I played at £1,000-a-round Donald Trump golf course, it worked out at £11 a SHOT – but I snubbed the £7k-a-bottle wine
Is Turnberry worth shelling out £1,000 to play 18 holes? Is any course?
Well, if you want to play the renowned Scottish links, a grand is exactly what it will cost at peak times next year, under a new price structure announced by the club.
And that does not even include the cost of a caddie, should you decide you need an experienced bag man. That will set you back another £45. Plus tip.
There is no doubt that Tunberry’s main course, the Ailsa, is one of the best on the planet.
Gary Player reckons only the ultra-exclusive Pine Valley in New Jersey ranks ahead of Turnberry on the world stage – even though none of his three Open victories was achieved there.
And you either have to be a member, or a guest of one, to play Pine Valley. Unlike Turnberry, you cannot just phone up and pay for a round.
As the Sun’s golf correspondent for nearly 25 years, I was often asked to name my ten favourite courses. And Turnberry has always been high up that list.
So the chance to go back there and weigh up whether asking £1,000 is highland robbery was one I jumped at.
The last time I teed it up there was three years ago, when I got my first look at the new ninth hole – which was converted to a spectacular par three across the bay alongside the iconic Stevenson Lighthouse, which is part of the club’s logo.
That change – plus improvements to the tenth and eleventh – saw Turnberry climb into my top five, even though I am no fan of the owner, Donald Trump, who bought the course for a reported £60million in 2014.
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Trump has since spent around £200million more on improvements to the course and the 204 bedroom hotel.
It was renamed the Trump Turnberry, and there will be more millions splashed out over the winter upgrading the seventh and eighth holes.
Having seen the proposals for the new layout, they will definitely make the course even better. But still, £1,000?
That is more than three times what you would pay to play the course often voted the world’s finest, Royal County Down (not everyone thinks Pine Valley is the best!) and my own favourite, Royal Birkdale. Both would set you back £300.
As a 14 handicapper I was happy to break 90 at Turnberry. I shot 88, which works out at around £11.36 a shot. I’ve played decent courses that cost less than that for 18 holes – although not recently!
The official line from Trump Turnberry is that they don’t actually expect golfers to pay those prices.
It is part of a ‘cunning plan’ to make people stay at the hotel, and maybe fork out to use the spa and restaurants – rather than hog the best times, play 18, and hit the road.
General manager Nic Oldham explained: “A lot of our business is from golf tour operators.
“But they were calling me and saying their customers only wanted to play here in the mornings, then head over to St Andrews and play there in the afternoon.
“And we were saying we can’t do that for such high numbers of people. We need you to stay – but if you don’t want to use the hotel, then basically you have to pay a premium rate.
“The reason we chose £1,000 is because next year the cost of playing the Ailsa after 1pm will be £545, up from £495.
“Our bedrooms are £500. Put them together, and you’ve got the £1,000, or just over. So if you’re willing to pay that to come here, why not play after 1pm and treat it as a free night in a five star hotel?
Turnberry's stunning par three 9th
Even before the planned improvements to seven and eight, the stretch of holes from 4-11 at Turnberry is widely regarded as the equal of anything in golf. No arguments here.
For anyone who is yet to see the par three ninth, get there if you can. You don’t even have to pay the £1,000 green fee, or even one of the cheaper options – there is a footpath leading to the lighthouse perched at the end of the hole.
It plays a whopping 248 yards from the back tee, which is perched on a small outcrop of rock jutting into the Firth of Clyde. The view from there is sensational. But unless you are a scratch golfer – or better – collect your clubs and walk to one of the other tees.
The 187 yards tee shot from the whites is still a stern test – especially if it’s windy – and the 168 yards form the yellows is no picnic either.
And while you’re there, you can decide whether you want to stay a night in the iconic lighthouse. The upper part has been converted into a luxurious two bedroom suite, while the halfway house is on the lower floor.
The lighthouse is the most popular accommodation option offered by Turnberry – even at £2,000 a night.
So that’s a cool ten grand for the ultimate package – a round of golf at £1,000, a bottle of wine at £7,000, and £2,000 to stay the night. Sweet. If you can afford it!
“The big problem was our members and corporate members were finding it hard to get a morning tee time.
“That can be annoying, especially as our top corporate packages cost £34,000 – which gets you 120 rounds on the Ailsa, 24 bedrooms and 48 rounds on our second course.
“Those members are entitled to expect tee times at peak periods.”
But even though the £1.000 round was brought in to deter the hit-and-run golfers, It has not worked. Not completely anyway.
It seems some people have more money than sense.
Oldham added: “Surprisingly perhaps, we have actually had quite a few bookings at that premium price – which shows that there are people who think if you’ve got the money, then it’s worth it to play such an iconic course.
“But we are talking about ‘real’ wealth here. We had some members from the Trump International course in Florida here recently, and they ordered a £7,000 bottle of wine.
“They spent around £25,000 staying in our suites, and their bar bill for the week was about £50,000. So paying £1,000 to play exactly when they want to isn’t going to worry them much.”
Gulp – £7.000 for a bottle of wine. Maybe £1,000 for 18 holes isn’t so crazy.