Practical Guides
Scottish Golf on Saturday: Which Clubs Actually Let You Play
Several of Scotland's most famous clubs have one thing in common: they don't take visitor bookings on weekends. This is not widely advertised. It is written into the booking terms. Here's which clubs restrict weekend access, which don't, and how to plan a trip that accounts for both.
Several of the most-booked Scottish golf clubs do not take visitors on a Saturday. This is not prominent in most travel coverage, but it is on the clubs' own visitor pages. If you arrive in Scotland on a Saturday planning to play Muirfield, Royal Troon, North Berwick or Prestwick, you will not be playing that day. A number of equally good clubs have no such restriction. Every visitor window below was read off the club's own website in September 2026; clubs change them, so check again before you book.
Why some clubs restrict weekend access
The reason is structural rather than snobbish, at least in most cases. Private clubs use weekends for member competitions — medal rounds, monthly trophies, club championships. Opening tee times to visitors on Saturdays would displace members from the course they pay an annual subscription to use. The compromise most private clubs reach is weekday visitor access with member-priority weekends.
In practice this means: the clubs that are hardest to book, most prestigious, and most likely to appear on a visitor's target list are the ones most likely to have weekend restrictions. A golfer who builds a Scottish golf trip around famous names and then books accommodation to arrive on a Friday has created a problem.
The solution is simple but requires knowing which list each club is on before you book.
Clubs that restrict weekend access
Muirfield — Tuesdays and Thursdays only.
Muirfield is the strictest on this list. Its visitor page gives the visitor days as Tuesdays and Thursdays, excluding public holidays — two days a week, full stop. The green fee is £395 for 18 holes in the 2026 season, with lower winter rates (£150–£395 across the year). A handicap is required.
The season books up far ahead through fixed application windows, and the club's page said 2026 was fully booked from mid-April to October. If you want to play Muirfield, it is a Tuesday or a Thursday, applied for in the diary window. Full visitor protocol on our Muirfield guide and course page.
Royal Troon Old Course — Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Royal Troon's visit page lists visitor tee times on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays — no Wednesday, Friday or weekend. The Old Course is £250–£395 and the Portland £135 in 2026. The club's visitor information gives a handicap requirement of 20 for men and 30 for women.
If you want to play Royal Troon, it is one of those three weekdays. The club said in September 2026 that limited 2026 tee times remained and were not shown on the online system — contact the bookings team. Full detail on our Royal Troon course page.
North Berwick West Links — no visitors on Friday or Saturday.
North Berwick is a members' club. Its visitor information gives visitor times from 1 March to 30 November 2026 of 11.00am to 2.30pm Monday to Thursday and 12 noon to 3.30pm on Sunday, with no visitors on Friday or Saturday. The green fee is £220–£320 by season.
So a Sunday round is possible; a Saturday one is not. Full detail on our North Berwick West Links course page.
Prestwick Golf Club — no visitors on Saturday.
Prestwick's visitor page lists Saturday as members only, with visitor tee times on every other day, including Sunday late morning and mid-afternoon. The green fee is £175–£380 by day and season. The club says it would prefer a recognised handicap but welcomes regular golfers who know the etiquette and can get round in good time.
Prestwick is one of the founding clubs of the Open Championship — the first Opens were played here. Our Prestwick course page covers the current booking process.
Clubs that welcome visitors at weekends
Carnoustie Championship — weekends available.
Carnoustie Golf Links is a public trust, not a private club, and weekend tee times for visitors are bookable online. The Championship course is £249–£360 in 2026 (April to high season). A handicap certificate is required.
This is the most important distinction in Scottish golf access: trust-managed courses (Carnoustie, the St Andrews Links Trust) operate on a public-access model. Prestigious, yes. Ballot for the Old Course, yes. But weekends are not off-limits. Our Carnoustie Championship course page covers the booking window.
Royal Dornoch Championship — £200–£360.
Royal Dornoch is a private club with a large visitor operation; book via royaldornoch.com and check the visitor times for the day you want. Green fee £200–£360 by season (2026/27). Summer dates go quickly.
Our Royal Dornoch course page covers seasonal pricing.
Gullane No. 1 — weekend rate published.
Gullane publishes a separate weekend green fee for the No. 1 course — £285–£325 covers weekday to weekend in 2026 — so weekend visitor rounds are on sale; book via gullanegolfclub.com or phone the club. Gullane Golf Club runs three courses, so an East Lothian weekend has options beyond the No. 1.
Our Gullane No. 1 course page covers the full picture.
Western Gailes — weekend afternoons, limited Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Western Gailes is the one that catches people out in the other direction. Its visitor page lists full visitor windows on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, afternoon slots on Sunday (2.30pm–4pm) and on Saturday from May to September (3pm–4.30pm), and only a one-hour afternoon window on Tuesday and Thursday from April to September. The green fee is £95–£335 by season in 2026, with Saturdays at the top of the range.
So a weekend round is possible, but late in the day. Book by phone: 01294 311649. Our Western Gailes course page has the full visitor detail.
Turnberry Ailsa — weekends available.
Turnberry is a resort; visitor access including weekends is the point. Green fee £425–£1000 by season, with discounts for resort guests. No ballot.
The green fee is the highest on this list, but the access is the simplest. Our Turnberry Ailsa course page covers the current pricing.
How to plan a trip that includes restricted clubs
The practical rule: if your target list includes Muirfield, Royal Troon, North Berwick or Prestwick, build your itinerary around their visitor days and use Saturday for the courses that take weekend visitors.
An East Lothian example:
- Saturday: Gullane No. 1 (weekend rate published, book ahead)
- Sunday: North Berwick West Links (Sunday afternoon visitor window) or Dunbar
- Tuesday or Thursday: Muirfield (only if your diary application was accepted)
An Ayrshire example:
- Saturday: Dundonald Links or Troon Municipal Darley, or a late Western Gailes slot in summer
- Sunday: Prestwick (Sunday visitor times) or Turnberry Ailsa
- Monday, Tuesday or Thursday: Royal Troon
The error to avoid is arriving in Scotland for a weekend trip and attempting to book famous names on arrival. The clubs on the restricted list do not make exceptions.
For the full course detail on any club above, the course page covers current green fees and the club's own booking links.
About the author
The Birdie Brae editor
Editor and founder of Birdie Brae. Based in Glasgow, 12.7 handicap, playing since late 2021. Has played 20+ Scottish courses and started this site because most Scottish golf content is written by people trying to sell you a package holiday.
More about the editor →Courses in this article
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