From the first tee you are presented with a straightforward par 4 with light rough left and right. The most obvious feature of this hole is the steep incline all the way up to the green. A good drive will leave a medium to long iron to a raised green which will gather approaches which are slightly right but will repel anything missing on the left-hand side. The putting surface is fairly level but a fall from the right develops towards the back of the green.

Club selection is vital on the second shot, more often than not take one more club than you first considered

Having caught your breath following the climb to the second tee, prepare to have it taken away again by the stunning views of the Scottish coast and the Antrim Plateau and by the sight of Cairndhu’s signature hole. On the tee you are almost 100 metres above the Famous Antrim Coast Road and facing a shot from an elevated tee to a long narrow green that falls away sharply to the left to light rough and is bunkered on the front right-hand side. The club selection is vital and is totally dependent on the weather. Depending on the direction of the wind a player could hit anything from a lob wedge to a one iron. Having safely found the putting surface the only significant borrow is from the left edge to the centre of the green.

Have the courage of your convictions, especially into the wind – hit the ball better, not harder, and use the slope to the right of the green to gather the ball.

The tee shot off the edge of the cliff at this tough par 4 is the key. It is a blind carry of approximately 130 metres over rough, gorse and rocks to a fairway on which the further you hit the ball the more it will be thrown down the slope and into light rough. There is plenty of room to the left (light rough, a few fir trees and the 1st fairway). The second shot is not exactly plain sailing to a green significantly below you which is protected to the left and right by large bunkers. Once on the green the break from back-right to front-left is fairly obvious.

From the tee, keep left of centre.

The fourth takes you back up the hill and despite its obvious lack of length can be a very challenging hole. With quickly maturing trees coming into play both left and right the premium is on accuracy from the tee. The green sits on a ledge and any shot missing to the right is thrown swiftly down the steep hill and invariably leads to a dropped shot. The ridge round the right side of the green can act as a cushion and help control an approach. The green falls from the left, more noticeably at the front and left of the green.

Always be aware of where the flag is when trying to place your drive, if you get caught on the right side of the fairway with the flag on the right side of the green it is almost impossible to get close.

Enjoy another great view of Drains Bay, Larne and Islandmagee from the tee box but don’t let it distract you from the matter in hand. Being all downhill this hole very rarely plays its full length. A good drive will probably reach the ridge in the fairway and possibly further. It is vital that the player stays out of the willows to the left and the fir trees to the right. Having achieved this the second shot is not totally straightforward as both confidence and control will be needed to find the putting surface. Having found the putting surface the green slopes from front to back and off to the left.

Try to place your drive down the right of the fairway as the ball will shoot both left and forward into the centre of the fairway.

A good pitch-hole to a generous green that falls to light rough to the left and to a shallow bunker to the right. The main protection for this hole is the two copses of trees at either side of the green after which the hole is named. A small mound on the front right of the green can cause problems when pitching and putting, other than this area the green generally falls from right to left.

Club selection is important here, as is nerve; a shot into this green will hold even in the height of the summer, if it is hit properly!

This is another good driving hole with twin chestnut trees to the left and a small forest to the right. Having negotiated these obstacles and light rough both left and right, the second shot is a short to medium iron to a raised green protected on both sides by large bunkers. The most significant feature of this hole is the green which slopes steeply from back to front and from left to right. Wherever you are on the green, accept two putts and move swiftly on.

If you move the ball from right to left and are worried about the two chestnut trees, take a fairway wood or a rescue club and go over them.

Here you are faced with a blind tee shot over a hill with out of bounds most of the way up the hole. At approximately 220 metres the hole crosses the club's access lane and turns sharply left. Position off the tee is critical with the big-hitters opting to drive over the out of bounds to leave a more simple approach shot. Those who take the more conventional route face a second shot with out of bounds left and rough and maturing trees to the right. The natural contours short of the green throw everything off to the left and often into a cavernous bunker beside the green. Once on the putting surface the problems continue as the green offers a wide range of pin-placings, each with its own difficulties. No wonder this is stroke index 1.

Quite simple, don’t even think about taking on the corner unless you are sure you can make the carry, a great risk and reward shot.

A short par 4 and a genuine birdie opportunity, a good drive just left of the big tree will leave only a flick to a generous two-tier green protected left and right by bunkers. The only real problem on this hole is the out of bounds in Meadowbank and the car park to the right. Once on the green the lower tier slopes mainly from right to left but the upper tier has many hard to read subtle breaks.

Avoid going right at all costs, you can’t pick up a shot from out of bounds. Before playing check the pin placement on the green and try to place your tee shot to the side giving you the best angle to the flag.

Don’t be distracted by the beauty of Ballygally Bay because this hole requires total concentration. It is a difficult hole in its own right and marks the beginning of Cairndhu’s own “Amen Corner”. The tee shot is one of the hardest on the course with trees and rough on both sides and a fairway that slopes left to right. The second shot is not much easier as anything short will bounce away to the right. The only good news is that there is a gathering bank to the left and at the back of the green. The putting surface slopes from back to front and from left to right.

Don’t be afraid to hit something other than a driver here. If you hit a fairway wood or a long iron straight use it, hitting the fairway is very important on this hole.

