Two openings define European golf in 2026. The first is Old Petty at Cabot Highlands in Scotland, a Tom Doak design that opened on 15 May. The second is the return of Le Golf National’s Albatros course near Paris, which closes for a redesign-driven renovation and reopens on 1 September. They represent different categories of significant: one is a new course on a remarkable piece of land, the other is a famous course making itself better.
Old Petty at Cabot Highlands: Tom Doak on the Moray Firth
The Cabot group’s first European property opened its second course this May. Castle Stuart — the original Cabot Highlands layout, previously known as Castle Stuart Golf Links — has been joined by Old Petty, an 18-hole course designed by Tom Doak and his associate Clyde Johnson. The site sits alongside the historic Old Petty Church on the Moray Firth, with Castle Stuart visible from 13 of the 18 holes.
Doak’s work here has been routed to the land’s natural contours — hillsides, open ground, and several holes running alongside the water — in the manner his firm has applied at courses like Ballyneal and Cape Kidnappers. The course entered the public record before its official opening, earning a debut ranking of No. 34 in Golf World’s Scotland Top 100 following a preview play period in late summer 2025. That kind of reception before a course has been properly bedded in is unusual.
What the Course Actually Plays Like
The Moray Firth coast is links-adjacent without being pure links. The ground at Cabot Highlands has the firm, sandy character that links golf requires, but the elevation changes and the presence of the castle on the skyline give the setting a parkland grandeur that pure links courses rarely have. Old Petty’s routing makes use of both: the lower holes near the water play with the wind exposure you expect from a coastal site, while the higher sections have longer sightlines and a different kind of strategic challenge.
The connection between the two courses at Cabot Highlands is meaningful for trip planning. Playing Castle Stuart in the morning and Old Petty in the afternoon — or sequencing them across two days — is a legitimate way to spend time on the Moray Firth. The area already had Royal Dornoch (40 minutes north), Nairn, and several other courses within driving range, making the northeast Scotland circuit one of the more interesting multi-day itineraries on the continent for golfers who want genuine variety in course character.
Practicalities for Visiting Golfers
Inverness Airport is the practical entry point, with connections from major UK and some European hubs. Cabot Highlands operates a full resort facility on site. Tee times for Old Petty will be in demand through the 2026 season given the course’s debut attention, and booking in advance is necessary. The Moray Firth region rewards taking additional time — the whisky distilleries between Inverness and Elgin are a legitimate reason to extend the trip beyond golf.
Le Golf National Albatros: September 2026 Return
Le Golf National near Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, southwest of Paris, is most recognisable as the 2018 Ryder Cup venue. The Albatros course — the tournament-standard layout — closed for reconstruction work driven partly by the Paris Metro Line 18 project, which required course modifications in the affected sections. It reopens on 1 September 2026.
What Has Changed on the Albatros
The scope of the work is specific. Holes 4, 5, and 6 have been redesigned. Greens on holes 1, 2, 9, 15, and 18 have been reshaped. Lake edges on holes 1, 2, 15, and 18 have been refurbished. A broad programme of turf conversion across greens, tees, and fairways has been run with the stated goal of reducing water consumption as part of a long-term sustainability strategy. New maintenance facilities have also been built as part of the project.
This is not cosmetic refreshment. The three redesigned holes in the opening stretch will meaningfully change how the front nine scores and how it reads for golfers who have played the course in its pre-renovation form. The reshaped greens on key holes — particularly 18, whose famous island-green approach has been the defining image of the course in Ryder Cup coverage — will alter the arrival experience.
What the Albatros Course Is
Le Golf National operates as a public facility, which is unusual for a course of this standard. Green fees are accessible compared to the hotel-access pricing at venues like Adare Manor. The course is reachable by RER from central Paris — a meaningful practical advantage for golfers travelling without a car or combining a golf day with a Paris trip.
The design is modern stadium golf: wide fairways with rough that is genuinely deep, water on multiple holes, spectator circulation built into the routing. It is not links golf and it is not parkland golf; it is an architectural genre developed specifically for professional play that happens to also work well for visiting amateurs because the hazards are clearly legible. The challenge is real — water on 9 of 18 holes, approach angles that demand carry — but the layout does not obscure what it is asking of a player.
Planning a Visit After 1 September
The Albatros reopening in September 2026 coincides with the end of the summer peak. September and October are good conditions months in the Paris basin — temperatures cooling, course traffic lighter than July and August, and the recent renovation work likely to present a course in better condition than its long-term pre-closure state. Visiting in the first weeks after reopening carries some uncertainty about how the redesigned holes have settled in, but the overall infrastructure and conditioning will be at the highest point it has been in years.
The onsite Novotel hotel has also completed a renovation of its rooms, lobby, bar, restaurant, and clubhouse, with work finishing in April 2026 — so the full facility at Le Golf National enters the 2026 autumn season freshened on both its playing and hospitality sides.
What These Two Openings Mean for 2026 Travel
Old Petty and the Albatros are not similar courses, similar experiences, or in the same region. What they share is timing: both become available in 2026, both have legitimate reasons to visit specifically in their opening configuration. For golfers who want to be on a course at or near its first-season best, 2026 provides two clear targets.