{"id":1078,"date":"2014-09-16T04:31:43","date_gmt":"2014-09-16T11:31:43","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/?p=1078"},"modified":"2014-09-27T06:47:30","modified_gmt":"2014-09-27T13:47:30","slug":"dont-overlook-murcar","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/travel\/1078\/dont-overlook-murcar","title":{"rendered":"Don&#8217;t overlook Murcar"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"attachment_1091\" style=\"width: 1018px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"http:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/43\/2014\/07\/Murcar-fairway-2.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1091\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1091\" alt=\"Murcar is pure seaside Scottish golf, even with oil-rig support craft lurking in the North Sea.\" src=\"http:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/43\/2014\/07\/Murcar-fairway-2.jpg\" width=\"1008\" height=\"672\" srcset=\"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/43\/2014\/07\/Murcar-fairway-2.jpg 1008w, https:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/43\/2014\/07\/Murcar-fairway-2-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/43\/2014\/07\/Murcar-fairway-2-90x60.jpg 90w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1008px) 100vw, 1008px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-1091\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Murcar is pure seaside Scottish golf, even with oil-rig support craft lurking in the North Sea.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>As we pulled into the car park at Murcar the day after our opening round at Cruden Bay, I was expecting a gentle, fun experience.<\/p>\n<p>Murcar lies just outside Aberdeen, adjacent to Royal Abderdeen. We had heard several stories about Asian tourists, and even greenskeepers, who took a wrong turn \u00a0between Murcar\u2019s third green and fourth tee\u2014and ended up teeing off on or mowing at Royal Aberdeen\u2019s adjacent 10<sup>th<\/sup> hole. Designed in 1909 by Archie Simpson, who was then the pro at Royal Aberdeen, and refined by James Braid in the &#8217;30s, Murcar is an under-appreciated gem.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;The land at Murcar is very close to ideal,\u2019\u2019 James W. Finegan wrote in Blasted Heaths and Blessed Greens, his classic travelogue of Scotland&#8217;s finest courses. &#8220;Rumbling, linksland, great sandhills, gorse, heather, the spiky marram grass, even a couple of burns for good measure. . . the sandhills rise above one another. . . revealing the sea from almost every hole.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Liz, bunker IMG 1187\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/H917ay6Re9Y?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>I didn\u2019t know a lot about Murcar, which tends to be overshadowed by Royal Aberdeen and Cruden Bay, but assumed that since it lacked the notoriety of its two renowned north-of-Aberdeen neighbors, it would allow Liz and I an opportunity to bang the ball around without nearly as much pressure.<\/p>\n<p>The little one-lane road, surrounded by a working farm with plenty of grazing cows that led to the course, did nothing to alter that view. The older woman setting her bag on a trolley in the car park seemed to confirm my assumption.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Murcar drive, IMG 1191\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/leSbhjux3qM?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>The Murcar staff and fellow golfers could not have been nicer. We\u2019d planned to putt a bit before teeing off, but when we approached the first tee, a foursome\u2014three young men and an older fellow\u2014insisted that we go first.<\/p>\n<p>The 305-yard first hole seemed to be further evidence that Murcar would show us a nice time. My hurried tee shot went down the left side, while Liz, went a bit right, but knocked her hybrid right in front of the green.<\/p>\n<p>Cutting back to a six-iron from what is ordinarily hybrid distance for me, I expected to come up short of the greenside pot bunkers. Over-excited, I hit a low hard shot that was pulled slightly, reaching the left greenside bunker. Even so, I was encouraged by a shot that had carried so far and hadn\u2019t missed by much.<\/p>\n<p>The second hole was more of the same.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_1093\" style=\"width: 1034px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"http:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/43\/2014\/07\/Murcar-0328.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1093\" class=\"size-large wp-image-1093\" alt=\"Daunting looks like this. . . \" src=\"http:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/43\/2014\/07\/Murcar-0328-1024x622.jpg\" width=\"1024\" height=\"622\" srcset=\"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/43\/2014\/07\/Murcar-0328-1024x622.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/43\/2014\/07\/Murcar-0328-300x182.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-1093\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Daunting looks like this. . .<\/p><\/div>\n<p>It was on the fourth tee that Murcar began to show its teeth. I stood on the elevated ground staring at what looked like a bathmat-sized patch of diagonal fairway. The tee shot not only had to go over mounds of heather and gorse; it had to nestle in between more heather and gorse. The approach to the green was no bargain, either.<\/p>\n<p>This pattern continued for the next several holes, except on the 412-yard No. 7, which was a bit more open but featured a wide burn that cut across the fairway right about where my tee ball likes to land.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_1088\" style=\"width: 1034px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"http:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/43\/2014\/07\/Murcar-hunt-0332.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1088\" class=\"size-large wp-image-1088\" alt=\". . . meant many looks like this. . . \" src=\"http:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/43\/2014\/07\/Murcar-hunt-0332-1024x807.jpg\" width=\"1024\" height=\"807\" srcset=\"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/43\/2014\/07\/Murcar-hunt-0332-1024x807.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/43\/2014\/07\/Murcar-hunt-0332-300x236.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-1088\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">. . . meant many looks like this. . .<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Steeling my resolve, I hit the ball as well as I can and carried the burn. That relief was short-lived. Reaching my fine tee shot, I realized I\u2019d need to lay up on the next shot, a steep and narrow uphill climb to a hidden green. I wasn\u2019t going to get there, and it made much more sense to punch the ball into the tight fairway rather than risk landing in the fescue.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Depending on wind direction,\u2019\u2019 the course guides notes, &#8220;even the scratch golfer may be happy to settle for a bogey five here.