Royal Musselburgh Golf Club
About
Royal Musselburgh Golf Club sits at the tip of the renowned span of golf fcourses along the East Lothian coast, and offers picture-perfect parkland play, making it a must-visit. Royal Musselburgh holds the honor of being the world's fifth-oldest, having started as the nine-hole links course, Musselburgh Levenhall. The Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers, Royal Burgess Golfing Society and Bruntsfield Golf Club have all golfed there.
Royal Musselbergh Golf Club's 349-yard par-4 first hole hides two fairway bunkers to the right. The 477-yard par-5 ninth requires three-shot play when fighting wind: The closer you get to the green after two strokes, the more difficult the pitch. Close down on the 410-yard par-4 18th, where it behooves golfers to carry a big stick, as going right off the tee, rather than carrying the drive to just in front of the green, is a major folly. Non members may pay to use the restaurant and bar, become social members, and get affordable course fare, as well as the chance to attend special events such as dances, buffets, and whisky tastings.
| Tee | Par | Length | Rating | Slope |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| White (W) | 73 | 6254 yards | 75.6 | 135 |
| White | 70 | 6254 yards | 69.9 | 126 |
| Yellow | 70 | 5867 yards | 68.8 | 123 |
| Yellow (W) | 73 | 5867 yards | 74.3 | 132 |
| Red | 70 | 5587 yards | 67.5 | 120 |
| Red (W) | 73 | 5587 yards | 72.8 | 128 |
| Hole | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Out | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | In | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White M: 69.9/126 W: 75.6/135 | 349 | 295 | 368 | 365 | 329 | 176 | 391 | 420 | 477 | 3170 | 373 | 370 | 362 | 452 | 149 | 440 | 176 | 352 | 410 | 3084 | 6254 |
| Yellow M: 68.8/123 W: 74.3/132 | 309 | 280 | 349 | 352 | 320 | 147 | 363 | 410 | 465 | 2995 | 352 | 351 | 342 | 435 | 127 | 419 | 148 | 334 | 377 | 2885 | 5880 |
| Red M: 67.5/120 W: 72.8/128 | 293 | 269 | 306 | 335 | 309 | 128 | 350 | 410 | 460 | 2860 | 346 | 331 | 300 | 413 | 118 | 409 | 141 | 300 | 369 | 2727 | 5587 |
| Handicap | 8 | 18 | 10 | 4 | 16 | 6 | 2 | 12 | 14 | 7 | 15 | 11 | 1 | 17 | 3 | 9 | 13 | 5 | |||
| Par | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 36 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 34 | 70 |
| Handicap (W) | 12 | 16 | 8 | 3 | 10 | 18 | 5 | 14 | 1 | 11 | 6 | 13 | 15 | 7 | 2 | 17 | 9 | 4 |
Course Details
Rentals/Services
Practice/Instruction
Policies
Available Facilities
Clubhouse, Banquet FacilitiesReviews
Reviewer Photos
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Photo submitted by Fergusmck on 02/27/2026
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Photo submitted by t1354378826 on 08/07/2025
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Photo submitted by lee1888 on 07/28/2025
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Photo submitted by lee1888 on 07/28/2025
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Photo submitted by lee1888 on 07/28/2025
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Photo submitted by Giroscozia2025 on 06/23/2025
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Photo submitted by marcW1968 on 08/02/2024
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Fairway Photo submitted by Hgbendler on 09/23/2023
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Photo submitted by tstubbings95 on 08/17/2023
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Photo submitted by wallybob on 07/17/2022
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Photo submitted by u314162115106 on 08/28/2021
Short but a good challenge
The welcome at the pro shop was very friendly. One of our group had arranged to hire a set of clubs and they were all great quality clubs in a good quality carry bag.
The course was short, but with some dog leg holes it wasn’t any easier for the big hitter.
Pace of play was very good.
Royal Musselburgh Course Playing conditions
Course was in lovely condition, and play was at a good pace, we didnt feel rushed at any time. Parkland and challenging approaches to some greens. A lovely setting. Id recommend it.
