Our drive to the coastal village of North Berwick took us through charming little towns that brought back memories of my time in England. But we were wowed as we drove up to the Marine North Berwick hotel. It had the feel of a country manor on the sea, with relatives who were actually happy to see you.

The huge picture windows look out over the North Berwick golf course toward the Fife of Forth, with plenty of people strolling or walking their dogs on the course, the ideal Scottish golf hotel experience.

Our first course was Gullane Number One, the oldest, longest and most famous of the three Gullane courses. As we chatted with locals and other golfers, everyone sort of gasped and said, “wow, you’re playing one? That’s the toughest of the three.”

So we were a wee bit intimidated, me especially. I started off as if I’d never golfed before. But overall we thought the course was completely playable and enjoyed it. One of the highlights are the views. Luckily we had a clear day so we could see Edinburgh, Muirfield and Kilspindie, which we were scheduled to play in two days.

By playing Number One, we became club members for a day, so of course we had a drink in the clubhouse before heading off to dinner. We couldn’t leave our clubs at the course because it would be closed before we returned, so we had to carry them with us and leave them at the restaurant. The folks at the Bonnie Badger must see this often, because they stored our clubs without missing a beat.

After a nice dinner, it was back to the hotel for a nightcap. Did I mention we like Scotland?