North Berwick (West Links)

Overview: At North Berwick Golf Club (West), the links profile for North Berwick Golf Club (West) is listed at 6506 yards and par 71. The directory lists 6,506 yards, while the club's current history gives 6,420 yards for the playing course; that small difference reflects tee and source conventions, not a different routing. The links begins and ends near the town and keeps the sea in view, but its most memorable challenges come from the way local features are made part of the shot. The 13th Pit, the 14th Perfection and the 16th Gate each require a different response to the ground.

History: Organised golf began here when North Berwick Golf Club was formed in 1832 over a small stretch of common land. Only six holes could initially fit between the town and the March Dyke, but the course expanded westward and the final major extension was in place by the end of the nineteenth century. Ben Sayers supervised later changes in 1932, after which the West Links kept its present shape with only measured work to bunkers, tees and putting surfaces. The result is not a single architect's drawing but a long local evolution in which golfers, professionals and the land itself shaped the course. That continuity explains why the links still feels connected to the town rather than built apart from it.

Did You Know? The 13th is called The Pit because the green sits behind a stone wall, while the 15th is a famous Redan-style par three. The 16th Gate has a deep swale running through the green, and the view toward Fidra is often linked with the landscape that inspired Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island.