For a links of impeccable charm and character, look no further than the West Links at North Berwick, a course that should be included in any list of the British Isles’ most elite. Hard by the sea, the course is criss-crossed by ancient stone walls, with beguiling little burns snaking their way throughout, and is home to some of golf’s most imitated holes, such as the famous par-3 15th, “Redan.” Our favorite is the 13th, “The Pit,” a short par-4 with the green set diagonally from the fairway, bordered by one of the ancient walls. You must play to the left of the fairway off the tee to have a proper angle in, otherwise you come directly over the wall and can’t hold the green. If you miss the green to the right, you may have no shot as you again have to pitch over the wall. In fact, the only way in may be to pull out the putter, aim 90 degrees away from the flag, and bank it off of the opening in the wall, the entranceway to the green! This is the kind of hole you come to Scotland to play! Speaking of greens, you simply won’t believe the undulations in the 16th, two high shelves separated by a huge six-foot dip. Blind shots, shared fairways, the course starting and finishing in the middle of town, each hole is its own unique volume in an encyclopedia of the vagaries of links golf, existing until now only in your wildest dreams!