The Musselburgh Golf Club (Monktonhall)

The Musselburgh Golf Club at Monktonhall is the strongest parkland counterpoint to the links that dominate the East Lothian coast. James Braid designed the course in 1938 and it remains largely as he left it: strategic bunkering, tree-lined fairways bending round the River Esk, and a testing length that stretches towards 7,000 yards from the back tees. The Craigie burn crosses several fairways and forces a genuine decision between laying up and taking the green on.

The pedigree is serious. The R&A used Monktonhall as a Regional Open Qualifying venue from 2006 to 2010 and brought it back as a Local Final Qualifying course when the Open came to Muirfield in 2013. It is also one of the friendlier clubs in the county for visitors, with a relaxed clubhouse, ground-floor changing facilities and a large free car park. Twenty minutes from central Edinburgh, it makes a strong first or last round of any Golf Coast trip, and the winter rates are among the best value in the region.