| oyal Dornoch Golf Club of Sutherland | | | | texture was added via inland grass seeds |
| Scotland’s history goes as far back as | | | | deposited on the linkland via the wooly coats of |
| “the Dornoch Links” in the cost of | | | | grazing sheep. |
| the golf clubs and golf balls belonging to the young | | | | In 1883, the legendary “Old Tom” |
| Earl of Sutherland in the time period of year of | | | | Morris came up from St. Andrews to lay out a |
| 1616. Its amazing that over all the millennia how | | | | formal nine holes. In 1866, at the direction of John |
| little has changed in the minds and mentality of | | | | Sutherland, another nine holes were added to the |
| golfers , fellow golfers and those in charge of golf | | | | golfing course, and thus Dornoch now had 18 |
| courses and their administration. | | | | holes in its golf setup, as per the standard set at |
| The description of the area surrounding the | | | | the St. Andrews golf course 122 years earlier. |
| Dornoch Links at the time was “About | | | | Thus Dornoch not only was growing in the size of |
| this town along the sea coast are the fairest and | | | | its golf course, but also in reputation. In 1894 it |
| largest links or green fields in any part of Scotland. | | | | held its first golfing competition – the |
| Fitt for archery, golfing, ryding and all other sorts | | | | tournaments of their time. |
| of exercises they doe surpass the fields of | | | | 28 men from Moray met 28 golfers from |
| Monroe or St. Andrews”. | | | | Dornoch at the Dornoch links. The Dornoch golfing |
| To this day the Royal Dornoch can be said to | | | | team went on to solidly defeat their visitors 246 |
| place consistently in among the top 100 of the | | | | holes to none. Even more importantly the Moray |
| greatest golf courses of the world. | | | | men did not only take the defeat as not only a |
| It seems from the initial records of the course | | | | case of playing on home ground, but rather that |
| and young Earl of Sutherland’s golf | | | | the Dornoch course was anything but impressive. |
| equipment not much was recorded or noted until | | | | Indeed the historic report recorded was the |
| 1852, when George Dempster of Skibo, a St. | | | | “the links surpassed anything we imagined. |
| Andrew’s golfer, played a round with a | | | | The turf is of excellent quality. Everyone was |
| party over the Dernoch Links. Sometime in the | | | | charmed with the course”. |
| time interval between the years of 1616 and | | | | Thus it is no accident that the Royal Dornoch Golf |
| 1852, the Sutherland Golfing Society was | | | | Club at Sutherland in Scotland merits such a |
| established, its members played at both the | | | | reputation – both as the historic golf |
| Dornoch and Golspie. | | | | course, and also has continued on with its fine |
| The Dornoch Links were at this early point only | | | | reputation to be always regarded as one of the |
| nine holes in extent. These original links were | | | | top 100 golf courses in the world. It’s no |
| formed in much the same primal way as the | | | | accident and it’s no accident that the |
| “Old Course” at St. Andrews: an | | | | greatest dream of many golf aficionados and |
| Ice Age glacier carved the land and deposited | | | | golfers generally is to play and be challenged by |
| sand dunes which, over time were stabilized by | | | | this fine golf course which has always |
| the growth of seaside grasses, and finer grassy | | | | commanded great respect and merit. |