Tag: The Old Course at St. Andrews

European Tour’s Alfred Dunhill Links Championship offers the best one-week rota of courses of any tour

The Old Course at St. Andrews, Carnoustie and Kingsbarns make this a special week for the European Tour and for links lovers.

The European Tour takes a few knocks from golf course aficionados about the layouts the tour frequently plays as it takes events to new coordinates – and sponsors – around the world. Some criticism is fair, some less so.

But it’s all moot this week. Just kick back, turn on the tube and enjoy some of the best golf courses in the world for the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship.

St. Andrews Old Course. Carnoustie. Kingsbarns. They make up an incredible Scottish links triumvirate around St. Andrews, the best one-week professional rota in golf.

The Old Course is, of course, the Old Course. This is golf. Old Tom. Young Tom. All the way to Tiger Woods. This is the home of golf, the marketing says – and it’s right. And always exciting to watch.

Carnoustie is no slouch, itself. Home to eight past British Opens – ahem, Open Championships – Carnoustie’s Championship Course presents one of the most challenging and thrilling conclusions in golf. Just ask Jean van de Velde about the dreaded Barry Burn, where his chance at the 1999 British Open title was ingloriously drowned.

Kingsbarns (Golfweek files)

And to people who don’t follow modern golf architecture closely, Kingsbarns might seem like a third wheel in this rota. Trust us, it’s not. The Kyle Phillips design that opened in 2000 has climbed all the various course rankings – including Golfweek’s Best – to become one of the most desirable tee times in Europe.

The only thing that comes close to this rota on the PGA Tour is the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, with Pebble Beach Golf Links, Spyglass Hill and Monterey Peninsula Country Club’s Shore Course hosting celebrities and pros alike each year. Pebble Beach ranks No. 9 on Golfweek’s Best Classic Courses list for the U.S., and Spyglass is No. 31 among all Modern U.S. courses. Not bad at all. It’s hard to beat the vibe on this section of California coastline.

But when it comes to elite course rankings, no rota compares to the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship. And like the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, the Dunhill Links also serves up a celebrity field in a pro-am format to make things a bit more interesting. Each team will play the three courses over the first three days, with teams and individuals that make the cut playing the Old Course on Sunday.

Keep scrolling for more on each of the courses in this week’s rota.

How to get tickets to 2022 British Open at St. Andrew’s in Scotland

For the first time ever, a ballot system for tickets will be used in 2022 for the British Open.

The R&A has announced a ballot will be held for tickets for the 2022 British Open at the Old Course at St. Andrew’s in Scotland.

It will be the historic 150th edition of the oldest championship in golf and it’ll be the first time ever that tickets will be distributed this way.

A video posted on the Open Championship’s official website says that “because millions of golf fans want to be there,” the ticket ballot will be the fairest and most inclusive way to give those interested a chance to attend.

The promo video also states that the ballot will make sure the “crowd includes fans of every age, fans from every continent.”

The application process is free but you are required to create an online account for “The One Club, The Open’s free-to-join membership programme.”

The ballot process is now open and closes Oct. 4, 2021. Fans can apply for up to four tickets per day for all eight days of the championship.

If you’re lucky enough to have your name drawn, you will be expected to purchase all the tickets you applied for.

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Golfweek’s Best: Rating the British Open rota courses

How do Muirfield, the Old Course at St. Andrews, Royal Troon, Royal St. George’s and the rest of the rota stack up in the course rankings?

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All eyes will be on Royal St. George’s Golf Club in Sandwich, England, for this week’s British Open. But how does the links layout southeast of London stack up in a ranking of all 10 of the courses on the modern rota for the British Open?

Golfweek’s Best utilizes a national group of some 800 raters who judge courses around the world, rating each on a points basis of 1 to 10. Any course with an average rating over 7 is a great course, and anything over 8 is in truly rarefied air. Half the courses on the rota, which now includes Royal Portrush in Northern Ireland, rate above an 8.

The following list of the 10 British Open rota courses is ordered based on those ratings. Also included is where each course ranks in Golfweek’s Best Modern Courses list for Great Britain and Ireland.

Snow blankets the home of golf at St. Andrews

The sight of a snow-blanketed Old Course at St. Andrews in Scotland is always one to behold.

The sight of a snow-blanketed Old Course at St. Andrews in Scotland is always one to behold.

