Golf in Campbeltown

Campbeltown is located on the stunning Kintyre peninsula, which is linked to the mainland by the mile-long Tarbet isthmus. It is the largest town on the peninsula and is in fact one of the largest in the whole of Argyll.

It is a rather tough place to get to (you cannot get there by train) but that is somehow part of its charm. Getting there by bus, car or plane isn't necessarily easy but the hardest part is leaving - you just won't want to!

Campbeltown used to be a very wealthy little haunt thanks to the local trade in whaling, fishing, coal minding and the distilling of whisky. To this day, only the selling of whisky remains. The quality of the golf courses, however, has done nothing but prosper through the years and, certainly, one of the most famous in Scotland is located here, Machrihanish Golf Club.

It's a true golfing treasure and the opening hole - a 423-yard par-4 where the drive requires a carry over the Atlantic Ocean - is among the finest in the world.

"The Almighty had golf in his eye when he created this place," remarked Old Tom Morris before redesigning the course in 1880. J H Taylor, the three-times Open champion, subsequently altered it in 1914 and little has changed to this day.

Other courses to enjoy include the delightful Dunaverty, the nine-hole test at Carradale and Tarbet in the far north of Kintyre.