Very enjoyable round.
Played on a busy day through Golf Now. Pro Shop staff very friendly and helpful. Shop is well stocked.
Course was in excellent condition. Although I was playing alone the pace of play ahead of me from groups of 2,3 and 4 was very acceptable. Greens were very good. I did not use the catering but the clubhouse is stunning. A grand mansion house.
Overall a very enjoyable day. Highly recommended
Lovely Parkland course.
The course was presented in first class condition with a lovely texture to the greens. The exception being the 9th green. A course I would recommend highly made even better as the value for money was first class.
Wide open course
This was a fairly easy, wide open course, and no problems walking the course. The pace of play was great, greens were good, bunkers were hard sand/dirt. This is not really a links course if that is what you are looking for but was nice none the less.
Short but a good challenge
A fantastic little course. Some challenging holes in lovely parkland surroundings.
We got a great welcome from the pro on arrival.
One of our group was from out of town and needed to hire clubs for his round. At £25 I thought it was a little steep but they were top quality clubs.
We will definitely play here again.
Well maintained
The course is well maintained, reasonable layout with trees creating most of the challenge. The bunker sand is a bit hard, making it difficult to get under the ball. The greens and the tees are a bit tool closer together, we were stuck behind a 4 ball and had to be wait on them teeing off to play onto the green whilst worrying about getting hit by their stray tee shots. A 10 years gap between the tees and greens would be a good improvement.
Fantastic welcome
Excellent first impressions - parking in the club car park; no weed infested swamp for visitors, and a comprehensive welcome from the young professional - he actually used the word ‘welcome ‘!
Course lush and well maintained. Greens decently paced and true. We speculated a society had been through earlier; the number of unrepaired pitch marks was staggering and the greenkeeper must have been tearing his or her hair out in frustration.
Great welcome in the comfortable, historic and reasonably priced bar.
Dangerous Layout
Decided to play this course after reading reviews but although the course was in pretty good condition the greens were not running quite true and there is clearly an issue with players not repairing their pitch marks. Some of the bunkers were a bit devoid of depth of sand.
But of greater concern is the course layout, having almost been hit with balls on two occasions we were seriously concerned by the proximity of tees and greens, and some hole layouts in our view unsafe. To sandwich a tee between two smallish greens in our view was an accident waiting to happen. There is also another location where the next tee is directly adjacent to a small green with an approach over a gully. Players avoiding the gully will be aiming virtually at the back of the tee which is unprotected., You need to have 4 sets of eyes playing this course and this was on a virtually windless day. With a wind I would be wearing a hard hat!
The pace of play was horrendously slow. The course is only 5880 of the yellows and it may be that is part of the problem as some par 4s just around the 320 yards are in reach of us with a long drive. Thus waiting backed up at par 4s and 3s. 4 hours and 20minutes was a long time.
Overall nice walk in the sunshine but won't be back owing to the safety issues.
Cold but good
Frosty day in Scotland but pleasantly surprised to see all full greens bar 1.
Enjoyable game as usual on this lovely track. Very busy on the day but pace of play was quick.
Great value for money
Although the greens had been cored the course you could still putt on them and the course was playable. I've played here before and as was previously the course was in excellent condition
We'll be back again.
The course is in good condition
The course was in good condition, the staff were very helpful and friendly, I would recommend it to anyone interested in playing the 6 the oldest course in the world
A lovely day out
I played Royal Musselburgh with two friends, we had perfect playing conditions with no wind to speak of. The course is in beautiful condition, although the greens had been lightly sanded, it didn’t affect our ability to putt. The course would suit all levels of handicap as it is not too long yardage wise, but it is very well designed, with bunkers placed strategically, to catch wayward shots. It was a lovely day out and I would thoroughly recommend any one to play the course.
Excellent condition
Great course - our 2nd visit as we were so impressed with the condition, especially the greens. Very good value for money.
Perfect condition
It's the first time I've played the course when it's not been lush and green...
The course is probably at its peak at the moment, fast true greens and fairways but not scorched...