Cruden Bay Golf Club
We get the best tee timesPTS Protected · ATOL for flightsSince 1981 · 4.9★ on GoogleA specialist replies promptly
About Cruden Bay Golf Club
Cruden Bay is a great test, and home of former Ryder Cup Captain Eric Brown. For 220 years, golf has been played on these dunes and cliffs overlooking the beaches and North Sea. Movies have been made here and the course, just a little further up the road from Royal Aberdeen, takes no prisoners.
This is an almighty test of physical golf with the wind, well-protected greens, blind shots, streams and potted bunkers all adding to the fun!
- Buggies - Available by reservation, we can do this for you.
- Trolleys - Power and Manual trolleys available
- Clubhouse - Visitors welcome, full catering services available
Our take
Golf has run through these dunes for 220 years, and Cruden Bay still delivers a wild, physical test off the Aberdeenshire coast.
- Serious golfersOld Tom Morris bones with Tom Simpson mischief laid on top. The hardest golf comes early: escape the 5th and 6th with your card breathing and the round opens up from there.
- Higher handicapsThink hard before booking this one. The wind blows harder here than at its neighbours, the greens are fiercely defended, and blind shots swallow golf balls. Magnificent, but pack plenty of ammunition.
- Buddy tripsThis is the round your group will still be arguing about on the way home. Cliffs, dunes, burns and potted bunkers everywhere; play it mid-trip so nobody's confidence is wrecked before Royal Aberdeen.
Tell us who’s coming and how you like to play, and we’ll shape the right trip around you.
What you are actually facing
The walk. Flat, and an easy walk — 78 metres of climb over the round.
The wind. The wind is usually southerly, averaging 17 km/h, gusting to 64. It is the club selection that catches people out, not the yardage.
The water. 4 hazards in play. Bring a few more balls than you think you need.
The design. Old Tom Morris and Archie Simpson (later revised by Tom Simpson and Herbert Fowler).
The holes that will cost you. The 6th, the 5th and the 7th. The 5th is the one you will be talking about afterwards.
Hole by hole — how we would play it
Terrain and prevailing-weather data, read hole by hole. It is our own assessment of how the course plays, not an official course or slope rating.
The course at a glance
WHERE TO STAY
Places to stay while you play Cruden Bay Golf Club
Base yourself near the course — every venue here includes Cruden Bay Golf Club in your golf holiday.
Tap a hotel to open it, or zoom in on the satellite view to see how close each one sits to the first tee.