Scotland: West Coast & Fife | 6 nights, 7 games

Forever remembered as the birthplace of the Open Championship, Prestwick Golf Club has hosted 24 Opens in all, the last one being 1926, after which the crowds were deemed too large.

Prestwick Golf Club is situated just half an hour south west of Glasgow on the famous golfing Ayrshire coast. A stretch of land unequalled anywhere in the world for prime golfing terrain. Prestwick shares it boundaries with Royal Troon and is just 20 minutes from Turnberry, with Open final qualifying courses such as Kilmarnock Barassie, Glasgow Gailes, Western Gailes and Irvine Bogside all within just 5 minutes drive.

Prestwick Golf Club is a relaxed and friendly club that enjoys hosting golfers from all around the World. Visitors are encouraged to use their temporary membership to its full capacity, and enjoy the full lunch in the lavish Dining room or just a snack in the relaxed Cardinal room.

Founded in 1878 by a few enthusiasts Troon Golf Club soon outgrew its purely local reputation. The Old Course today presents a stern golfing examination and in particular the inward half of Royal Troon is widely accepted as the most demanding of any Course on the Championship rota.

One of the great links courses in Scotland, the Old Course is a challenging test of golfing ability. With the wind to contend with, and deep rough interspersed with gorse and broom, accurate shot making is essential. Players should make their scores on the outward nine, as the prevailing north-westerly wind can make the back nine extremely difficult.

The most junior of Open venues, the Ailsa course at Turnberry is nevertheless one of the best and toughest challenges in championship golf.

Sited between the magnificent Trump Turnberry Resort and the sea, this great course weaves in and out of spectacular dunes that, with Turnberry lighthouse and Ailsa Craig standing over 1200 foot high out at sea, form great backdrops to all of the holes.

The course has recently undergone an extensive renovation with the changing of a number of holes providing even more excitement along the cliffs. In fact the trio of holes 9, 10, 11 rival if not surpass those at Pebble Beach. The iconic Turnberry lighthouse has been transformed into arguably the world's best halfway house providing amazing views at the end of the 9th hole.

Although stretched to over 7,000 yards for Open Championships, the medal course is not one that demands great power for par but rather more care and attention to detail both off the tee and with the approach shots. This course has seen some of the best exhibitions ever in the game, particularly over its closing holes testing the world's greatest players to their limits.

Given its quality, it is difficult to comprehend why the wonderful links at Carnoustie lay virtually undiscovered for so long and why it took until 1931 for it to host its first British Open. Since then, this great links has hosted the Open on six occasions.

Carnoustie Championship course is now in the finest condition it has ever been. Not only does it offer the ultimate challenge to every golfer but it provides a playing quality second to none.

It will provide you with one of the sternest tests of golf in the world - a relatively flat course, Carnoustie's main defences are from the wind and the two burns that run across the links through out, quietly awaiting the shot that is slightly less than perfect.

While its golf origins date back to 1793, the multi-award-winning Kingsbarns Golf Links only opened in the summer of 2000. It immediately established itself as one of the world’s must-play links courses – debuting at 46th on Golf Magazine’s Top 100 Worldwide list.

Since 2001, Kingsbarns has co-hosted the annual European Tour’s elite Dunhill Links Championship along with the Old Course and Carnoustie. Kingsbarns has become a favourite destination for first-time and returning international and UK golf visitors to St Andrews. This reputation is based on a combination of playability, dramatic seaside location, classic links turf and staff dedicated to personal service.

Designed by Kyle Phillips and Mark Parsinen, every hole on this championship standard course offers inspiring views of the North Sea.

Sir Michael Bonallack, Past Captain and Past Secretary of the R&A said of Kingbarns: "Mere words cannot convey just how extraordinary the place is. It must be seen to be believed. And once seen, it will never be forgotten".

Now over 100 years old, the New Course at St Andrews Links is probably the oldest "new" course in the world. Opened in April 1895, the course was built in response to increasing demand for golf at St Andrews, both from locals and from the visitors who were flocking to the town in increasing numbers on the recently constructed railway.

The result is a classic links course with great skill designed to exploit the natural topography. It's built over flat, open-spaced ground with many undulations and depressions. Sandy soil and coarse grasses dominate the course.

Some say that the reputation of the Old Course has caused the magnificence of the New Course to be one of golf's best-kept secrets. Even though it remains one of the oldest and most storied courses in Fife, it's far easier to land a tee time than its more storied neighbour.

The Old Course at St Andrews is a must for all avid golfers, who should make the pilgrimage at least once in their lifetime. This is where it all started – the undoubted Home of Golf.

This traditional links course is the oldest in the world. Its layout is unique and challenging and the sense of history is overwhelming. To tread the turf of St Andrews, where in the 13th century shepherds played a form of golf, is a marvellous experience. The course is known for its 112 bunkers including one of the most famous in golf, the Road Hole bunker at the 17th hole.

A peculiar feature of the layout of the Old Course is the double greens where the outward and inward holes are cut on the same putting surface. These large greens can mean that golfers may be faced with putts of almost 100 yards.