New pics show proposed changes to Turnberry’s Ailsa course

There is a winter of change ongoing at Turnberry – with several significant upgrades being made to the acclaimed Ailsa links.

The revered Ayrshire layout is currently closed until spring 2025 as part of a £1m refurbishment led by the renowned architect Martin Ebert.

Ebert, who masterminded the four-time Open venue’s transformation following Donald Trump’s purchase of the resort back in 2014, is back working some more of his magic.

The improvements will be focused around coastal holes seven and eight, which provide the build-up to the famous par-3 ninth on the Ailsa course.

And now, detailed artwork released by Turnberry shows the notable changes that will soon be made to the front-nine.

7th hole before

The par-5 seventh will see the biggest changes, with the fairway sweeping left, playing towards a green that will move from its current location 50 yards inland to sit on the coastline.

“On the new seventh hole, we wanted to utilise the area to the left of the existing green, and to make the most of that by moving the green so it will be right on the coastal edge,” Ebert said. “I think the excitement of playing towards the beach, especially when the golfers reach that green, will be outstanding.

“Everybody loves the setting of Turnberry’s greens and there aren’t many links courses where you have greens right on the cliff edge – so that is very special in its own right.”

7th hole after

The par-4 eighth, meanwhile, will have its tee boxes moved to the right of the new seventh green, straightening the hole to give players a full view from tee to green. The hole’s bunkering will also be reworked, with an existing sand trap on the right side of the fairway filled in and replaced by a new hazard on the left.

8th hole before

“As far as hole eight is concerned, there was always probably a bit of a misgiving about the tee shot, in that when you wanted to have the tee right over on the coastline to give people that experience, the fairway camber didn’t really suit it,” Ebert added.

“So, it made a lot of sense to take advantage of the seventh green, where those eighth tees currently are, and to move them over to the right and produce a much better hole. The tee shot will be far improved with the new alignment, making the hole visually stunning from your first shot to your last.”

8th hole after

Nic Oldham, the general manager at Turnberry, is certainly excited about these changes.

“Our mantra at Trump Turnberry is ‘never settle’ and that is true across all areas of the business,” he added. “There is room for improvement even with one of the world’s best golf courses, and as we continually strive for excellence the Ailsa is no exception.

“We are confident that these changes will make the course even better and players will want to return to experience the newest iteration of this phenomenal layout.”

Photo credit: Trump Turnberry, Mackenzie and Ebert

Ben Parsons joined bunkered as a Content Producer in 2023 and is the man to come to for all of the latest news, across both the professional and amateur games. Formerly of The Mirror and Press Association, he is a member at Halifax Golf Club and is a long-suffering fan of both Manchester United and the Wales rugby team.