The Village at Machrihanish Dunes has something new to crow about in addition to the world’s most natural golf course.
The property recently announced that European golf great and victorious 1989 Ryder Cup Team Member Ronan Rafferty has joined the ranks of Freehold Fractional owners at the Village’s Ugadale Golf Cottages in Machrihanish, Scotland.
The first of several exciting resort real estate offerings being developed at Machrihanish Dunes, the Golf Cottages are two-bedroom luxury accommodations overlooking both the Atlantic Ocean and the famous opening hole at Machrihanish Golf Club, considered by many to be the finest first hole in the world.
“It’s well known that I like to play golf by the sea. I’d seen the pictures, read the articles, it was time to sample the links at Machrihanish Dunes,” said Ronan Rafferty on a recent visit to Machrihanish Dunes.
The ever-affable Rafferty’s passion for the game of golf has entertained fans for decades, and now he is showing that same passion for the David McLay Kidd-designed course at Machrihanish Dunes, and telling the world why he couldn’t resist owning his very own piece of history.
“If other courses have taken 100 years to get where they are today,” said Rafferty. “Machrihanish Dunes is there already. It’s not just the sea spray and the scenery; it’s the fact that every hole has something to offer. My friends and I begged to come back. So I have, as an owner. And so, a cottage by the sea and a fab golf course to wander await. Who needs summertime when you have a links course all year round at your front door?”
The creation of Scottish golf course architect David McLay Kidd, Machrihanish Dunes is the first course ever to have been built on a site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).
Working hand-in-hand with Scottish National Heritage, Kidd and the course’s developers carefully created Machrihanish Dunes in a way that would have the least possible impact on the beautiful natural environment.
Machrihanish Dunes was built without machinery and in a way that hearkens back to the way courses were designed at the turn of the 20th Century, when Old Tom Morris was at work next door at Machrihanish Golf Club designing the famed links course there.
In the near future, plans call for the Village at Machrihanish Dunes to add additional accommodation options and amenities.
The restoration of two historical hotels, the Ugadale Hotel located right next door to the Ugadale Cottages in Machrihanish and the Royal Hotel on Campbeltown Harbour in Campbeltown are slated to open in early 2011 and provide additional luxury rooms and elegant dining options to area visitors.
A grand clubhouse and other real estate options, including single-family holiday homes, are also envisioned for the Village. In the end, The Village at Machrihanish Dunes will offer links golf enthusiasts – and anyone who appreciates the beauty of this unspoiled corner of Scotland – the very best of everything.
Machrihanish Dunes www.machrihanishdunes.com