North Berwick hires Gil Hanse to keep its World Top 100 job

North Berwick, the beloved link on Scotland’s East Lothian coast, is set to set its legendary course with one of the game’s most influential modern architectural firms.

Beginning in 2026, Gil Hanse and his longtime design partner, Jim Wagner, will serve as the club’s official course architects – combining a world-renowned design team with a layout that has become a touchstone of golf architecture.

Once a sleeper, North Berwick first made the GOLF World Top 100 in 2007 and now sits comfortably in the upper reaches of that list. At just over 6,500 yards it is short by today’s standards but long in quirks and coastal charm, with a welter of blind shots, dramatic contours and compelling strategic choices made even more complicated by the changing wind. Among its features is a final stretch with a collection of much-copied template holes and the quirky 13th, a par-4 known as the Pit, which is split at an angle by an old stone wall.

Hanse could not immediately be reached for comment, but in a message to members the club emphasized that his and Wagner’s mandate is refinement, not reinvention. Their appointment comes at a crucial time, as the club faces a challenge as old as links golf itself and increasingly urgent in the modern era: the steady advance of the sea.

North Berwick is located close to the Firth of Forth, with water in play on six holes. Historically, the club has strengthened parts of the course, including along the 2nd fairway, but other areas have become more vulnerable. The 3rd tee is one of the concerns. That includes the 14th green, where the beach has crept to within about six feet of the putting surface. According to the club’s message, Hanse and Wagner will help guide “robust emergency measures to mitigate future risks from the advancing seas,” while preserving the unique features that have made the course so beloved.

For Hanse and Wagner, the course will add to a bulging portfolio of Top 100 work, including original designs such as Castle Stuart and Ohoopee Match Club, as well as restorations of prestigious golf courses ranging from Los Angeles Country Club to Oakmont, Merion and Fishers Island.