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n<p>As our round continued, though, Murcar eased up. The inward nine offered a string of holes that were less penal and more fun. The blind tee shots at least were roomy, and the downhill approaches were a treat.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_1089\" style=\"width: 1034px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"http:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/43\/2014\/07\/Murcar-hunt-2-0334.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1089\" class=\"size-large wp-image-1089\" alt=\". . . and even this. . .\" src=\"http:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/43\/2014\/07\/Murcar-hunt-2-0334-1024x719.jpg\" width=\"1024\" height=\"719\" srcset=\"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/43\/2014\/07\/Murcar-hunt-2-0334-1024x719.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/43\/2014\/07\/Murcar-hunt-2-0334-300x210.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-1089\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">. . . and even this. . .<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Liz skirted the well-bunkered par-three 13<sup>th<\/sup> for a nice birdie look. And despite a weak tee shot on No. 14, I was able to trundle a long approach onto the sunken green. The 241-yard No. 15 is a pure gem. The tee shot doesn\u2019t need to be long, but the second shot, over a burn to a steep hilltop green, demands plenty of attention.<\/p>\n<p>As we packed our bags in our rental car, I understood why we hadn\u2019t seen any women on Murcar, which had provided Liz with some exceedingly difficult tee shots from the no-nonsense red tees. The ladies had played the nine-hole course, which, judging by the first tee, wasn\u2019t nearly as daunting.<\/p>\n<p>In the clubhouse, Liz and I found a nice table and ordered up a tremendous lunch of home-made pate and salmon cakes, washed down by a couple of pints. The kitchen was as great a find as the golf course.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_1090\" style=\"width: 803px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"http:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/43\/2014\/07\/Murcar-hunt-3-0321.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1090\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1090\" alt=\". . . and this, at challenging Murcar.\" src=\"http:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/43\/2014\/07\/Murcar-hunt-3-0321.jpg\" width=\"793\" height=\"560\" srcset=\"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/43\/2014\/07\/Murcar-hunt-3-0321.jpg 793w, https:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/43\/2014\/07\/Murcar-hunt-3-0321-300x211.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 793px) 100vw, 793px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-1090\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">. . . and this, at challenging Murcar.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>We also gained a better appreciation for the fangs of Murcar. For one, the course had recently hosted a tournament, the Northern Open, and was still primed to play even more difficult than its usual testing self.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_1092\" style=\"width: 310px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"http:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/43\/2014\/07\/Murcar-clubhouse.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-1092\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1092\" alt=\"Don't be fooled by Murcar's modest clubhouse. It leads to a formidable golf course outside--and a formidable kitchen inside.\" src=\"http:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/43\/2014\/07\/Murcar-clubhouse-300x195.png\" width=\"300\" height=\"195\" srcset=\"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/43\/2014\/07\/Murcar-clubhouse-300x195.png 300w, https:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/43\/2014\/07\/Murcar-clubhouse-90x60.png 90w, https:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/43\/2014\/07\/Murcar-clubhouse.png 769w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-1092\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Don&#8217;t be fooled by Murcar&#8217;s modest clubhouse. It leads to a formidable golf course outside&#8211;and a formidable kitchen inside.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>For another, club secretary Carol O\u2019Neill explained, Murcar\u2019s membership has the highest percentage of low handicappers in Scotland, and they like a challenge. The previous club champion, a plus-3, hadn\u2019t even graduated, she said, to the match-play round of 16 in his bid to defend his title.<\/p>\n<p>That said, Murcar was a thoroughly enjoyable course. There were a bunch of terrific holes that took advantage of the course\u2019s hilly seaside terrain, and the views of the North Sea beyond the stark hills were breathtaking. As I look back, there might not have been as many scary tee shots as I first believed. Beginning with the fourth hole, I let them get in my head a bit, a mistake I wouldn\u2019t make again if I have another opportunity to tee it up there.<\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s an opportunity I would relish.<\/p>\n<p>&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;-<\/p>\n<p>For further information, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.murcarlinks.com\">http:\/\/www.murcarlinks.com<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;&#8212;-<\/p>\n<p>Please click on photos to see enlarged view.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>As we pulled into the car park at Murcar the day after our opening round at Cruden Bay, I was&#8230;  <a class=\"excerpt-read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/travel\/1078\/dont-overlook-murcar\" title=\"ReadDon&#8217;t overlook Murcar\">Read more &raquo;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":51,"featured_media":1088,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,28,977342,9,17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1078","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-travel","category-scotland","category-scotland-2014","category-golf","category-courses-and-travel"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/43\/2014\/07\/Murcar-hunt-0332.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1078","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/51"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1078"}],"version-history":[{"count":14,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1078\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1121,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1078\/revisions\/1121"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1088"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1078"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1078"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/herbgould\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1078"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}