Trump’s Twelve Opens at Turnberry: A New Way to Experience One of Scotland’s Great Golf Resorts
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There are golf resorts where the main attraction is a single championship course, and then there is Turnberry.
Already home to the famous Ailsa and King Robert the Bruce courses, Trump Turnberry has expanded its golf offering again with the opening of Trump’s Twelve, a new 12-hole par-three course designed to provide a very different experience from its two full-length links.
Trump’s Twelve officially opened on 10 August 2026, with holes ranging from just 70 yards to a much more demanding 206 yards. The layout includes undulating greens, shaped surrounds, natural wasteland and water hazards, while several teeing positions allow the course to be adjusted for different standards of golfer.
At Hashtag Golf Travel, we think this is a clever addition.
Nobody is travelling to Turnberry and suddenly deciding not to play the Ailsa because there is a new par-three course. That is not its purpose. Instead, Trump’s Twelve fills the spaces around the championship golf: the afternoon after arriving, the morning before heading home, a competitive short-game session between fourballs or simply another reason to keep playing when 18 holes might be a little too much.
And for families, beginners and mixed-ability groups, it opens up a part of the Turnberry golf experience that previously might have felt intimidating.
What is Trump’s Twelve?
Trump’s Twelve has been created on land formerly occupied by the Arran Course and was designed by Trump Turnberry’s in-house team, led by Director of Golf Courses and Estates Allan Patterson.
Every hole is a par three, but that does not mean golfers will simply hit the same wedge twelve times.
Distances stretch from 70 to 206 yards, creating a genuine mixture of short wedges, mid-irons and longer approaches depending on the tees selected and the wind. The design incorporates rolling putting surfaces, contoured green surrounds, wasteland areas and strategically positioned water, giving each hole its own challenge.
Multiple teeing grounds make the layout adaptable. A beginner can play from a comfortable distance while a low-handicap golfer can move farther back and face a completely different shot.
Artificial tee-lines using SYNLawn Tee Strike+ technology have also been installed, providing an alternative teeing surface when conditions require it.
The visitor green fee was listed at £120 per round at launch, although, as with all golf pricing, we would recommend checking the latest rate when planning a trip.
Why we think a 12-hole course makes sense at Turnberry
Short courses are sometimes dismissed as something to play only when there is not enough time for a “proper” round.
We think that misses the point.
Trump’s Twelve could become one of the most enjoyable parts of a Turnberry golf break precisely because it does not demand another four or five hours on the course.
Imagine arriving at the hotel in the early afternoon. There might not be enough daylight or energy for the Ailsa, but twelve par threes followed by dinner sounds considerably more appealing than simply sitting around waiting for the next morning’s tee time.
The same applies on departure day.
Rather than checking out, loading the clubs into the car and heading straight home, golfers could potentially squeeze in one final competition before leaving Ayrshire.
It also lends itself brilliantly to group formats.
Nearest-the-pin competitions, match play, team games and small wagers suddenly become very easy to organise when every hole begins with an approach shot.
And anyone who has spent an entire golf holiday confidently explaining that their handicap would be much lower “if the short game was better” now has twelve consecutive opportunities to prove it.
A serious place to improve your scoring
Trump’s Twelve is also part of the wider Trump Turnberry Golf Academy, rather than operating simply as another recreational course.
The Academy already includes a TrackMan driving range, indoor TrackMan iO simulator bays, SAM PuttLab analysis, high-speed video technology, professional coaching and dedicated putting and short-game facilities.
Adding an actual short course gives coaches somewhere to take those lessons onto the golf course.
There is a big difference between hitting wedges repeatedly from a perfect practice lie and standing on a tee knowing there is water beside the green and only one ball counts.
That is where Trump’s Twelve should become especially useful for golfers taking lessons or Academy packages. Distance control, trajectory, club selection, bunker play, putting and recovery shots can all be practised in realistic scoring conditions.
For more experienced golfers, we would consider incorporating Trump’s Twelve into a coaching break rather than seeing it purely as entertainment.
Spend time using TrackMan, work on wedge distances with a PGA professional and then take that information straight onto twelve par threes.
It is difficult to hide from your weaknesses when every hole begins with the part of the game you are trying to improve.
Beginners can experience Turnberry without facing an Open Championship course
There is another reason we like the concept.
Turnberry is one of golf’s great names, but that can make the resort feel daunting to somebody who has only recently started playing.
