Fortrose & Rosemarkie occupies one of the most extraordinary pieces of links land in Scotland: the Chanonry Point spit on the Black Isle, a slim peninsula projecting into the Moray Firth where the tide funnels resident bottlenose dolphins close enough to the shore that they regularly breach within sight of the 4th tee. The club was founded in 1888 and the course has been variously described as 'the 13th-oldest in the world' — a claim that depends on which definition of 'club' you accept, but no one disputes that the course has been here a long time.
The links runs along both sides of the spit. The seaward holes play with the firth as their boundary; the landward holes play back along the inner shore. The course is short by championship standards (under 6,000 yards from the back tees) but the wind here is almost constant, and the greens are exposed to whatever direction it blows from. The 4th, played alongside the dolphins, is the photographed hole, but the 18th — played back along the spit toward the Chanonry lighthouse — is the better closing hole than most courses three times the price.
The routing on the seaward side plays across tightly-mown links turf with the Moray Firth as the continuous backdrop; the landward return faces across the inner shore of the spit toward the town of Fortrose. The 6th, a short par 3 played directly toward the inner shore, is the simplest-looking hole on the card and often the most vexing — the spit narrows here and the wind crosses without warning. The 10th begins the back nine at the farthest point of the spit with a tee that has views in three directions; on calm days it is one of the most pleasant spots on any golf course in the Highlands.
Visitor green fee is £55–£75 depending on season. The clubhouse is the friendly, no-frills kind; visitors are made welcome, no handicap certificate is required, and the local-knowledge tip from the starter is worth its weight in birdies. Combine with Royal Dornoch (1 hour north) or Castle Stuart (45 min west) for a Highland circuit that does not over-burden the wallet.