Under £50
- Girvan — c. £30, eight links holes by the beach with Ailsa Craig views. Walk from town.
- Maybole — 9 holes, the cheapest fee in the council's range; beginners.
- Dalmilling — flat, easy, same band as Girvan.
- Seafield and Fullarton — middle council band.
- Belleisle, Lochgreen and Darley — top council band, still typically under £50 and the best-value quality golf in the county.
- Portpatrick — c. £45 for the clifftop 18; the 9-hole Dinvin is a few pounds.
- Stranraer — £50 summer, £35 after 3pm, £25 in winter; Braid's last course.
£50–£100
- Wigtownshire County — £60 for a true links, £85 day ticket, £180 week ticket.
- Gailes Links — c. £75–80 for a 6,900-yard championship links (verify).
- Kilmarnock Barassie — £75–100 for an Open-qualifying links.
- Prestwick St Nicholas — £90 twilight, £100 in April/October.
- Western Gailes in winter — £95 on weekdays from November to mid-March.
The council season ticket
Golf South Ayrshire's £560 season ticket (2025–26) gives unlimited golf on all eight council courses — Girvan, Maybole, Belleisle, Seafield, Dalmilling, Lochgreen, Darley and Fullarton — plus discounts at nearly 300 reciprocal clubs. For a fortnight's holiday playing every day it can beat paying per round; the pay-as-you-go Flexi membership (credit bought in £50 blocks, rounds costing 5 'points') suits shorter stays. Packages: the Braid Trail (Girvan + Belleisle, three rounds over three days, May–September) and the Troon Links Experience (three Troon courses).
Championship golf for less
The big names discount heavily out of season: Turnberry Ailsa £175 weekdays from mid-November (mats), October £315–360; Prestwick £175–205 November–March; Dundonald £105 November–February, £150 in spring; Western Gailes £95 winter, £190 shoulder. Residents' rates — Prestwick £105 (KA postcodes), Turnberry Bruce £500 fourball and Dundonald from £85 (Scottish residents) — are worth checking if you qualify. Turnberry hotel guests pay £475 on the Ailsa instead of £1,000; if you're set on it, price a one-night stay.
Save on everything else
Stay in Girvan rather than the golf towns; eat at the chip shop; take the train to Ayr (28 min) for the Ayr and Prestwick courses and leave the car. Tuesdays and Wednesdays are quietest almost everywhere.
