Archive for the ‘Golf’ Category

2010 Open Championship at St Andrews

Friday, February 19th, 2010

Any golfer worth his or her clubs knows of the town St Andrews, Scotland, where golf was first played in the 15th century. 600 or so years later, the eyes of the golfing world will once again all be on St Andrews when the Open Championship returns there on 15-18 July 2010.

Winner of the 2007 St Andrews Openimg credit - (cc) licensed

St Andrews has an ancient history that stretches back to the Bronze Age. The area was settled by prehistoric hunter-gatherers and by Celtic peoples, and was also the site of Roman military camps. The town received its name when relics of St Andrew, Scotland’s patron saint, were brought there during the Dark Ages, and it became the seat of the Bishop of Alba and an important religious centre for newly Christianised Scotland. The modern town of St Andrews was established in 1140 by Bishop Robert.

However, St Andrews’s religious influence suffered a severe blow during the disruptions of the Scottish Reformation and the Civil War of the 17th century, and the town did not recover until the 19th century. And one of the factors that helped St Andrews begin growing again was golf. No one is quite sure when golf was first played in the area, but it was likely sometime in the 1400s.

Ancient writings testify to the popularity of golf even then. 1754 saw the founding of the Royal & Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews, which grew into the modern governing body of golf and the Open’s hosts, the R&A. Today, St Andrews Golf Club has seven world-class, publicly owned golf links, and it is only a slight exaggeration to say that every golfer dreams of the chance to play a round at St Andrews, particularly on the Old Course, home of the Open.

St Andrew'simg credit - (cc) licensed

The 2010 Open Championship will feature some of golf’s best players. As of this writing, qualifying tournaments are still going on around the world, but many great golfers are already expected at St Andrews, including champion Tiger Woods, Tom Watson (the 2009 runner-up), John Daly, Ernie Els, Vijay Singh, David Duval, and Ben Curtis. If you are travelling to St Andrews for the Open, be sure to book early! Hotels will be filled to overflowing once players, spectators, and media start arriving.

Fortunately, St Andrews is a popular tourist destination and has many excellent lodgings available. If you have well-lined pockets, you can choose from 5-star St Andrews golf hotels such as the Old Course Hotel and the St Andrews Bay Golf Resort, but there are many other hotels, guesthouses, and B&Bs to choose from, both in St. Andrews and the surrounding Fife region. This includes Birkhill Castle, home to the Earl and Countess of Dundee, which provides lodging to corporate and private groups, as well as B&B service to individuals.

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Golf Breaks: Why Scotland is the Ultimate Destination

Wednesday, January 13th, 2010

Scotland is the undisputed home to all things golf and offers tourists, and locals, the best golf breaks in the world. What is now a sporting phenomenon is popularly said to have originated in 12th century Scotland when a group of shepherds decided to knock a few stones into some rabbit holes with sticks.

Bridge to St Andrew'simg credit - (cc) licensed

The game just took off from there and became so popular that, in 1452, King James II banned his subjects from playing golf as it kept them from their archery practice.

The two oldest golf clubs in Scotland, being Muirfield’s Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers and the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews,  were founded in 1744 and 1754 respectively and the structure of the game soon settled in to what we know it as today. Golf was originally played with more or less than 18 holes but, when decided as such by St Andrews, an 18-hole game of golf soon became the norm.

A dream golf break for any golfer would be to take a golf break in Scotland and spend time at St Andrews to play the Old Course. The links style of golf course is the oldest in the world and was, of course, developed in Scotland.

Most links courses are found in coastal areas where the natural hazards comprise high and unpredictable winds and uneven fairways. Famous links courses include Bruntsfield in Edinburgh, Muirfield in East Lothian and Prestwick in South Ayrshire. It would be worth planning a golf break to Scotland even from Outer Mongolia just to play a round or two of golf on these venerable courses.

Scottish golf courses are the most beautiful in the world and are steeped in the history and tradition of the sport. Scotland also hosts the Open Championship three out of every five years and Open courses are also available to the casual golfer. So on your next golf break, why not try the Mussellburgh Old Course, which has been confirmed as the oldest course in the world by Guinness World Records.

It would, however, be foolish to spend all your golf breaks putting around famous Scottish courses as some of the most beautiful and exiting to play are the lesser known ones, which include Cromwell’s Dunbar in North Berwick and Roxburghe near Kelso on the Scottish Borders. Hitting stones into rabbit holes has given everyone so much pleasure that it will be around for many years to come.

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Top Golf Courses in Scotland

Tuesday, February 24th, 2009

When it comes to playing the world’s finest golf courses, if Scotland is not in your itinerary, then you really are not getting the most out of your trip. Known as the birthplace of golf, Scotland is home to some of the world’s most famous and revered courses. There are plenty that you will have a hard time playing, like the Old Course at St. Andrews, and there are some that will be more accessible to you. By playing any of the following courses while in Scotland, you will be able to experience the best that British golf has to offer.

Murcar Links Golf Club

The Murcar Links Golf Club is unique because it provides not one, but two different courses for people to try out. Located in the nice area of Aberdeen, the club is most well known for its Murcar Course, which is highly accessible and a very affordable option for people who want to experience Scottish golf in its purest form. It’s a long course by Scottish standards, but still plays to the true style of links golf. The less popular Strabathie Course provides a little bit tighter fairways and less length, and serves as a nice counterbalance for the longer Murcar Course.

Cowglen Golf Club

When most people visit Scotland, they take in the primary city of Glasgow. As one of the biggest, nicest, and most progressive cities in the world, Glasgow provides much more than golf. While there, you can play any number of excellent courses.

Cowglen Golf Club is a top notch property located just outside the city, and it has drawn great reviews from players who have had the pleasure of seeing and playing the course. The course’s distinctive design is what makes it great, to go along with its length. It is a course that is better played in the summer, so that you can enjoy the beautiful views afforded by the surrounding georgraphy.

Haggs Castle Golf Club

Haggs Castle Golf Club in Glasgow has a little bit different feel, and is better for a player who wants to enjoy the history of the area while playing a round of golf. If you are looking to play a course that might remind you of some of the Open Championship courses, then this is a really good one. Paced by great bunkers all over the place and its location close to some of the top locations in the country, Haggs Castle Golf Club is truly a gem in the country.

All in all, most of these courses will provide something of value to both the serious golfer and just the casual traveler. They vary in style and design, but provide much of the same Scottish flavor that has made the island such a popular destination over the course of time.

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