The Gleneagles Hotel - The PGA Centenary Course

We were all very excited about playing Glen Eagles PGA Centenary course. The Ryder Cup & Solhiem Cup history added to our trip. We were very disappointed in the green speeds. We played three courses at Carnoustie, The Old Course, The Crail Balcomie, and Kings Barn and these were the slowest greens of the bunch and that is saying a lot. Value was not there for the price we paid to play I would have expected much better.

Top quality course but very tough for the high handicapper. Would advise a buggy for anyone who isn't the fittest. It's a long track with many holes far from each other. Overall wonderful course with many lovely holes. Plus you can recreate Jamie Donaldson's approach at the 15th from the plaque on the fairway. Personally........I failed miserably

The critics will say: Why play such an Americanized course when you're touring Scotland? There is some truth to that, but the reality is that the modern Jack Nicklaus design is such a great change of pace to the resort's heathland King's and Queen's courses.

The Centenary course is the rare Ryder Cup venue you can play, so that gives it celebrity status on par with some other bucket-list courses in Scotland.

My 10-handicap game tends to melt when faced with such championship tests. In that regard, the Centenary can feel like a "slog" at times. The nice views of the surrounding glens - especially at no. 8 and no. 13 - and plenty of interesting twists of strategy throughout the day help overcome that fact.

I'd probably put it in third place among the resort's other offerings, but that speaks more to the quality of the golf at Gleneagles than the lack of character at the Centenary.

You'll probably hear the criticism regarding the Ryder Cup host at Gleneagles over and over: It's too American a design. That's true. The Jack Nicklaus design is not a magical links. The PGA Centenary course looks like a dozen or more resort tracks I've played in America. That doesn't mean it's a bad layout. It's just not what American tourists pay big bucks to play during an overseas links golf adventure. It will be, however, a great match play venue. Water hazards on the par 5s (likes holes 2 and 9) and cross bunkers (like the par-4 8th and par-5 16th) will force some risk-reward decisions. The tees of the short par 4s at No. 11 and No. 14 could be moved up to tempt players to drive the green. A hidden ditch makes the decision on No. 11 particularly dangerous.
Sweeping elevation changes will look great on TV and add to the experience for spectators. The 18th green was redesigned just for the event. Its severe slopes will kick balls into deep collection areas and bunkers. Don't be surprised if an unlucky bounce on an approach shot swings a key match.