Depending on which car park you manage to find your first encounter with Ladybank could be life threatening! Ok, so you may have to cross the local railway line to get to the course but its a piece of cake really and well worth the risk. A warm welcome awaits, as do comfortable changing rooms and first rate practice facilities, but then it is off to the first tee, which for the first timer is a very daunting challenge as their simply does not look like there is any fairway to aim at. The optical illusion soon disappears as you stroll down the tree and heather lined fairway and you soon realise that this is not just any old course. Accuracy plays a premium here and while there are no 'tour length' par 4's (well off yellow and white anyway) if you stray into the dreaded purple stuff, even the shortest holes will be long enough! The course cries out to be played more than once as their are some holes that you may take the odd risk on second or third time aroud, but overall, control and accuracy are a must around this course. Having snaffled three birdies in a sub 80 round second time around I also felt, naturally, that it was a very fair course, with slick, manicured greens and some truly beautiful vistas. There are some truly wonderful courses in the home of golf and luckily I have played a good number of them. Ladybank is right up there with the best and at a fraction of the price, but as for lucky heather.....forget it!