Often considered to be the prettier shorter sibling to the breathtaking Kings course, The Queen course at Gleneagles golf hotel in 2017 underwent a complete overhaul to hark back the original James Braid design and to look but more importantly feel as the course was intended when first opened in 1917.
The Queen course at Gleneagles has inspired with its natural beauty for over a century and with a wealth of history that has gained admission from some of the golfing gods of the game such as Tom Watson, Johnny Miller, Seve Ballesteros, Greg Norman, and Lee Trevino just to name a few.
The Queen course is short in comparison to modern-day designs and holds a Par of 68 and represents an inordinately enjoyable challenge. The holes weave their way through traditional Scottish heathland with masses of heather lining the fairways, which is very reminiscent of how the course would have looked back in the early 1920s. These re-designs back to the original layouts have been welcomed with open arms from the golfing aficionado as they present a far more enjoyable experience. In the 1980s Gleneagles were almost forced in making unnecessary changes to meet the new breed of golfers expectations and Americanising what was previously regarded as one of the prettiest layouts in the whole of Scotland. The works completed in 2017 have ensured that Gleneagles is one of the most desired golf resorts in the world.
The 9th is a James Braid treasure, and a dogleg where driving over the corner offers a considerable risk if you do not quite get all of your drives, the reward if you do manage to pull off a cracking shot from the tee will be just a short iron in rather than a long iron or hybrid if you decide to play hug the left-hand fairway instead.
The highlight of the round on the Queen course is often considered to be the 12th hole. A shot up the right-hand side of the fairway is preferred by most which open up the slight downhill dogleg left. The green is well guarded and leaving an uphill putt is the best way to walk away with a par on this hole.
If you are planning a trip to Gleneagles, we would always encourage you to play all three courses which will give you not only maximum enjoyment but also real respect of some outstanding course architecture and appreciation of the golden age of developing truly breathtaking golf courses.
Gleneagles is still one of the best golf resorts in the whole of the world.
