Glencruitten

Few settings in Scottish golf feel quite as dramatic as this one. Oban sits on the west coast of Argyll, a working harbour town framed by steep hills, sea lochs, and the kind of raw Highland scenery that stops you mid-stride. Glencruitten occupies a glen directly behind the town, its layout climbing and dipping through terrain that makes every flat lie feel like a gift. The course is short by championship standards — par 62 tells you this is a layout built around angles, accuracy, and local knowledge rather than raw distance.

That par signals a predominance of par 3s and short par 4s, meaning even modest hitters will be reaching for short irons and wedges often. But "short" does not mean forgiving. Highland rough, elevation changes, and the wind that funnels through the glen have a way of humbling anyone who arrives expecting a gentle afternoon.

Oban is a natural stop for visitors travelling to Mull, Islay, or the broader Inner Hebrides, and Glencruitten earns its place as a genuine reason to pause here rather than simply pass through.