
Carnoustie Golf Links
The Open has been played here eight times since 1931. Par 72 over 6,945 yards, with the Barry Burn winding through the last holes.
Carnoustie has a reputation as one of the hardest links in golf.
The Championship course lies along the shore at the edge of the town, in Angus on the east coast, with the Barry Burn winding through its closing holes. It has hosted the Open eight times, and golfers still talk about Ben Hogan's win in 1953 and Jean van de Velde paddling in the burn in 1999. Visitors can book online, and when you're done, The Rookery upstairs in Links House looks out over the course to the sea.

Jean van de Velde stood on the 18th tee three shots clear. His second bounced off a grandstand railing into thick rough, his third went into this burn, and he took off his shoes and socks and stood in it before deciding to take a drop. He made seven and lost the play-off.
The club's caddie tip for the 18th: the clock on the hotel is the line off the tee. The hotel stands where the Mercantile and Dalhousie clubhouses stood until 1997, and it looks straight up the 1st and 18th fairways.
José Jurado of Argentina came to the last hole of the 1931 Open and laid up short of the burn. He pitched to nine feet, missed the putt, and only then found out that his five was one stroke too many. Tommy Armour won.
18 holes. Par 72 and 6,945 yards from the white tees, down to 5,610 from the black.
| Hole | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Out | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | In | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Cup | Gulley | Jockie’s Burn | Hillocks | Brae | Hogan’s Alley | Plantation | Short | Railway | South America | John Philp | Southward Ho | Whins | Spectacles | Lucky Slap | Barry Burn | Island | Home | |||
| White | 401 | 435 | 345 | 375 | 387 | 520 | 394 | 167 | 416 | 3,440 | 446 | 362 | 479 | 161 | 476 | 459 | 245 | 433 | 444 | 3,505 | 6,945 |
| Yellow | 389 | 407 | 325 | 364 | 369 | 500 | 373 | 157 | 416 | 3,300 | 417 | 351 | 407 | 141 | 459 | 437 | 235 | 421 | 421 | 3,289 | 6,589 |
| Green | 364 | 382 | 310 | 358 | 350 | 485 | 350 | 133 | 402 | 3,134 | 332 | 330 | 395 | 121 | 440 | 418 | 212 | 374 | 383 | 3,005 | 6,139 |
| Black | 364 | 303 | 290 | 305 | 298 | 485 | 295 | 133 | 343 | 2,816 | 332 | 292 | 330 | 121 | 375 | 384 | 212 | 374 | 374 | 2,794 | 5,610 |
| Par · White | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 36 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 36 | 72 |
| Par · Yellow, Green, Black | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 36 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 34 | 70 |
| Ladies' par · Green | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 37 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 37 | 74 |
| Ladies' par · Black | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 36 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 35 | 71 |
| Stroke index | 10 | 4 | 14 | 16 | 12 | 2 | 8 | 18 | 6 | 3 | 15 | 9 | 17 | 1 | 7 | 13 | 5 | 11 | |||
| Ladies' stroke index | 9 | 3 | 11 | 7 | 5 | 1 | 15 | 17 | 13 | 8 | 14 | 4 | 16 | 2 | 12 | 18 | 6 | 10 | |||
| Score |
The holes tinted yellow are the highlights below. Press one to read about it.
The Open has been played here eight times, from Tommy Armour's win in 1931 to Francesco Molinari's in 2018.
6Hogan's Alley
In the 1953 Open Ben Hogan drove into the narrow strip between the fairway bunkers and the out-of-bounds fence, and the hole was named after him in 2003.
10South America
The first crossing of the Barry Burn. The story goes that a man leaving for South America drank so much at his farewell that he got no further than this hole, and was found asleep on it.
14Spectacles
Named after the two round bunkers side by side short of the green, like a pair of glasses. Gary Player hit a three-wood over them to two feet on his way to winning the 1968 Open.
16Barry Burn
A long, hard par three. Tom Watson never made par on it in 1975, in four rounds and a play-off, and he still won the Open.
18Home
The Barry Burn crosses in front of the green, with the hotel standing behind it. In 1999 Jean van de Velde came to this tee three shots clear, found the burn and lost the Open in a play-off.
The Open Championship links in Angus, eight times host since 1931, with the Barry Burn winding through the famous finish.
- Holes
- 18
- Par
- 72
- Yards
- 6,945
- The Open
- 8 times
Booking
Handicap limits of 28 for men and 36 for women. Groups under four may be joined up.
Green fees, 2026
- Championship, May to October£360
- Championship, April£249
- Burnside or Buddon, May to October£135
- Burnside or Buddon, April£99
To hire
- Caddie£80
- Electric trolley£25
- Push trolley£10
- Clubs
The clubhouse
The Rookery, upstairs in Links House, looks over the course to the sea.
Links House is on Links Parade in Carnoustie, DD7 7JE, beside the Carnoustie Golf Hotel and behind the 18th green.
The town has its own railway station on the line between Dundee and Arbroath, and Dundee is about twenty-five minutes away by car.
Scotland, in print.
We want to show you the best that Scotland has to offer. The makers and the creatives, the enduring experiences, the evocative tales, the concealed corners. The roads less travelled that take you to places that matter. The adventures that gather you up and sweep you away. The blend of the wild and the artistic that makes Scotland what it is. We’d love for you to join us.
More courses in Angus, and the collections this one is in.
For further reading, before you go.
- Book a tee timeThe club's own booking page for visitors.booking.carnoustie.com↗
- Green feesThe 2026 and 2027 fees, the handicap limits and the hire prices.carnoustiegolflinks.com↗
- The scorecardEvery tee, par, yardage and stroke index on the Championship course.carnoustiegolflinks.comPDF↗
- CaddiesThe caddie fee and how to book one, at least a day ahead.carnoustiegolflinks.com↗
- Code of conductThe dress code and the rules on pace of play.carnoustiegolflinks.com↗
- The RookeryThe restaurant and bar upstairs in Links House: hours, phone and booking.therookerycarnoustie.com↗
- The Championship courseEvery hole described by the club, with a caddie's tip for each.carnoustiegolflinks.com↗
- HeritageThe town's golf, from Sir Robert Maule to the men who took the game to America.carnoustiegolflinks.com↗
- The timelineYear by year, from the first record of golf here to Links House.carnoustiegolflinks.com↗
- Past OpensEach of the eight Opens played here, told by the club.carnoustiegolflinks.com↗
- Links HouseThe clubhouse of 2018: pro shop, changing rooms, simulators and The Rookery.carnoustiegolflinks.com↗
- The 1999 OpenThe R&A's account of Lawrie's comeback and van de Velde's last hole.theopen.com↗
- Top 100 Golf CoursesA long review of the Championship course, with its history.top100golfcourses.com↗
- GOLF.com on Carnoustie's holesThe best known holes, one by one, and the stories behind their names.golf.com↗
- Carnoustie Golf LinksThe links' own website, for everything else.carnoustiegolflinks.com↗













