The course is laid out opposite the Devlin course and is made up of two loops, with the first moving around the hotel and the second playing nearer to the water’s edge. The course does have the look and feel of a modern links and with no golf carts allowed, it is a walkers dream. The style of the bunkering and fescue grasses provide great contrast and give the new course a more mature look. Although the Devlin may be marketed as more spectacular, the Torrance course can more than hold its own, with gorgeous vistas of the water and the town of St. Andrews on display throughout most of the course. The now famous photo of the 17th hole with the water behind and the town in the distance is fast becoming on of the more recognizable photos in golf.

The course does not wait long to get the golfer to grit their teeth, with a challenging 211-yard par- three third hole. The long shot must play over a meandering creek that gets quite close to the front left portion of the green, while the right is flanked by a tough greenside bunker. The common theme throughout the course is the ability to run the ball into the greens and despite the stream that is still very possible here. The right front of the green is open and while it tempts the golfer to bail out to the bunker, it does allow for a running shot.

The fifth hole offers the variety that is often lacking on modern courses – a short par four. Reminiscent of the great short holes in Scotland, strategy must dictate the golfers approach. The split fairway offers the chance for the golfer to leave a short pitch, however this requires the drive to thread two bunkers and the pitch to be played over a bunker to the shallow portion of the green. The ideal play is actually to hit a long drive down the left side, and although it is the longer route, it provides the ideal approach to open and deep portion of the green.

The back nine boasts a myriad of interesting holes, but the 11th hole is a favourite, a 176-yard par three. Three bunkers encircle the green and the omnipresent expansive view is as evident as ever as the fields, sea and town blend seamlessly into the background.

Rivaling the 11th for a gorgeous backdrop is the 426-yard par four 14th hole, which plays down towards the water. Fairway bunkers protect the right side, which naturally is the side to favour from the tee. Depth perception is an issue here, as a result of the green’s ability to seemingly fall off into the sea. The 14th is truly beautiful hole that is also one of the courses’ most difficult.

Rebounding from a poor showing on 14 is a difficult task given the follow up, the 221-yard par three 15th. The hole, which hugs the shoreline, plays slightly uphill to a green guarded by three deep bunkers and a rock wall. The large green provides plenty of undulation to make sure that par is no guarantee, even if the golfer manages to find the putting surface. The miss on this hole is over the green, where less trouble lurks, however if the wind is into the golfer that may be easier said than done.

Although the Scots may not be fond of the term “signature hole”, it is hard to describe the 448-yard par-four 17th better. This colossal par four plays down the edge of the sea line and is protected in front of the green by a gulch, which is the coastline’s intrusion. Rock walls guard the edge, but the precipice looms large for any golfer approaching the green from the wide fairway. Avoiding the chasm is not the only hazard, because there is a large bunker short and one small one over the green. Thankfully there is a large bailout area to the left of the green that is a good aiming point. From there, the golfer can certainly have a chance at par on the most difficult hole on the course.

While links courses are always the favoured style of golf in Scotland, few have been built in recent memory. Although the Torrance course is more a links-style, it is able to blend the playing characteristics with the gorgeous scenery that is often missing at the classic courses. Set high above the crashing surf, the views throughout are breathtaking and yet the influences of Scottish golf can be found everywhere, from tee to green. Clearly any designer lending their name to their first project must be somewhat leery, but as Torrance himself described the course that bore his name, the new kid on the block is “awesome”.