The Ailsa Course has hosted The Open four times, including the famous 1977 “Duel in the Sun” between Tom Watson and Jack Nicklaus. It is currently ranked second in Golf World’s Top 100 Courses for 2026 and remains one of the most celebrated championship links in Scotland.
For an experienced golfer, that history is exactly why you want to play it.
For a beginner, it can sound terrifying.
Trump’s Twelve gives newer golfers somewhere far more approachable to experience the resort, practise proper on-course golf and enjoy the same wider facilities without immediately facing several hours of championship links.
That could work particularly well for couples where only one person plays regularly.
One partner can tackle the Ailsa while the other has a lesson or uses the Academy, before the pair play Trump’s Twelve together later in the trip.
That is a much more inclusive golf holiday than simply asking the non-golfer to find something else to do for five hours.
Families and juniors should get plenty from it too
The same thinking applies to younger golfers.
A full championship round can be a long day for a child who is still learning the game. Twelve shorter holes provide a more manageable introduction while still giving them the feeling of playing a genuine golf course rather than staying permanently on a practice ground.
Turnberry already has the Wee Links Pitch & Putt and Cairngorms Putting Green alongside its Academy facilities, so Trump’s Twelve effectively creates another step in the progression from first experiencing golf to eventually tackling the main courses.
That makes the resort increasingly interesting for golfing families.
A parent might play the Ailsa one morning, everyone plays Trump’s Twelve together in the afternoon and the next day is spent away from golf entirely.
Not every family holiday needs to become a 36-holes-a-day endurance test.
The Ailsa remains the headline act
As much as we like the idea of Trump’s Twelve, there is no pretending that golfers travel to Turnberry primarily for twelve par threes.
The Ailsa remains the course around which most trips will be built.
Originally designed by Willie Fernie and shaped by several architects over the decades, the course has undergone significant modern work from Martin Ebert. Further enhancements were completed in 2025, including the relocation of the seventh green towards the shoreline, changes to the eighth and additional work across holes 12 to 17.
The Ailsa is shaped by firm-running ground, coastal winds, bunkering and the changing views across the Firth of Clyde.
Its most famous stretch passes Turnberry Lighthouse, with the ninth playing dramatically beside the rocky coastline before golfers head into a back nine packed with links character.
The course has hosted four Open Championships and produced one of the most famous finishes in golf history when Tom Watson defeated Jack Nicklaus by one shot in 1977.
For many golfers, playing the Ailsa once is a bucket-list round.
Our advice would be not to rush it.
If you are making the trip, arrive early, use the practice facilities, consider taking a caddie and give yourself time afterwards rather than immediately racing somewhere else.
At Turnberry, the entire day is part of the round.
King Robert the Bruce should not be treated as the ‘second course’
The danger of staying somewhere with a course as famous as the Ailsa is that everything else gets described as the alternative.
That undersells King Robert the Bruce.
The par-72 layout measures up to 7,203 yards and takes golfers through gorse-lined links before climbing onto Bain’s Hill, where several of its strongest holes overlook the Ayrshire coastline, Turnberry Lighthouse and Ailsa Craig.
The eighth plays from an elevated tee above the sea, the ninth drops towards a cliff-edge green and the 11th uses the lighthouse as its visual focal point.
Its origins stretch back to a second course created by Willie Fernie in 1909. The land was later affected by its use as an airbase during the Second World War before subsequent redesign work by Philip Mackenzie Ross, Donald Steel and Martin Ebert. The current King Robert the Bruce identity followed Ebert’s 2017 redesign.
We would absolutely include it on a Turnberry stay.
The ideal first visit is now very straightforward: Ailsa, King Robert the Bruce and Trump’s Twelve.
Three different experiences without changing resort.
Turnberry is becoming a complete golf campus
This is where the opening of Trump’s Twelve becomes more important than the addition of another few holes.
The resort now offers:
The Championship Ailsa Course
King Robert the Bruce
Trump’s Twelve
The Wee Links Pitch & Putt
Cairngorms Putting Green
TrackMan driving-range facilities
Indoor TrackMan iO simulators
Short-game practice areas
PGA instruction and club fitting
The Academy also offers technology including SAM PuttLab and high-speed video analysis.
For us, that changes the conversation from “How many rounds should we book?” to “How do we want to spend the golf days?”
