A Journal for the Thrifty Gowfer
★ Caddies in Scotland ★
Scotland is the home of the caddie tradition — the only professional walk in golf older than the rules of the game itself. How it actually works on a Tuesday morning in 2026 is a different matter; this page is for the visitor who would like to know the fee, the tip, and the small etiquette of an arrangement that outlasts most marriages.
How it actually works
At a Scottish links club with a working caddie shed, the system has not changed materially since about 1900. The caddie master books carriers against tee times, allocates by experience and by request, and runs the badge system that determines who is first on the rota the next morning. Fees are paid to the caddie master at sign-out; tips are paid to the caddie at the 18th green.
For visitors, the moving parts are the booking lead time (some clubs allow 24 hours; the famous links want a week or more), the fee tier (£60–£90 per round in 2026 across most of the country), and the customary tip (£20 for a standard round, more if the caddie has worked particularly hard or the round has been particularly memorable). The directory below carries this for every course in the data set; the articles below it carry the broader context.
We do not name caddies who have not asked to be named. The articles in this cluster that draw on real caddie shed interviews are attributed to the caddie master rather than individual carriers; visitors should ask the caddie master by name and let the assignment fall as it falls.
From the cluster
Practical guide
A letter on the Scottish caddie tradition — who they are, what they do, what to pay, and the small etiquette of a relationship that is older than the modern game.
Field Notes
Field notes from a working caddie shed at a major Scottish links — sign-in at six in the morning, the badge system, the way the rota rotates, evening reconciliation. The bit visitors never see.
Manual
The honest mechanics of hiring a Scottish caddie — when to book, what to pay, the tip, the etiquette of the relationship. For visitors who would like to know the answers before they tee off.
Letter
After fifteen years of Scottish golf trips, the caddies I most want to draw aren't on the Old Course rota. A contrarian letter on the case for the small-club regular over the big-club rotation.
Almanac
The honest economics of Scottish caddying — fee tiers, the seasonal cycle, what a year on the bag looks like in numbers, why most caddies have a second income, and the tax position.
The directory
Sourced from the courses' own published terms; verify on the day before you tee off. The richest data lives on the top 30 high-traffic course pages.
| Course | Region | Fee | Tip | Booking | Lead |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Archerfield Fidra Links | East Lothian | £75 | £20 | Phone | 14d |
| Brora Golf Club | Sutherland | £55 | £15 | Phone | 3d |
| Carnoustie Championship Course | Carnoustie | £80 | £20 | Online | 14d |
| Castle Stuart Golf Links | Moray Firth | £75 | £20 | Online | 7d |
| Crail Balcomie Links | East Neuk | £60 | £15 | Phone | 3d |
| Cruden Bay Golf Club | Aberdeenshire Coast | £70 | £20 | Phone | 7d |
| Dundonald Links | Ayrshire Open Coast | £70 | £20 | Online | 7d |
| Elie (Golf House Club) | East Neuk | £65 | £15 | Phone | 3d |
| Gleneagles King's Course | Perthshire | £75 | £20 | Online | 7d |
| Gleneagles PGA Centenary | Perthshire | £75 | £20 | Online | 7d |
| Gullane No. 1 | East Lothian | £75 | £20 | Phone | 7d |
| Kingsbarns Golf Links | St Andrews | £75 | £20 | Online | 14d |
| Lundin Golf Club | East Neuk | £60 | £15 | Phone | 3d |
| Machrihanish Dunes | Kintyre | £65 | £15 | Phone | 7d |
| Machrihanish Golf Club | Kintyre | £60 | £15 | Phone | 7d |
| Muirfield (The Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers) | East Lothian | £80 | £20 | Phone | 30d |
| North Berwick West Links | East Lothian | £70 | £15 | Phone | 7d |
| Prestwick Golf Club | Ayrshire Open Coast | £75 | £20 | Phone | 14d |
| Royal Aberdeen (Balgownie Links) | Aberdeen Coast | £75 | £20 | Phone | 14d |
| Royal Dornoch Championship Course | Sutherland | £75 | £20 | Online | 14d |
| Royal Troon Old Course | Ayrshire Open Coast | £80 | £20 | Phone | 14d |
| St Andrews Castle Course | St Andrews | £75 | £20 | Online | 7d |
| St Andrews Jubilee Course | St Andrews | £75 | £20 | Online | 14d |
| St Andrews New Course | St Andrews | £75 | £20 | Online | 14d |
| St Andrews Old Course | St Andrews | £80 | £25 | Online | 14d |
| The Machrie | Islay | £65 | £15 | Phone | 14d |
| The Nairn Golf Club | Moray Firth | £70 | £20 | Phone | 7d |
| The Renaissance Club | East Lothian | £80 | £20 | Phone | 14d |
| Trump Turnberry (Ailsa) | Ayrshire Open Coast | £80 | £20 | Online | 14d |
| Western Gailes Golf Club | Ayrshire Open Coast | £65 | £15 | Phone | 7d |
A note on tipping
Tipping in the UK and Ireland is not as automatic as in the US. The amounts shown above reflect customary post-round gratuity for a satisfactory round at the named courses, not a service charge. Caddies do not expect tips proportional to the green fee; they expect a fair tip for an honest round, and a generous one when the round was memorable. £20 is the working baseline; £30–£50 for a long, hard, well-read round is appreciated but never demanded.