Perhaps it’s no surprise but the Old Course has been closed for much of the week due to the weather.

The course’s Twitter account on Wednesday posted a message that all St. Andrews links courses will be closed until Saturday.

For most of this week, the course was still taking tee times but the phone lines will now re-open on Saturday, assuming the weather turns around.

Conditions at the time of the message were minus-eight Celsius wind chill, which translates to 17 degrees Fahrenheit.

That’s just not golf weather, but, the pictures are pretty amazing to look at.

You can also view the live webcams on the St. Andrews site.

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Ernie Els, Catriona Matthew, Padraig Harrington and Nick Price join R&A’s elite list of Honorary Members

Ernie Els, Catriona Matthew, Padraig Harrington and Nick Price have joined the R&A’s elite list of Honorary Members.

A foursome of British Open champions accepted invitations to become Honorary Members of The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews.

Catriona Matthew, Ernie Els Padraig Harrington and Nick Price join an all-star list of past and present members that includes Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, Gary Player, Tom Watson, Laura Davies, Annika Sorenstam, Peter Thomson, Roberto De Vicenzo, Renee Powell, Kel Nagle and Louise Suggs.

“I would like to congratulate Catriona, Ernie, Padraig and Nick on becoming Honorary Members of The Royal and Ancient Golf Club,” said Clive Edginton, captain of The Royal and Ancient Golf Club, in a release.

“They have each distinguished themselves with their long and hugely successful careers in golf. As well as being great champions, they are superb role models for any young golfers to follow and embody so many of the qualities which make golf such a special sport. They have done a great deal to help promote golf around the world and this recognition is extremely well deserved.”

With 11 major championship victories between them, each have captained teams at the Ryder Cup, Solheim Cup and Presidents Cup. (Harrington and Matthew are current Ryder Cup and Solheim Cup captains.)

Scotland’s Matthew won the British Open at Royal Lytham & St. Annes in 2009 and has 11 professional victories worldwide. She also led Team Europe to a thrilling Solheim Cup victory at Gleneagles last year. She was among the first recipients of an R&A Scholarship at the University of Stirling.

Els, a four-time major champion, won at Muirfield in 2002 and Royal Lytham & St. Annes in 2012 along with his two U.S. Open titles in 1994 and 1997. The former No. 1 has 73 professional wins around the world. In 1999, he established the Ernie Els and Fancourt Foundation to support children from families of limited resources to progress in golf and has helped the careers of numerous young players.

Harrington won the British Open in back-to-back years at Carnoustie in 2007 and Royal Birkdale in 2008, winning the PGA Championship that same year. In 2011 he became an ambassador for The R&A, helping to support to support and promote a wide range of participation, coaching and Rules education initiatives.

Price is a three-time major champion and former No. 1 who won at Turnberry in 1994.  The Zimbabwean has 48 professional titles and represented the International team in the Presidents Cup on five occasions and captained the team for three matches.

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Opinion: Why Muirfield matters so much to the women’s game

The R&A’s lineup for the women in the next five years speaks volumes about the organization’s commitment to elevating the women’s game.

The first four times Karen Stupples played the Old Course at St. Andrews, she used the clubhouse at St. Rule, situated on the right side of the 18th green. The club was established in 1896 primarily as a place for ladies to enjoy a cup of tea and share newspapers near the links.

It wasn’t until the Old Course first hosted a women’s major in 2007 that Britain’s Stupples, and every other player in the historic field, was allowed into the iconic R&A clubhouse behind the first tee. That’s the week that St. Andrews transformed for Stupples from just another links course to a cornerstone of golf history.

Because now, the best female players in the world were a part of that history, and that inclusion changed everything.

“It really kind of struck home that as women pros, the respect we were being given,” said Stupples, “having our Open on that great golf course where history has been made for centuries. It was really special. You turned a corner.”

The feeling returned this week when the best female players in the game gathered for the first time at Royal Troon, a staple of the men’s British Open rota. But before the first iron was struck at the famed Postage Stamp on Thursday, the R&A announced another first: Muirfield will host the AIG Women’s British Open in 2022.

It was only last year that Muirfield invited its first women members in 275 years. Now the club’s membership will complete the 180-degree change of heart by crowning a female major champion in two short years. She will join a list of 16 men who have won an Open at Muirfield, including the likes of Harry Vardon, Walter Hagen, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus, Lee Trevino, Tom Watson, Nick Faldo, Ernie Els and Phil Mickelson.

