A Journal for the Thrifty Gowfer
Scottish Islands
Dale, Gott, Shetland
Plate III — Heathland course — heather-framed, sandy subsoil
Britain's second most northerly 18-hole course, at Dale three miles from Lerwick — midnight golf in the simmer dim, a burn on half the card, and a cottage that is officially part of the course.
Shetland Golf Club describes itself as the second most northernly 18-hole course in Britain — their spelling, their claim, and only their neighbours on Whalsay stand between them and the title. The course runs up the valley at Dale, three miles from Lerwick, 5,562 yards at par 68 with the burn as the defining hazard: it guards the third (named, inevitably, Water Hole), reappears behind the tenth, and is crossed by bridges that the local rules carefully classify as immovable obstructions. A cottage to the right of the ninth is, officially, an integral part of the course.
The club's great sell is June: Midnight Golf is promoted on its own homepage, because in the simmer dim of a Shetland midsummer it simply never gets dark enough to stop. The £15 evening rate after 7pm in summer is the way in — and at the other end of the calendar, two indoor simulators keep a volunteer-run island club playing through the gales.
Visitors book through MasterScoreboard and pay £35 for a full day in season; the hire clubs work on honesty-box cash. The fifteenth, Pegasus, is the longest thing on the card at 452 yards, the views run down Dales Voe, and replies to emails may be slow because everyone involved is a volunteer. It is exactly as good as that sounds.
The Full Scorecard
Fields marked “Contact club” aren’t public-facing in a way we’ve been able to verify. Call the club directly for these — we’ll update the entry when we have it from source.
Conditions This Week
Scored 0–10 for golf — wind, rain, conditions · Full 7-region forecast →
Location
Dale, Gott, Shetland · ZE2 9SBOpen in OpenStreetMap →
Plan This Round
Where to Stay
Hotels, lodges and self-catering near the first tee. Map-style search via Stay22 covering Booking.com, Expedia, Airbnb and Vrbo.
How to Get There
Glasgow (GLA) or Inverness (INV) is 240 minutes away by car. Train + onward taxi works for the carless visitor.
Insure Your Round
Most home contents policies don't cover golf clubs in transit. The picker matches you to the right kind of cover in two minutes.
Played here? Consider
Picked for heathland rounds in Scotland.
Outerwear
Wind off the firth changes club selection two irons. A breathable, fully-waterproof shell that's light enough not to swing in is the single biggest upgrade for Scottish links golf.
Layer
Scottish-made merino — the locals' choice for shoulder-season rounds. Warm enough for a 7am tee time in October, light enough for the back nine when the sun comes out.
Tech
Handles blind tee shots and exposed-coastal yardage cleanly. Battery lasts a 36-hole day; the wind-direction overlay justifies the price on its own.
Stays Nearby
Hotels, B&Bs and self-catering within easy reach of Dale. Tap any property to check rates.
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Frequently Asked
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