Scotland is famous for its links golf, but the country also has a wide range of inland courses set among trees, rivers and rolling hills. Many golfers will play both kinds of course on the same trip, sometimes on consecutive days. The two styles reward quite different skills, and understanding what makes them distinct is one of the quickest ways to lower your scores and enjoy the challenge of each.
What Makes a Course a Links?
The word links is generally traced back to an old term for rising ground or ridges, and it describes the sandy strip of land between the sea and farmland where golf first developed. A true links course sits on this coastal ground, with dunes, hollows and natural humps shaping the holes. The sandy soil drains quickly, and the fine fescue grasses that thrive there produce firm, fast running turf.
Trees are rare on a links. Instead, the main defences are the wind, thick rough, gorse and deep pot bunkers that can be very hard to escape. Courses such as the Old Course at St Andrews are the classic examples, and the style has been copied around the world ever since.
What Defines a Parkland Course?
Parkland courses are built inland, often on former estates or farmland. They are usually lined with mature trees, have lusher and softer grass, and frequently feature ponds, streams and other water hazards. Because the ground is softer, the ball tends to stop close to where it lands, so the course is played more through the air than along the ground.
Between these two styles you will also find heathland and moorland courses, which sit on sandy or upland ground with heather and gorse. They often play firmer than parkland but are more sheltered than a true links.
How to Adapt Your Game on a Links
Keep the ball low. A lower ball flight is less affected by the wind and runs on landing, which is exactly what the firm turf rewards. Read the wind on every shot and be willing to take several extra clubs when playing into it.
Plan for roll. Approach shots that land short of the green can often run on, so think about where the ball will finish rather than where it will land.
Use the ground around the greens. A bump and run with a mid iron, or even a putter from off the green, is often the safer choice.
Avoid the pot bunkers. Playing away from them, even if it means a longer next shot, usually saves strokes.
How to Adapt Your Game on Parkland
On a parkland course, accuracy off the tee matters more than distance, because trees punish wayward drives. Choosing a club that keeps the ball in play is often wiser than reaching for the driver on every hole. Approach shots can be flown all the way to the target, since the softer greens will hold the ball, and higher lofted chips around the green tend to work well on lush grass. Check the carry distances over any water before you swing, and remember that wet ground in autumn and winter will reduce how far the ball rolls.
Enjoying Both Styles
Neither style is better than the other. Links golf asks for imagination and patience in the face of the weather, while parkland golf rewards precision and a reliable long game. If you are planning a trip, mixing the two is a great way to test every part of your game. For more ideas on where to play, take a look at our two minute guide to golf courses in Scotland.
