The Missing Links: August 2015

Sunday 30 August 2015

Royal Troon Old Course, Scotland

www.royaltroon.co.uk

White tees par 71 SSS 73
Red tees par 75 SSS 76

Located on the south west coast of Scotland, Royal Troon golf club was established in 1878 although golf had been played there for several years before that. The following year a six hole course,designed by Charles Walker, the professional at the time whose title was 'Custodian of the Links' was opened. The course was extended to 18 holes in 1888 and in its time has had input from Willie Fernie (the 1883 Open champion), Alistair MacKenzie, James Braid and Frank Pennink. The motto of the club is 'Tam Arte Quam Marte' which translates as 'As much by skill as strength' which is a perfect description of this challenging true links course.

The 8th green - the Postage Stamp - from the tee

Royal Troon has hosted the Open Championship on eight occasions and is due to do so again in 2016 so it was a must for us to play before then. We were invited to play by our friends Frank and Helen Dunn on a benign day by links standards - mild with light winds. The prevailing wind blows across most of the holes which are in a traditional nine out-nine back layout. The first six holes run southwards along the Firth of Clyde with views of Arran, Kintyre and Ailsa Craig. It is a relatively gentle start provided you avoid the deep bunkers. The 6th is a lovely par 5 running along a valley between the dunes with an elevated green. The sea can be heard at all these holes and seen at some.

Troon's most famous hole is the par 3 8th, named 'The Postage Stamp' for the size of its green! It is guarded by five bunkers, one of which is aptly named the coffin. The green is narrow from left to right making it difficult to hold a shot from any bunker. Gene Sarazen, who was the 1923 Open champion at Troon, had a hole in one here on his first round in the 1973 Open, fifty years later, and holed out from a bunker for a two in the second round.

The punishing Coffin bunker at the 8th

The 11th is a difficult hole lined by gorse with the railway line on the right which comes nearer and nearer as the green approaches. The last five holes run in a northerly direction back to the clubhouse. The 17th is a difficult par 3 (210 yards from the white and 166 yards from the red tees) guarded by five bunkers. The 18th is a good par 4 where the championship tee is 90 yards behind the white tees. The second shot to the green requires careful calculation of the length as a slightly too exuberant shot will finish out of bounds on the gravel path in front of the clubhouse.

The 18th green lies in front of the clubhouse

Worth playing? Not to be missed. A true links course which will test any golfer.

Saturday 1 August 2015

Winterfield, Dunbar, Scotland

www.winterfieldgolfclub.info

White tees SSS 65
Red tees SSS 68

This course is not quite a links course but not quite a parkland course either. The greens are hard and fast running like a links course but many of the fairways are quite lush. The course does not appear to be built on sandy soil and parts of it are along a cliff top. However the setting is superb with views of the Forth, the Bass Rock and North Berwick Law from most of the course. Designed by James Braid it was opened in 1935 but after being requisitioned during World War 2 it was reopened with a number of changes to the first layout.

The peninsula green at the 14th.

The 17th green with North Berwick Law in the background

We played the course on a sunny but windy Scottish summer's day. It is short with very little trouble apart from the bunkers. The first hole is bizarre - a 238 yard par three for men and a 220 yard par 4 for ladies which plays across a deep valley rising via a steep rough covered face to the green. Most amateurs of both genders will have a blind second shot from the depths of the valley. The first nine is rather boring although the 7th is a long par 4/5 with a challenging sloping green. The second nine is more interesting with the par three 14th being the most memorable. Named 'The Point' it has a peninsula green with water along the left side. The green slopes towards the water and is guarded by a large bunker to the front right. The 18th is a pretty short par 4 with views beyond the green to the Bass Rock.

Worth playing? I wouldn't recommend it over any of the other courses in the area

The 18th green. The Bass Rock can be seen on the horizon.

The Links Project

There are 246 true links golf courses in the world and this blog is a record of our attempt to play all of them. My husband Ron and I are keen golfers and I came up with the idea of this project after he gave me the book by George Peper and Malcolm Campbell 'True Links' which lists them all.

The commonest question we are asked about our project is 'How do you define a true links course?' This will be debated by aficionados for long after we have (hopefully) completed our quest and there will never be a correct answer. The strict definition is from the British Golf Museum:

1. The course must be beside a river estuary

2. It must offer partial or occasional views of the sea

3. It must have few trees

4. It must have numerous bunkers

5. It must have nines that run out and back, the front heading to a far point and the back returning to the clubhouse

Peper and Campbell defined their list as follows:

Terrain - how close is the course to the sea? Do the fairways run fast and hard? Do the greens favour a run-on approach? How open is the site? How natural? Is there a freedom from trees? Is the invasion of gorse and brush controlled? How light is the environmental footprint on the land?

Turf - is there a sand base? What grasses are dominant on the fairways and greens? Is the rough managed ( creating biodiversity for flora and fauna)? How well does the course drain?

Weather - how exposed is the site to the elements? What are the typical wind conditions? Does the course play hard and fast all year round? Must temporary greens and tees be used in winter? Is the course susceptible to winter closure?

Peper and Campbell included courses which supplied the correct answers to most of these questions. But however defined, to me the poem by Sir John Betjeman encapsulates the feeling of links golf.