A serious golfer could have a lesson in the morning, play Trump’s Twelve afterwards and then tackle one of the main courses the following day.
A fourball could use the short course to settle the first night’s competition.
Families can mix shorter and longer golf.
And a group that has already played 18 holes still has somewhere entertaining to go if nobody quite wants to call it a day.
That flexibility is valuable on a golf holiday.
Stay at one of Scotland’s most recognisable golf hotels
Turnberry’s hotel remains one of the most recognisable buildings in Scottish golf, sitting high above the courses with views across the Ayrshire coastline.
The resort currently offers 204 guest rooms, alongside suites and self-catering accommodation. Hotel guests also have access to spa facilities, while the wider property includes several restaurants, whisky experiences and leisure activities.
This is another reason Trump’s Twelve makes sense.
Golfers do not have to get back into a minibus every time they want to do something.
The championship courses, Academy, short golf, restaurants and spa are all part of the same resort experience.
For a premium golf break, we think two or three nights works particularly well. It gives golfers enough time to play both main courses without treating the trip like a military exercise, while Trump’s Twelve can fit naturally around arrival, departure or a quieter afternoon.
Build Trump’s Twelve into a wider Ayrshire golf tour
Of course, one of Turnberry’s greatest strengths is what sits beyond the resort gates.
Ayrshire is one of the finest stretches of golfing coastline in Britain.
Royal Troon, Prestwick, Western Gailes, Glasgow Gailes and Dundonald Links can all form part of a longer west-coast itinerary, with VisitScotland highlighting Turnberry, Royal Troon and Prestwick among the area's historic Open Championship venues.
Prestwick hosted the first Open Championship in 1860, while Royal Troon remains one of Scotland’s celebrated championship links.
For a serious golf group, an excellent trip could look something like:
Day 1: Arrive at Turnberry and play Trump’s Twelve
Day 2: Championship Ailsa
Day 3: King Robert the Bruce
Day 4: Prestwick
Day 5: Royal Troon
Day 6: Western Gailes or Dundonald Links
Suddenly the new short course has a very obvious role.
It becomes the appetiser rather than another main course.
There is plenty to do when you put the clubs away
Ayrshire also works well for couples and mixed groups because golf is not the only reason to visit.
One of our favourite nearby options is Culzean Castle & Country Park, a dramatic clifftop estate designed around an 18th-century castle by architect Robert Adam. The 260-hectare property includes woodland, beaches, gardens, cliffs, a swan pond and walking routes along the coast.
It is the sort of place that works perfectly for a half-day away from golf, particularly when travelling as a couple.
The wider Ayrshire coast also lends itself to walking, while the resort itself offers spa facilities, dining and whisky tastings for guests who would prefer to stay closer to the hotel.
This reinforces something we increasingly look for when recommending golf resorts: can somebody who does not want to play every day still have a brilliant trip?
At Turnberry, the answer is yes.
Who will get the most from Trump’s Twelve?
We can see several types of golfer enjoying the new course.
Golf groups will probably turn it into a competition within minutes. Twelve par threes are made for nearest-the-pin contests, match play and deciding who is buying the first round.
Low-handicap golfers can use the longer tees and treat it as serious wedge and iron practice in genuine scoring conditions.
Beginners have somewhere much less intimidating to develop confidence before attempting a full championship course.
Families and juniors get a shorter format that is easier to fit around the rest of the holiday.
Couples with different golfing abilities can finally play something together without one person feeling overwhelmed and the other feeling under-challenged.
And anyone staying at Turnberry now has another reason to keep the clubs out of the travel bag for a little longer.
Our verdict
Trump’s Twelve does not need to compete with the Ailsa.
In fact, trying to compare them misses why the new course is such a good addition.
The Ailsa is the bucket-list round. King Robert the Bruce provides another full championship links challenge. Trump’s Twelve does something completely different.
It makes the golf offering more flexible, more social and more accessible.
At Hashtag Golf Travel, that is what we find most exciting about it.
Not every round on a golf holiday has to involve 18 holes, five hours and a scorecard that has become emotionally difficult to look at by the 14th.
Sometimes twelve beautifully presented par threes, a few friendly bets and a couple of hours working out who actually has the best short game might be exactly what the trip needs.
And when that short course sits beside two of Scotland’s most highly regarded links, an advanced Golf Academy and one of the country’s most famous golf hotels, Turnberry has become an even more complete destination for a dedicated Scottish golf break.
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