North Berwick West Links: a visitor's guide

What it is

North Berwick's West Links is a links course (built on sandy ground by the sea) on the Firth of Forth in East Lothian, about 24 miles east of Edinburgh. North Berwick Golf Club was founded in 1832, and the club's own history page says golf had already been played on this stretch of coast since the 17th century. The West Links sits ninth in the NCG Top 100s rankings for Great Britain and Ireland.

How the course plays

The West Links is a par 71. Golf Metric read the club's own 18 individual hole pages and summed the white-tee yardage given for each to get a total of 6,497 yards. The club's own site describes the sea coming into play on six holes, with the beach itself acting as a hazard when the tide is in, along with stone walls that cut across fairways and sit in front of greens, a legacy of how the course grew hole by hole from the 19th century.

Three holes in a row, the 13th to the 15th, are what the course is best known for. The 13th, called "Pit", is a short par 4 to a green sunk behind a wall. The 14th, "Perfection", asks for two accurate shots in a row. The 15th, the "Redan", is a par 3 to a green that slopes away from front to back and is guarded by a hidden dip; Golf Monthly's course review, which Golf Metric read for this guide, calls it one of the most copied short holes in golf course design, reproduced at courses around the world.

Diagram to followSimple routing diagram of holes 13 to 15 at North Berwick, Pit, Perfection and the Redan

North Berwick does not publish a course rating or slope figure on its own site, so neither is given here.

History and a few facts

The original six holes date to 1832. The course grew west in 1868, adding three holes including what became the Redan, reached nine holes by 1877, and was extended to a full 18 by 1895. Ben Sayers, the club professional whose family still runs the pro shop today, altered the layout again in 1932 to something close to the course played now.

The club's own history page records an unusual round in 1903, when the West Links hosted a large group of public figures playing together, including the then Prime Minister, Arthur James Balfour, along with MPs, bishops and a Field Marshal. Golf Monthly's review adds that the club has hosted Final Qualifying for The Open when it has been played at nearby Muirfield, plus the Amateur Championship and the Ladies British Amateur Strokeplay; the club's own history page separately records that it hosted the Scottish Boys' Championship every year from 1935 to 1975. Two North Berwick juniors who learned the game on the club's own children's course went on to notable careers: David Blair, Scotland's first Boys Champion and a Walker Cup player, and Catriona Matthew, a European Solheim Cup winner and its 2019 captain.

Playing it as a visitor

North Berwick takes visitors on the West Links Monday to Thursday and Sunday, 1 March to 30 November 2026; Friday and Saturday are for members only. You need a handicap of 24 or better for men, 36 or better for ladies, with a certificate to show the starter. The 2026 green fee is £220 in March and £320 from 1 April to 31 October; Scottish club members get a reduced rate of £165 in March and November. Fees rise in 2027, to £260 to £280 in March and £360 to £380 from April to October.

Book a four-ball online; for one, two or three players, email bookings@northberwickgolfclub.com or call +44 1620 897143, with full payment due within 7 days. A caddie costs £70 a round in 2026 plus tip, or a forecaddie costs £30 to £35 a player; book when you book your tee time or up to 14 days ahead. On the course, formal golfing attire and golf or training shoes are required; smart, unripped jeans are fine in the clubhouse.

Getting there

The clubhouse is on Beach Road in North Berwick, just off the A198 coast road, which meets the A1 a short drive inland; the club does not publish a specific route, but the drive from Edinburgh is generally reckoned at around 30 minutes via the A1. North Berwick station, the terminus of ScotRail's branch line from Edinburgh, is about 200 yards from the clubhouse, a 3 to 4 minute walk. Edinburgh Airport is the nearest, about 26 miles away in a straight line.

Where to stay

None of these hotels are on site, and Golf Metric has not stayed in any of them; each is listed with its own website and its straight-line distance from the clubhouse, computed from the postcode. Marine North Berwick, on the seafront, is under half a mile away. Greywalls and The Bonnie Badger, both in Gullane, are around 4 miles away. The Leddie, in Aberlady, is about 6 miles away.

When to go

The club's visitor season runs 1 March to 30 November, with lower green fees in March than from April onwards. The club closes parts of the course for maintenance for a few days each March and September; in 2026 that's 16 to 17 March and 21 to 26 September. As an exposed seaside links, the West Links is more open to wind off the Firth of Forth than an inland course, though the club's own site does not publish wind or weather figures.

For juniors

North Berwick has its own 9-hole, par-3 children's course next to the 15th and 16th holes on the West Links, established in 1888 as the "Ladies' Links". Children of all ages can play, fees are kept low, and adults can only play it alongside a child. The club runs junior competitions on it each July and August.