The five-star Gleneagles Resort is home to three heathland golf courses, two of which are James Braid-designed classics from the 1920s: the Kings and Queens courses.

While the 2014 Ryder Cup is set to be played on Gleneagles' modern PGA Centenary Course designed by Jack Nicklaus, resort golfers enjoy the traditional stylings of Braid, complete with large, menacing bunkers set through beautiful Scottish countryside. Gleneagles is also conveniently located less than an hour's drive from St. Andrews making it a favorite on many east Scotland golf tours.

The Queen's Course on the Gleneagles Hotel property has played host to some of the world's golfing greats, as well as a number of celebrities.

Threading through high ridges on the north and west sides of the estate, the Queen's offers beautiful woodland settings, lochans and ditches as water hazards, as well as many moorland characteristics.

At 3,192 yards long, the challenge of the first nine can be deceptive, with even some of the best players finding it a test to make par into a fresh southwesterly breeze.

The PGA Centenary Course, created by Jack Nicklaus at the Gleneagles Hotel property, is a modern classic. Even for a champion and acclaimed golf architect like Nicklaus, the PGA Centenary Course was a challenge. It had to be unique enough to test the greatest players.

The tees are graded at each hole in five stages, including a challenging 6,558 yards from the white markers down to 5,072 from the red. Fittingly, the golf course begins by playing southeast toward the glen, sweeping up the Ochil Hills to the summit of the pass below Ben Shee, which joins it to Glendevon.
A feature of the PGA Centenary Course is the feast of views of the spectacular countryside in which Gleneagles is set. Putting on the two-tier second green, golfers can be distracted by the lush panorama of the rich Perthshire straths. Over the next few holes, the rugged Grampians come into view on the right, then distantly purple ahead, Ben Vorlich and the mountains above the Trossa.

The Wee Course recalls the original nine-hole course at Gleneagles, which was constructed in the summer of 1928. Designed by George Alexander, it complemented the already renowned King's and Queen's Courses. The Wee Course remained much as Alexander had intended until 1974 when another nine holes were added, and the Prince's Course was formed.

The Wee Course has been resurrected mostly on the ground that formed the original course, using turf from the Prince's greens. Former golf courses and estate director James Kidd and his staff built the golf course themselves, recapturing the spirit of Alexander's design.