This is without a doubt the hardest of the four pitch holes, a genuine par 3.5. Most will need a wood to reach the green which is protected by two bunkers 10 metres short of the green on either side. Not content with these hazards there is a hedge of fir trees and out of bounds less than 5 metres to the right of the green. A committed tee shot of extreme precision is the only way to find the green. The green itself is fairly flat and does not present too many problems.

This is a very difficult par 3, do not get uptight if you take 4, most of the field will be doing the same.

It is hard to describe the challenge of this hole in words. From the competition tee you face a shot over a valley of light rough to an up sloping fairway. The entire right-hand side of the hole is lined with gorse, beautiful to look at when in bloom, not so nice to take a penalty drop out of! On the left hand-side is light rough, trees and more clumps of gorse. If the tee shot finds fairway the second shot is blind and can be anything from a fairway wood to a long iron over the hill to a small green. The green is guarded by one bunker and two hawthorn trees to the left, the previously mentioned gorse closes to a few metres on the right of the green. The green is fairly flat with a mild break from right to left.

If you are worried that you can’t reach the green with your second, don’t try, you’ll only try to force it and put it into real trouble. Play short and go for the pitch and putt par.

This is the last and shortest of the four pitch-holes. From the tee set back into the trees, an accurate tee shot is essential to a long narrow two-tiered green that slopes off to the right throwing any shot in that direction further right. To the left and eating into the green is a deep and punishing bunker in which many cigars have been lit. The length of the green provides a great range of pin-placings and there is almost two clubs difference from front to back. The putting surface is extremely difficult to read with many obvious and subtle borrows. If you walk off this green with figures anywhere near to par for the last four holes, buy yourself a drink when you finish - you’ve earned it!

If the pin is at the back of the green take enough club to take the bunker out of play.

A bit of respite here in the form of an up-hill par 5 which for the bigger hitters is definitely reachable and a genuine birdie chance for most. From the competition tee the main problems are a plantation of mature trees to the right, light rough and maturing trees to the left and a bunker on the left hand side of the fairway. The fairway itself slopes right to left and is lined to the green with trees on both sides. Two more protective bunkers are to be found about 20 metres short of the putting surface. Having negotiated all of this the green is small with a bank to the rear and right, it falls away to the left into light rough. Not many obvious swings on this green except for a general right to left break.

This green can be reachable in 2 (dependent on the wind) but usually only from the fairway so give the tee shot your maximum attention, anything beside or past the bunker gives you a realistic chance.

This is another very good driving hole with fir trees lining the left-hand side of the fairway and light rough and out of bound lurking to the right. The trouble on the right is heightened by the fact that the fairway falls to the right. A good line off the tee is the television mast in the distance. For most players, the second shot is blind following the slight dog-leg left over the hill dropping down to a green that falls away to the right and left and even more severely to the rear, all of which makes it a difficult target to hit. Once on the green, the borrows are not that obvious but again there is a general fall from right to left.

Again the tee shot is important, but before hitting your shot to the green take time to walk forward to find the pin, take line from a tree or a point you will be able to see when playing your shot.

The tee-box presents you with a blind drive up to a plateau fairway. The best guidance is to aim just left of the telegraph pole on the fairway, anything right of this will be thrown right off the slope into light rough and may be punished by a lone hawthorn tree. Getting the ball on to the plateau may not be enough as there are fir and willow trees all along the left-hand side of the fairway and two shallow bunkers on the left edge of the fairway. Having found the fairway the second shot should be fairly short into a green that very obviously slopes left to right and can present its fair share of putting woes. This is a birdie opportunity that all too often can become a bogey.

Get your tee shot onto the level fairway if at all possible, from there feed the ball into the flag using the contours of the green. Again, think ahead by checking the pin placement when playing the 14th.

This is the longest hole on the course - almost a double dog-leg with out of bounds running the whole length of the right-hand side. A well struck drive combined with the contours of the fairway should reach the flat of the fairway and leave a second shot either over the two bunkers and on to fairway or, for the more adventurous, one over the left hand fir trees on the angle of the turn and up to a flat area just short of the green. The green is long and narrow and is well protected by a bunker short left, a copse of mature trees to the right and a bank of gorse to the left, so if approaching from any distance this can be a scary proposition. The putting surface mainly falls from left to centre with more hard to read breaks on the right-hand side.

With out of bounds down the right, you can “bale out” down the 14th fairway; this can often provide an inviting line into the green and is known locally as the short line with the long second.

The last hole is again short in length, placing a great premium on the player to think their way home. Many big hitters in the past have tried to drive the green only to find one of the five bunkers that guard the green or, worse, have crossed the out of bounds fence that sits only a few metres to the right of the green. So if anyone decides to take this shot on, don’t say you weren’t warned! Assuming the tee shot finds the fairway short of all the bunkers, the second shot is very short but, depending on the pin placement, no less difficult. A recently enlarged green allows for great variation of placing with the far right being the most devious. The green is full of subtle breaks and borrows and three putting is not uncommon. It is amazing how often this innocuous looking 269 metres can spoil a good score.

If you are going well don’t be badgered by your playing partners to go for the green if you want to be more conservative. If you need a four, get it whatever way you can; if you need a three, go for it! Above all, always play your own game.