Scotland 2017 - Day 7

Day Seven

Today we are leaving St. Andrews and will spend the day in Edinburgh (eh-din-burrow).

Before we left St. Andrews we stopped by the beach where they filmed the movie Chariots of Fire.  We filmed ourselves running using the iPhone slo-mo camera, but when we downloaded it, the video was regular speed.  So here's a pic from the beach.

After Anne dropped us off at the airport Doubletree hotel, we grabbed the local bus into town, which dropped us off on Princes Street where there’s a bunch of retail shops.  We figured we needed to find a way to get to the Edinburgh Castle which is within walking distance on the other side of a massive downtown garden and way uphill.  We heard bagpipes on the way, so we stopped at the Royal Scottish Academy (an art museum) and listened to the street performer – Shellie got her picture with him while he was playing.  You could literally hear him from the Castle a mile away.  Then we walked up this massive hill to get to the castle.  After standing in a long line (I’d advise Will Call), we got tickets and went in the castle which was still in pretty good shape.  There were a lot of cool exhibits – prisons, bunks, hall of armor, etc.  Shellie was disappointed the fancy tea room was closed for a private function.  We spent about an hour touring the castle.

The Royal Mile

Then we proceeded down the “Royal Mile”, a cobblestoned road heading from the castle down to the Holyrood Palace where the Queen stays when she’s in Scotland.  This was the best way to go – otherwise if we walked UP the street, we would have literally been walking UP the entire time.   Along the way we stopped at different stores and bought souvenirs.  We ate at a restaurant called Angels with Bagpipes which had good reviews.  They seated us in this small room with one table that overlooked the street.  We watched a kid doing some awesome soccer tricks for spare change.  The food was good and Shellie had a dessert which was basically Rhubarb five different ways.  Then we went to the Palace and got there with one minute to spare.  We toured the inside and then bought some souvenirs and headed back to the hotel for a good night’s rest.

Palace of Holyrood

Arthur's Seat

We spent Sunday flying back – it was nice to have a direct from Heathrow to Austin and we got back just in time to see the final holes of the Masters (Sergio Garcia won) – which was a perfect ending to my golfing week in Scotland.

Scotland 2017 - Day 6

Day Six

This is our last day in St. Andrews – tomorrow we’re going to Edinburgh.  Today I’m playing Kingsbarns which is only a few miles south of St. Andrews.

My tee time was early (8:30-ish), so we left around 7:30.  When I got to the course, there were no other golfers.  The player liaison told me I was playing by myself in the second group, which was a surprise…I assumed they’d pair me up.  Kingsbarns is closed from October (after the Dunhill cup) through March, during which time they just maintain the course and get it ready and it was in amazing shape. 


They had a nice driving range and hit balls for about 20 minutes and went back to the clubhouse.  They asked me if I was ready and if I would like to go off first, before a twosome… why not join(?)…but I said “sure” and I had the entire course to myself (and I could finish in 3 hours).  Having this beautiful course all to myself was so weird… check out the pictures.  I played really well (a couple blow ups, but nothing too terrible).  I sunk a 16 footer for par on the last hole after choosing to lay up and hit a wedge in for my third shot.  Shellie was watching with our driver, Anne, so I had a mini gallery.  :)

We ate lunch and then toured the small town of Crail nearby.  Then we went back to St. Andrews and walked around the Cathedral (now just ruins) and the University.  Another nice day. 











We ate at a steakhouse called Playfairs.  My highlight was the Goose Egg appetizer – basically a giant soft-boiled egg on a bed of sautéed spinach.

Kingsbarns - kylephillips.com

Scotland 2017 - Day 5

Day Five

Today we are going to Inverness in the Scottish Highlands and we’re going to (maybe) see Nessie, the Loch Ness monster.  :)

Appetizer Nachos

We took an early train to Inverness (2 train changes) and got there late morning.  We went straight to lunch at an American diner called the Filling Station.  Shellie got the appetizer Nachos which was basically a whole family size bag of chips! 

Then we walked to the river Ness that goes through downtown and hung out in the bus station waiting for our tour.  Our tour guide for Loch Ness was really engaging and very good (our tour was through Jacobite).  He drove us out to Loch Ness where we boarded a catamaran and drove out on the lake (loch) for about 30 minutes.  The area around the lake is mostly undeveloped and beautiful. 

