Dundonald Links will finally get to shine on the main European Tour after the Ayrshire venue was confirmed as the host for next year’s Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open.

As part of the championship’s rotation around the country – it has already been staged at Castle Stuart, Royal Aberdeen and Gullane in recent years – the national showpiece will finally head west next season.

Since being acquired by Loch Lomond Golf Club in 2003, Dundonald has hosted numerous amateur and professional events, including stage one of the European Tour’s qualifying school and the Ladies Scottish Open, which returns for a second visit this summer.

There has always been talk of the Irvine venue staging the Scottish Open, from the days when its parent club at Loch Lomond was the regular host of the highly lucrative event. In its slot just the week before the Open itself, the need to provide a links test ahead of the game’s ultimate seaside examination became increasingly important but when Loch Lomond stepped away from the Scottish Open after the 2010 championship, following a members buyout, Dundonald was left waiting as the tournament moved north and then east.

Last year’s successful staging of the Ladies Scottish Open put Dundonald back on the map and officials are hoping this July’s event will help them fine tune ahead of the club’s debut ahead on the men’s European circuit in 2017.

Bill Donald, the general manager at Loch Lomond and Dundonald Links, said: “It gives us a bit of a dry run ahead of hosting the Scottish Open next year, and that is a great opportunity which many host venues don’t get. We’ll be more than ready by the time the Scottish Open comes around.”