate today.

Scotland is known for some of the oldest and most iconic golf courses in the world.

However, a new kid on the block is quickly becoming a favourite of golfers everywhere.

The Dumbarnie Links in Upper Largo isn’t your typical links course. Rather than a front and back nine in a loop, every hole in Dumbarnie faces a different direction. This means the course offers a unique challenge as players will face different wind conditions with each hole.

The course also offers stunning views of Largo Bay and the Firth of Forth.

The Dumbarnie course was designed by former Ryder Cup player turned course architect Clive Clark. He has designed 35 courses across the USA and Europe. 

Before it opened in 2020, Dumbarnie Links was one of his most anticipated designs. And it has more than lived up to the hype, winning Best New Golf Course at the 2021 World Golf Awards. In 2023, the course won Scotland’s Best Golf Experience at the Scottish Golf Tourism Awards.

The standout holes in the Dumbarnie Links are the third, eleventh and 17th. All are designed for big hitters. However, you can’t just hit and hope, as each hole is peppered with challenging bunkers.

The 17th in particular offers a difficult choice – play safe on the fairway on the left, or play straight over the heavy rough and bunkers for a chance to land on the large green.

These are holes you’ll want to play again and again, on a course that can change how you have to play everyday.

Golf trips with Hawkswood

At Hawkswood Country Estate, we have been catering to golfers for years. 

Our luxury self catering accommodation is located just seven miles from Dumbarnie Links.

With our golf concierge service, we can help your party arrange tee times at Dumbarnie Links, or many other famous Fife golf courses.

We can transport you to the course in our Mercedes minibus. 

You can also perfect your game during your stay at Hawkswood Country Estate. You’ll have access to our driving range and short game areas to practice a wide range of shots.

You can even train with Peter Whiteford, a former European Tour professional, who has coached players of all levels.

Book a golf trip in Fife with Hawkswood Country Estate, and get ready to take on one of the newest, and most challenging, golf courses in Scotland.

At Hawkswood Country Estate, we cater to many golf trips every year.

After all, we’re located just 10 minutes drive from St Andrews – the home of golf.

But before you take on the famously challenging courses in St Andrews, you’ll want to make sure you’re at the top of your game.

These golf training tips can help you prepare for the toughest golf courses in St Andrews.

Work on your short game

If you can’t putt well, you’ll never reach your potential as a golfer.

While a good drive is important, most shots are wasted on the green. 

At Hawkswood House and The Roundel, we have short game areas where you can perfect your approach play and putting.

Each area gives you the chance to practice a wide range of shots and lies, until you’re ready to take on the most challenging holes in golf courses in St Andrews and around Fife.

Learn to drive

Not because you need to use a golf buggy, but a good drive is the foundation of a good round of golf.

All Hawkswood Country Estate, all our guests have access to our 270-yard driving range.

Here you can work out any issues with your swing and build up the power needed for the perfect drive.

Get professional coaching

While working at our short game areas and driving range can help you work on your golf game, a professional coach can help you see issues you may not have recognised.

At Hawkswood Country Estate, we can arrange coaching with Peter Whiteford, a former European Tour professional, who has coached players of all levels.

As well as being the coaching professional at Hawkswood Country Estate, Peter is the coach of the Fife men’s golf team.

He’ll help you identify and improve any problems with your golf game.

Take the stress out of golf trips

When you plan a golf trip, you no doubt want to focus on the games, and let someone else do the admin.

At Hawkswood Country Estate, our golf concierge service can handle everything for you.

We will help you book tee times at some of the most iconic golf courses in Scotland. 

We can also transport you to many of Fife’s celebrated golf courses in our luxury 16-seater mini coach. 

We can help you arrange golf club hire through www.golfgearhire.com.

So all you need to think about is playing the perfect round.

Work on posture

Your stance will affect your swing, so the correct posture is very important.

To make sure you’re in the right stance, stand with the club pressed against your thighs, bend forward from the hips, and slightly bend your knees.

Your arms should hang straight down. Grip the handle and check the club is at a 45-degree angle to your forearm.

This is the perfect setup stance.

Align your clubface

Shots often go astray because the clubface is misaligned.

To deal with this, place an alignment stick just outside the ball, so it creates a 90-degree angle with the target line. 

Align the leading edge of the club with the stick.

Improve putting accuracy

A simple but effective way to improve putting accuracy is to put something in the hole that is slightly smaller (such as a soft drink bottle).

You should then aim for the bottle. Once you can hit it consistently, remove it.

The hole will seem to be a much larger target.

Practice, practice, practice

The most effective way to improve your golf game is to play as much as you can.

Regular golf trips to Hawkswood Country Estate will give you the chance to play some of the most challenging golf courses in Scotland.

Contact us to arrange golf coaching or to book a golf trip.

Time flies when you’re having fun. And while running Hawkswood Country Estate for the past 10 years has been a challenge at times, we wouldn’t change a thing.

January 2024 marks 10 years since we opened Hawkswood Country Estate for holiday rentals. And we wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for our loyal customers.

So we’ve decided to celebrate our anniversary by rewarding you – our valued guests.

If you book two nights between January 1st and March 10th 2024, you’ll get a third night with our compliments. We’ll even have a bottle of fizz waiting for your arrival.

As a family, we have been working to restore the building at Hawkswood Country Estate for a long time.

We started working to restore Hawkswood House and The Roundel in 2007.

Over the years, both buildings had been used as dog kennels, a cow shed and stables. Both were crying out for restoration.

The now iconic Roundel Room had been boarded up and needed serious work on the roof. We’ve now restored the panoramic views of the Fife countryside that our guests can savour in the Roundel Room.

It’s not an overstatement to say that Hawkswood House was a total wreck back in 2007.

The first step was to evict Balaro the Belgian horse that was living in the house. The right arch window in the kitchen was formerly his stable door.

The work began to restore the house to its former glory. The house was extended by 10 metres at each end, and many internal walls had to be demolished and replaced.

We bought Bowhill House in 2016. While it didn’t quite need the same amount of work as the Roundel or Hawkswood House, it still needed a complete interior renovation.

Bowhill House opened as the third exclusive use property at Hawkswood Country House in 2022.

We are proud of the amount of work the family have put into each luxury accommodation at Hawkswood Country Estate.

So whether you are a regular guest or staying for the first time, we’d love for you to sample the fruits of our labour.

And with a complimentary third night when you stay for two nights between January 1st and March 10th 2024, there has never been a better time to stay at Hawkswood Country Estate.

Contact us to discuss your stay or to book.
*Stay between January 1st 2024 and March 10th 2024 for two nights and get a third with our compliments. New bookings only. This offer is only available when booked on the phone or with our contact form. Can be used in conjunction with other offers.

Hawkswood Country Estate 2025

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