We docked at Urquhart (er-kirt) Castle and toured he grounds for about 45 minutes – it didn’t look that big, but there were lots of places to explore.  On the way to the visitors center we passed a large Trebuchet (like a medieval catapult), and I saw the guy from YouTube’s Slingshot Channel!  He was filming with a small crew and checking out the trebuchet.  We love watching that guy’s inventions and it was cool to see him there.  The grounds were beautiful and we watched a short film in the visitor’s center on the history of the castle and it was not to be missed – it has a surprise ending!

On the way back to St. Andrews there was a super drunk and obnoxious kid (18?) on the train – he got in a fight with the steward and then locked himself in the bathroom and we couldn’t get him out, so we missed our connection.  Luckily we were close enough to find another connection and got back just before dinner closing at 10.  This time we ate at Mitchell’s Deli which is in the same building at Forgan’s and owned by the same people, but it’s different food.  We had really good dinner there and the waitstaff was really nice.

Scotland 2017 - Day 4

Day Four

Today I am playing St. Andrews Old Course – which is the main purpose of the trip.

After breakfast, Shellie and I walked to the British Golf Museum.  Even though it’s pretty small, we liked it – it was very comprehensive, showing everything from the origins of the game and early equipment to modern memorabilia.  It took about 30 minutes to navigate, and I could see some people spending a lot more time than that. 

Then we went to the St. Andrews Aquarium.  It was also fairly small, but had a neat layout that kept the traffic moving in a specific direction through the various exhibits.  We saw penguins AND meerkats (my two favorite animals because they stand up like little people).  They also had piranhas, seals, a large python, and many other fish.  They have a little coffee shop at the end.  It’s right on a bay, so you can see out to the ocean.  We stopped by the Seafood Restaurant (that’s the name, although it’s Seafood Ristorante in Italian) and made reservations for the evening.

After going back to the room, I headed out to the Old Course for my 1:40 tee time.  All the staff at St. Andrews are so nice from the clubhouse to the restaurant and gift shops- they really cater to visitors.  The starter took my picture in front of the clubhouse and I ended up playing with the two guys from the day before, which was great.   We had a fourth guy join us, also from the US (Georgia).  On the first hole I drove very close to the water (burn) in front of the green and had a small pitch.  Then I proceeded to three putt and make bogey – ugh.  A few more bad holes, including one where I went in two bunkers and one where I almost drove the green then bladed a wedge way over it.  Some of the fairways were not flat at all – just moguls and your ball could be on the side of a hill or roll into a hidden bunker even if you drove it in the fairway.  The wind was not too bad until about 11 (more on that), and the greens were pretty good – nothing like the greens on the Jubilee course.

On 14, I was going with the wind and I was about 180 yards out and I hit 7 iron thinking it would get there.  Well, it went over the double green it shares with 4 and past that (like 300 yards).  I had to hit 8 iron into the wind just to get it back to the hole.  I hit great approach shots on 16, 17, and 18 with makeable birdie putts on all three and missed them all by inches…I loved hitting over the hotel on 17 and down the road on 18 (over parked cars until the last second when it drew in and went across the road that cuts across the fairway.  I putted my second shot to pin high and missed the birdie, but getting a par was a thrill.  I thoroughly enjoyed that round and the course – it was even better than I had hoped.

I shot 44 on the front and 43 on the back – very respectable for my first try.  I posted on the “Write Your Own History” site.

For dinner we went to the Seafood Restaurant where we had the largest mussel appetizer ever (like 30 or more).  We had some good drinks and fish and called it a night – we have to get up early for our trip to Inverness tomorrow.

Scotland 2017 - Day 3

Day Three


This morning we got up and had breakfast with Charlie and Ray and a couple from Toronto and another couple from Virginia.  


We checked in for my 11:36 tee time at the St. Andrews Jubilee Course.  If you go to the Old Course you have to play one other course (there are several) and I played Jubilee.  Let me tell you, this course is MISNAMED.  It should not be called Jubilee; it should be called Hell Hole or something much more adult-language.  The wind was ridiculous (more than Texas, except maybe Corpus Christi), the wind was cold (50 degrees seemed like 30), and the putting greens were like shuffleboard tables (rock hard and covered with sand).  This course was way harder than Carnoustie (in my opinion) and I failed bad - I finally figured out to bump and run the ball up to the holes because I couldn't get the ball to sit.  Now, part of it was that my back was hurting from playing and WALKING 18 holes, the day before, but unlike Carnoustie where I thought I would shoot low 80's if I played it again, I think I would still not break 90 playing Jubliee (sic) again.