“Muirfield is possibly one of the purest tests of golf in the world,” said Catriona Matthew, a former Women’s British Open winner who lives four miles down the road at North Berwick.

The R&A’s lineup for the women in the next five years speaks volumes about the organization’s commitment to elevating the women’s game: Carnoustie (2021), Muirfield (2022), Walton Heath (2023), St. Andrews (2024) and Royal Porthcawl (2025).

“This is what we need,” said veteran pro Angela Stanford. “People turn on the TV to watch the course. Now we are on them!”

Last year the R&A announced a near 40 percent increase in the Women’s British Open purse, from $1.25 million to $4.5 million. The 2019 edition was AIG’s first year as title sponsor.

It’s still miles away from the parity R&A chief executive Martin Slumbers spoke of – last year’s purse at the men’s British Open was $10.75 million – but a significant improvement. The R&A merged with the Ladies Golf Union in 2017, taking over all championships.

The men’s British Open wasn’t held this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, yet the R&A and AIG remained committed to staging the women’s championship one month later. Slumbers said he personally felt a “deep responsibility” to make it happen.

“There’s a rolling snowball developing,” said Slumbers, “and I would look to all corporates to help get this behind women’s sport and grow that prize money. We’re committed, absolutely committed to doing that, but in a sustainable way.”

There aren’t any household names in women’s golf in America right now, not with Michelle Wie out on maternity leave. No Serena Williams or Nancy Lopez.

That’s why these storied venues are so important to the game. Let the courses bring in new fans.

To increase the interest among young girls, Slumbers said they’ve committed to staging the AIG around London at least once every five years. The Women’s British won’t be solely held on links courses like the men’s championship.

“We want to use this championship, not just for the players to show us, as I said many times, to show us how good they are,” said Slumbers, “but to get more and more interest in women and girls to play.”

When a young girl can watch the men compete at St. Andrews in 2022 and look on the calendar to see that the women will be there two years later, it lights a spark.

That goes for 50-year-old pros, too.

“Will be very special to have a major five minutes from my home,” said Matthew of Muirfield. “With that and St. Andrews now on the schedule, I may need to hang around a bit longer.”

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Golf reopens in Scotland in wake of coronavirus pandemic

The Home of Golf will allow the game to continue, but pro shops and restaurants are to remain closed in response to coronavirus concerns.

Golf courses in Scotland were allowed to reopen in limited capacity Friday in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic after having been closed since March. First Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced the relaxation of closures Thursday.

“Over the last few days, it has been fantastic to see the anticipation building, with many wonderful photographs and videos of courses ready for play,” Karin Sharp, COO of Scottish Golf, said on the organization’s website. “The greenkeepers and volunteers the length and breadth of the country are to be congratulated for their hard work, under essential maintenance guidelines in preparing for golfers to return.”

Scotland follows United Kingdom course reopenings in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Golf courses in Ireland also were allowed to open earlier this month.

Clubhouses, restaurants and pro shops will remain closed, according to St. Andrews Links, which operates the Old Course and several others. Scottish Golf has published a list of guidelines as courses reopen.

British Open future sites through 2023

The 149th Open will be the 15th time for Royal St. George’s to host, and the first since 2011 when Darren Clarke took home the Claret Jug.

The 149th Open championship was to be contested at Royal St. George’s in Kent, England, July 16-19, 2020, but on April 6 the tournament was canceled due to the global coronavirus pandemic.

It’s the first time the Open was not held since 1945 because of World War II.

The decision was also made to slide the 149th Open back to 2021 and keep it at Royal St. George’s. This allows the 150th Open to be still be St. Andrews, but in 2022 instead 2021.

The 149th Open will be the 15th time Royal St. George’s will host the event, and the first since 2011 when Darren Clarke took home the Claret Jug.

Future locations

2021

Royal St. George’s, Kent, England, July 15-18

2022

St. Andrews, Fife, Scotland, July 14-17

2023

Royal Liverpool, Hoylake, England, TBD

Twenty-four of our top bucket-list holes in all of tournament golf

From TPC Sawgrass to St. Andrews, check out our top bucket-list holes in all of tournament golf.

