Gullane Golf Club - No. 3

Great staff!
Course looks straight forward, but is anything but.
If there is a strong wind watch out!
Definitely would play again!

Gullane 3 was a wonderful golf experience. Great staff at the clubhouse and pro shop. Free range balls to warm up. Course was in great condition despite a lot of rain! Would definitely play again!

Was sick of playing off mats and in the mud at my course so booked Gullane 3. Superb condition for January with greens spot on and fairways in great condition. Some bunkers GUR but overall just a joy to play. Not been to the new visitors clubhouse before and it was a real standout with great food and service.

Love playing at Gullane the courses are always in top condition, even at the moment with the horrendous weather conditions are still phenomenal

Gullane 3 is the shortest of the three Gullane courses but no shortage of challenge, features and stunning scenery. New visitors clubhouse and practice grounds very good before and after the round. Nice touch to have practice balls included. Staff always friendly and welcoming. Highly recommend, must visit/play.

Originally booked for Royal Musselburgh which was closed due to heavy rains in the preceding days. Just a few miles down the road at Gullane, you'd barely know there had been any rain at all.
Nice little links course which comes into its own in winter when many other courses are closed or in poor conditions.
Lovely views over the bay at Aberlady.
Most holes are pretty flat. There is a biggish hill in the middle so there are 2 holes up and 2 holes down hill which adds nice variety but might be a little steep if you are struggling for mobility.

Really good value for money. £33 for a round can’t beat it. Course is a challenge with lovely views. Definitely going to play it again when it’s not a yellow weather warning.

Course was in very good condition. Greens were excellent!

Played this in a very strong wind and most of the front 9 were by and large straight into the teeth of the wind, which made for a great challenge even on quite short par 4's. Notably the 4th which is uphill and our balls rolled part of the way back to us! Some lovely par 3's and also superb views out over the water, we played as the sun was setting and got some stunning views. Wind dropped on the back 9 and the run in was great fun. Notably the par 3 16th which in such bone dry conditions was 160 yards and found via an 80 yard pitch and run down the hill! 15th the only disappointing hole as wind with, 400 yard Par 5!! SI2. Found with a driver and 9 iron, so should be a par 4! Decent value for the East Lothian area at £34 a round. Clubhouse is fantastic and putting green/driving range great for arriving early. Starter was a bit hassled and no cards available, which wasnt great.

Great test of golf, in excellent condition. A shame the 4 ball in front of us couldn’t be bothered to let our 2 ball through. We waited on many holes. The staff In the pros shop, and in the clubhouse made us more than welcome. Highly recommended

Great round of golf. The greens were immaculate, especially considering the time of year - much better than Close House three weeks ago and less than half the price. Testing layout- tempts you to drive some greens which come the summer when rough is deeper will prove costly. I loved it

Yes, Gullane No 3 gets great reviews and when we played it was a fantastic day in terms of weather. But having had a couple days to reflect on the course itself, I have to say I was a bit disappointed by it.

There are some definite quirky holes thanks to the change in elevation, which isn’t that common on links courses. However, there were definite inconsistencies in how the course was maintained which just made it more difficult to play, but not in a good way. The bunkers were really hit and miss. Some were beautiful, fluffy links bunkers making for some great links bunker shots. But some bunkers were clearly needing new sand, with the ball on a very tight lie making getting the ball out of a deep pot bunker incredibly difficult. If you end up in a bunker like this, take the penalty drop!

The greens were also hit and miss, some played lightening fast, others played a lot slower, again making it difficult to get some sort of consistency when playing.

One thing that struck me on reflection was just how cluttered the course felt on some holes, particularly on approach shots. If the hole has lots of undulations, you probably don’t need to have a lot of bunkers. Some of the holes did play beautifully like a traditional links, with the natural layout of the course feeding into bunkers, but other holes just felt like there had been too many bunkers added over the years.

Most disappointing aspect was the final hole, a rather boring Par 3, which I believe is a new addition to the course as our Garmin’s all told us it should be a 280 yard part 4! It looks like the final hole has had to make way for the clubhouse extension, which again is a shame as it’s an underwhelming end to the round.

Clearly there are amazing views over the Firth of Forth, the facilities are top notch (I guess that’s the compromise to the final hole!) and if you’re blessed with nice weather, it can be a really enjoyable day out. But as a golf course, just like the final hole, Gullane No 3 was disappointing.