Bucket ListChampionship Venue

Gleneagles (PGA Centenary Course)

Auchterarder, Perthshire · Designed by Jack Nicklaus (PGA Centenary) / James Braid (King's & Queen's) · Est. 1993

Gleneagles is the grande dame of Scottish golf resorts — a five-star hotel set high in the Perthshire hills, with the Ochils and the Grampians on the horizon and three courses across the moorland estate. This is not links golf; it is something rarer in Scotland, a great inland resort, and it has hosted the game's biggest team events.

The headline course is the PGA Centenary, designed by Jack Nicklaus — who called it "the finest parcel of land I have ever been given to work with" — and the venue for the 2014 Ryder Cup, when Europe beat the United States, and the 2019 Solheim Cup. It is a big, modern, American-style championship course of more than 7,200 yards. But many regulars prefer the two classics: the King's and Queen's, both laid out by the five-time Open champion James Braid and opened in 1919, are masterpieces of strategic moorland golf that wind through heather and silver birch.

With its spa, restaurants and country pursuits, Gleneagles is the most complete golf-resort stay in Scotland — an hour from both Edinburgh and Glasgow, and a natural break between the cities and the Highlands.

Holes worth knowing

118th, PGA Centenary (par-5) — the Ryder Cup finishing hole, a reachable par-5 framed by grandstands in 2014 and built for drama. Nicklaus shaped the closing stretch to decide matches.

Highlights

2014 Ryder Cup & 2019 Solheim Cup venue (PGA Centenary)
Three courses — Nicklaus's PGA Centenary and Braid's 1919 King's & Queen's
Scotland's most complete five-star golf resort

Good to know

→Three very different courses on one estate: play the King's (James Braid's moorland classic) as well as the PGA Centenary — many regulars rate the King's the better course.
→It is a destination resort with a spa, several restaurants and country pursuits (falconry, shooting, an equestrian school) — ideal for a mixed group or a non-golf partner.
→Gleneagles sits an hour from both Edinburgh and Glasgow and on the way to the Highlands, making it a natural hub or a break between regions.
→It has its own railway station on the main line, so you can even arrive by train.
→The PGA Centenary hosted the 2014 Ryder Cup and the 2019 Solheim Cup; the five-star Gleneagles hotel, with its restaurants, spa and country pursuits, is a destination in itself, an hour from Edinburgh and Glasgow.

Visitor Information

Getting There

1h drive

Common questions

Did Gleneagles host the Ryder Cup?

Yes — the 2014 Ryder Cup was played on the PGA Centenary Course, designed by Jack Nicklaus, where Europe beat the United States. Gleneagles also hosted the 2019 Solheim Cup. The PGA Centenary is a big, modern championship course of more than 7,200 yards.

How many courses are there at Gleneagles?

Three on the estate: the PGA Centenary (Jack Nicklaus, the Ryder Cup course) and two classics laid out by five-time Open champion James Braid and opened in 1919 — the King's and the Queen's. Many regulars rate the King's the best of the three.

Is Gleneagles links golf?

No — it is inland moorland and parkland golf, set high in the Perthshire hills rather than on the coast. Gleneagles is Scotland's grandest golf resort, with a five-star hotel, spa and country pursuits, an hour from both Edinburgh and Glasgow and on the way to the Highlands.