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Every golf fan has heard the raucous crowds on TV at TPC Scottsdale’s 16th hole, where thousands of over-served spectators sit or stand for hours waiting for their favorite players at the biggest party in golf, the Waste Management Phoenix Open.

The short par 3 is enclosed by a temporary grandstand that seats 20,000 fans,  and the pros generally love it or hate it.

“I love it, but it’s as annoying as hell. I think of playing the 16th the whole tournament,” says Emiliano Grillo.

If the 16th hole at TPC Scottsdale is on a golf fans’ bucket list for must-see-in-person tournament golf, what are some of the others? The Road Hole at St. Andrews? The Island Green at TPC Sawgrass?

Here’s a few of our choices for bucket-list holes you should get to in person if you ever get the chance:

17th hole, Old Course, St. Andrews

Par 4, 495 yards

Jack Nicklaus on the 17th hole at the 134th Open Championship at Old Course, St. Andrews Golf Links, July 11, 2005. (Photo: Andrew Redington/Getty Images)

There’s a blind tee shot over the old faux coal sheds outlined by the boundary fence for the Old Course Hotel. Too often the road becomes a resting place for wayward approach shots. The perched green wraps around the Road Hole Bunker, the one must-avoid spot on the course.

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Prince Andrew’s public exile includes patron roles at Royal Portrush, Royal Liverpool

At least two clubs have distanced themselves from Prince Andrew in the wake of his reputed involvement in the Jeffrey Epstein scandal.

Royal Portrush Golf Club, site of this year’s British Open in July, is considering seeking a new patron after Prince Andrew stepped back from public life and his royal duties in the wake of his reputed involvement in the Jeffrey Epstein sex-abuse scandal.

The Daily Telegraph reported that Royal Portrush plans to discuss the Duke of York’s involvement at the club in Northern Ireland at its next meeting. His patron role at Royal Portrush was largely as a publicity figurehead.

“The allegations surrounding Prince Andrew, and especially the trauma and distress suffered by the victims of Jeffrey Epstein is a matter of deep regret,” the club said in a statement obtained by the Daily Telegraph. “Royal Portrush will continue to monitor the ongoing investigative process. There are no scheduled plans for him to return to the club.

“The council of Royal Portrush is acutely aware of the widespread public concern about these allegations, and Prince Andrew’s decision to step away from public duties will be discussed at our next meeting.”

Prince Andrew, Duke of York (center) watches the third round of the British Open at Royal Portrush on July 20, 2019. (Stuart Franklin/Getty Images)

Prince Andrew also has ties to Royal Liverpool Golf Club, host site for the 2022 British Open. The Daily Telegraph also reported that club will “not call upon” Andrew’s services during his exile.

Andrew is also a member of the R&A, the ruling body for golf in much of the world and the organization that puts on the British Open. The R&A would confirm only that he was a member to the Daily Telegraph. Andrew was captain of that club in 2003 during its 250th anniversary.

USA TODAY reported that Virginia Roberts Giuffre has repeatedly said she was groomed by Epstein and his associates to sexually service Epstein’s powerful friends, including Prince Andrew, when she was a teen. Andrew has denied the accusation, but he announced Wednesday that he was halting his public duties because “my former association with Jeffrey Epstein has become a major disruption to my family’s work.”

“Therefore, I have asked Her Majesty if I may step back from public duties for the foreseeable future, and she has given her permission,” Queen Elizabeth II’s second son said in a statement released Wednesday by Buckingham Palace.

USA TODAY also reported that Andrew’s resignation comes on the heels of a recent controversial interview with the BBC in which he said he doesn’t remember meeting Giuffre, despite a picture of the two, he with his arm around her waist, that has been floating around the internet since at least 2011.

“Our clients welcome Prince Andrew’s decision to withdraw from public life as a member of England’s royal family,” read a statement to USA TODAY from Sigrid McCawley and the law firm Boies Schiller, which is representing Giuffre and other women. “It is a positive first step towards taking responsibility for his actions.”

USA TODAY also reported that as Andrew’s connection to Epstein made headlines in recent months, corporate sponsors started to pull their support and distance themselves from the prince’s Pitch@Palace networking initiative, which connects entrepreneurs with various business leaders. Companies that have ditched Andrew include Cisco Systems, KPMG and AstraZeneca.