Himalayas Putting Green at St. Andrews

We went to the clubhouse for a drink after the round and the 70 degree clubhouse felt like 100 degrees after getting out of the cold.  Next to the clubhouse is a putting green called the Himalayas which has undulating greens and is open to the public to play for a small fee.  We're going to go back and play it some afternoon.  I had a St.Andrews IPA and I liked it a lot - it was a less hoppy IPA than I'm used to and that's good!

For dinner we tried Forgan’s – this time we made reservations and we got a good time.  This is a farm to table type restaurant with a lot of different food choices and was one of the best meals we had while we were in Scotland.  It has a nice atmosphere and they offer flights of beer, wine, and gin to try different things.

Scotland 2017 Day 1-2

NOTE:  There is a lot about golfing in Scotland and there is a little more about things to do when you are in Scotland.

We took the redeye from Austin direct to London Heathrow and from there a short flight into Edinburgh (pronounced Eh-din-borough).  We were met by our driver Anne from Pioneer Golf who we used to book our vacation.  Pioneer helped with securing tee times, accommodations, and most importantly, driving us all over the place.  We drove about 40 minutes from the airport to the town of St. Andrews where we checked into our bed and breakfast, Cleveden House. 

Our hosts Charlie and Ray run Cleveden House which is located very conveniently near the St. Andrews golf courses.  They have very comfortable rooms and serve hot, cooked to order breakfast every morning.

Our driver Anne, showed us around town and got us oriented.  There are three main streets (North, South, Market) that all run parallel.  They link the golf course with the old cathedral ruins at the end of the town.  The town is a major university town, most recently notable for when Prince William and Princess Kate went to school.  The university takes up most of the real-estate and the rest of the town is small shops.  It's very walkable and quaint.

On Sundays the St. Andrews Old Couse is not playable and open to public - people have their dogs on the course and are walking all over it like a park.  We got our picture taken on the famous Swilcan Bridge and then headed over to the Jigger Inn - a pub adjacent to the Old Course Hotel.  The bartender and waitresses were very friendly (as were almost everyone we met in Scotland).  We had some great seafood soup and beer (Belhaven's Best).  I like Belhaven Scottish Ale in the US, but never had the "Best" which was like a pale ale - very drinkable - I had two.

The first night we ate at the Tailend - we had the Fish and Chips which was made with Haddock. It was very good.   We were lucky - we didn't have reservations, but there was one table in the back.  I also had some St.Andrews Ale and Shellie had a dessert with ice cream from Jannetta's.  On our tour we saw the line for Jannetta's out the door and it was over 60 people long - and it was 50 degrees outside.  The weather was nice, but not THAT nice.

Day Two - Monday

~We had breakfast and then we were picked up by Anne and taken to the first golf course on our itinerary: Carnoustie, where the Open will be played next year.  This course is billed as one of the hardest in golf.  On the way we saw a lot of pretty Scottish countryside and Anne let us know what we were seeing.  The weather was very good - I was expecting 50 and raining and it was 50 and sunshine.  I was nervous playing at Carnoustie, but I met up with my playing partners who each had caddies and they were very nice.  I didn't have a caddie, but I would recommend one.  I listened in on what I could, parred the first hole and I was ready to go.  Golf in Scotland is a little different - they like to mow around the green, so you can putt from off the green.  Otherwise it's like Texas - hard fairways, windy conditions, but much colder.

Also you have to WALK.  I am not used to walking (well, I walk around from time to time and I am competent at it), but walking 18 holes of golf is a pain.  By 15 I was tired and hitting bad shots, which, by the way, is when the hardest closing holes in golf start....  Now honestly, I did not find Carnoustie to be that hard - compared to the golf courses I play, the wind was about the same, the bunkers were brutal, but I could get out, and the mowed fringed helped.  Also we played from the yellow tees (maybe like blue in the US), so it wasn't that long.  I had the hardest time hitting 5 iron off the tee on the short holes and got my worst scores on the three shortest holes.

After golfing, we got back and went shopping and ended up at the Dunvegan.  BTW, it is not a vegan restaurant - the opposite - it was bought by an A&M Aggie and his wife and the have the BEST chili I have ever had.  I was super, super tasty and I can't wait to go back.  They also had nachos and their own beer which was very light and easy to drink.

We ate dinner at Ziggy's (a rocker steak place named after Ziggy Stardust).  It was like a mini-mini HardRock.  We were lucky again and got a table with no reservation.  It was in a bad spot, tough and Shellie and I had to sit on the same side of the table so people could get through.  Food (steaks and ribs) was good, but not Texas-good.  Shellie liked it because a) they had Bud Light and b) because they had this Toffee dessert with gingerbread that was very good.  We were over jetlag by now so went home and slowly went to sleep.