Solo Golf Trips: Where Singles Are Welcome
Travelling alone is one of the great underrated pleasures in golf: your own schedule, your own pace, and a near certainty of meeting good company on the first tee. The two hurdles are getting into a game and the single supplement, and both are solvable. Here is where singles are genuinely welcome, how to get paired into a round, and how to plan a solo trip that never feels lonely.
Photo: Royal Dornoch Golf Club via Google, contributor Kevin Heggie.
The two hurdles, and how to clear them
Solo golf travel comes down to two practical problems. The first is access: some private clubs are reluctant to take a single booking, and the marquee tee times are written for fourballs. The second is cost: the single supplement, the premium for occupying a double room alone, can add a meaningful sum to a week away. Clear both and travelling alone becomes not just doable but often the best way to play, with total freedom over the itinerary and a string of new playing partners along the way.
The access problem is largely solved by where you choose to go. Resort destinations and the great public links towns are built around visiting golfers, and their starters pair singles into groups as a matter of routine, so you rarely tee off alone unless you want to. The cost problem is solved by how you book: choosing hotels with real single rooms, travelling in the shoulder season, or joining a hosted trip that matches roommates or absorbs the supplement. A specialist who knows which courses welcome a single and which hotels do not penalise one removes both headaches at a stroke.
Where singles are welcome
| Destination | Why it works for singles |
|---|---|
| St Andrews and Fife | The Old Course runs a daily ballot and a singles queue, and the town is full of visiting golfers, so a single is easily paired and rarely short of company |
| Scottish Highlands | Royal Dornoch, Brora and the northern links are friendly, unhurried clubs where solo visitors are warmly received and slotted into games |
| Southwest Ireland | The Kerry and Clare links see a constant flow of travelling golfers; clubs and caddies make pairing a single straightforward |
| Bandon Dunes, Oregon | A multi course resort built for the golf pilgrim, with a starter who pairs singles all day and a buddy trip culture that welcomes the solo player |
| Pinehurst and the Sandhills | A classic American golf town with a resort geared to visiting golfers and easy pairing across its many courses |
| Streamsong, Florida | A modern destination resort with three courses and a relaxed, pair me in atmosphere ideal for the single traveller |
Access and pairing policies vary by course and season and change without notice, so always confirm directly before booking. Check tee time availability.
How to get into a game
The simplest route is to ask the starter to pair you. At resorts and busy public links this is routine, and you will often be slotted into a group within minutes; many solo golfers come away having played with three different sets of partners over a week and made friends of all of them. Booking the first or last tee times of the day also helps, as singles are easiest to fit around the edges of a busy sheet.
Where a course is reluctant to take a lone booking, a planner is the answer. A specialist holds relationships and tee time inventory that an individual does not, and can confirm a guaranteed time at a course that would otherwise turn a single away, then sequence the week so the access never depends on luck. For the very best private clubs, this is often the only reliable way for a solo visitor to play.
If you would rather not chance it at all, a hosted small group trip gives you a ready made fourball. You travel with other golfers on the same itinerary, share the transport and the tee times, and get a roommate match or a reduced supplement built in. It is the most sociable way to tick off a bucket list region alone, and the easiest to organise.
Beating the single supplement
The single supplement is the one real cost penalty of solo travel, and it is largely avoidable with the right choices. Pick hotels and guest houses that offer genuine single rooms rather than charging full double rates, and you sidestep it entirely; the golf towns of Scotland and Ireland are full of such places. Travelling in the shoulder season, late spring or early autumn, also brings supplements down along with green fees and crowds.
For a resort stay, a hosted trip is usually the cleaner answer, since operators either match roommates or absorb the supplement into the package price. Either way, the supplement is a line to negotiate, not a fixed cost, and a planner who knows the properties can route you to the rooms that do not penalise a single. Tell us how you like to travel and we will price it both ways.
Plan your solo golf trip
We secure guaranteed tee times at courses that welcome a single, route you to hotels that do not punish the solo traveller on price, and can build you into a hosted group if you would rather have ready made company. Tell us roughly when and where, and one concierge costs it to the head, with no obligation.
Solo golf trip questions
Can you play famous golf courses as a single?
Yes, though it takes a little planning. Many of the world's great courses will pair a single golfer into an existing group or accept solo bookings, and resort destinations built for visiting golfers are especially welcoming. The Old Course at St Andrews runs a daily ballot and a singles queue, multi course resorts such as Bandon Dunes and Pinehurst happily pair singles, and a good planner can secure tee times that an individual booking might be refused. Always confirm a course's single player policy before you travel.
How do you avoid the single supplement on a golf trip?
The single supplement, the extra charge for occupying a double room alone, is the main cost penalty of solo travel. You can reduce or avoid it by choosing hotels with genuine single rooms, booking a hosted or small group golf trip where the operator pairs roommates or absorbs the supplement, travelling in the shoulder season when supplements are lower, or basing in a golf town with simple guest houses rather than a resort. A specialist can often find rooms and packages that do not penalise the single traveller.
Are golf resorts good for solo travellers?
Very. Multi course golf resorts are among the easiest places to travel alone, because they are designed around visiting golfers and the starter will pair you into a game. Places such as Bandon Dunes in Oregon, Pinehurst and Streamsong in the United States, and the great Scottish and Irish links towns have a steady flow of fellow solo and small group golfers, so you rarely play alone unless you want to. The clubhouse and the caddie programme make it easy to meet people.
Is it better to join a hosted golf trip as a single?
For many solo golfers, yes. A hosted or small group trip solves the two hard parts of travelling alone, getting into a game and the single supplement, by building you into a ready made group with shared transport, arranged tee times and often a roommate match or a reduced supplement. It is the simplest way to play a bucket list region without organising every detail yourself, and you travel with people who share the same plans.
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Researched and written by the GolfForKings editorial desk. Access and pairing guidance verified June 2026. Last reviewed June 2026.