Arriving to the 3rd tee at Cabot Highlands\u2019s Old Petty course, it\u2019s time to settle in and hit a shot. The course\u2019s toughest par-3 plays downhill to a narrow green with runoffs in every direction and, oh, there\u2019s a 400-year-old castle on the left.<\/p>\n
Castle Stuart, built in 1625 by James Stuart, 1st Earl of Moray, isn\u2019t really in play but demands a few moments to marvel at its architecture, topped by a spire now familiar as the resort\u2019s insignia.<\/p>\n
And one might imagine the good Earl peeking out a westside window to watch some golf on a course that looks like it could have opened in his \u201925, not 2025.<\/p>\n
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Castle Stuart keeps watch over much of Old Petty including directly over the par-3 3rd hole. \/ John Schwarb\/Sports Illustrated<\/p>\n
Old Petty just welcomed preview play earlier this year, but the Tom Doak\/Clyde Johnson creation has the gift of a look belying its age. And getting to experience Scotland\u2019s newest layout, as well as the rest of the Cabot Collection property, made for the best thing I saw in golf this year.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
MORE BEST THINGS: Opening morning at the Ryder Cup<\/a><\/p>\n Cabot <\/a>keeps expanding and one-upping itself, from its first properties in Nova Scotia, Canada, to the Caribbean, to France and Florida and now to a pair of must-plays on the north coast of Scotland.<\/p>\n Cabot acquired Castle Stuart Golf Links in 2022, the 2009 Gil Hanse design that hosted four Scottish Opens (Phil Mickelson won there before capturing the 2013 British Open) and appears regularly on top-100 lists. One standout course is nice but if two creates a destination, then the addition of Old Petty<\/a> now makes Cabot Highlands a worthy addition to the Collection.<\/p>\n I had never taken my golf clubs across the pond\u2014a massive hole in my golf resume\u2014before an invitation to Scotland in September. The trip delivered plenty of stories including a travel-snafu tale. Without going into too much detail, I\u2019ll just say I\u2019m now intimately familiar with Amsterdam\u2019s massive Schiphol airport.<\/p>\n Not massive is the airport in Inverness, Scotland, the kind where you deplane via staircase to the tarmac to baggage claim and to ground transportation with about as many steps as required for a long par-3. My plane touched down long after sunset but I was in my bedroom within a half-hour, thanks to the small airport and Cabot Highlands just 10 minutes away.<\/p>\n The Golf Lodge is a convenient and well-thought-out golf crash pad. \/ John Schwarb\/Sports Illustrated<\/p>\n My home in the resort\u2019s Golf Lodge is the ideal golfer\u2019s crash pad, sitting between the 14th and 15th fairways on Castle Stuart and within walking distance of the clubhouse. Four bedrooms are equipped with dressing rooms and bathrooms with rainfall-style showers, under-floor bathroom heating and electric towel warmers\u2014welcome on days when you come in from a round of notorious Scottish weather. A full kitchen and full living room with floor-to-ceiling windows beg players to wind down after rounds with a beverage, snacks and round recaps.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n