Book Review: “Golfing the British Isles” by Peter Gray
On the back sleeve of Peter Gray’s Golfing the British Isles, it says that, although he is a middle-handicapper, the author, “has played many of the world’s top 100 courses.” It’s an interesting statement to make because while a majority of golfers (including LINKS readers) will know that’s perfectly possible, many will wonder how an […]
The Leeds Triangle: England’s Underrated Golf Destination
With the world of golf shifting its attention to the northwest of England as the Open Championship returned to Royal Liverpool for the 13th time in the club’s 154-year history, many visitors from the U.S. likely secured tee times at Open venues Royal Birkdale (30 miles north) and Royal Lytham and St. Annes (65 miles […]
Royal Liverpool (Hoylake): Flat Out Great
Despite, or perhaps because of, its lackluster landscape, Royal Liverpool—better known as Hoylake—can still be counted on to provide a bumpy and exciting Open Championship By the time the opening tee shot is struck at the 151st Open Championship, avid golfers who have consumed every preview they can find will have grown weary of reading […]
The Value of Variety in Golf Course Design
As the spice of both life and golf (many readers will consider them one and the same thing), the importance of variety cannot be overstated. Imagine a course without any; where every nondescript hole looks and plays much the same as the others—how uninspiring and utterly forgettable. Alister MacKenzie spelled out how fundamental variety was to […]
Q&A: Golf Course Architect Kyle Franz
He won’t qualify as early 40s for very much longer and has been a part of the golf design business for more than 20 years now. So, it’s fair to say Kyle Franz probably isn’t the new/young kid on the block anymore. Actually, thanks to an extensive resume that includes working for the world’s best […]
Book Review: “Golf Architecture for Normal People” by Geoff Shackelford
Geoff Shackelford’s 10th golf book (he also wrote a tribute to champion racehorse Zenyatta in 2011) probably won’t sell enough copies. That’s not to say it won’t sell plenty; it will—the author’s words are indisputably authoritative and invariably entertaining. It just won’t sell enough. Not all 70 million golfers worldwide will buy a copy, though […]
Great Courses of Britain & Ireland: The Berkshire
Less well known than some other heathland courses west of London, this club’s two Herbert Fowler layouts deserve their due In a 2018 essay titled “A disappearing landscape: The heathlands of the Berkshire, Hampshire and Surrey borders,” Alan G. Crosby of the British Association for Local History wrote that at the beginning of the 18th […]
18 of the Best Dogleg Holes
It would be a gross overgeneralization to say all straight golf holes are boring. The Old Course at St. Andrews has a lot of straight or straight-ish holes, but thanks to a combination of tantalizing fairway/green contours, bothersome bunkers that really are best-avoided, firm ground, and an ancient stone bridge, there’s not a single hole […]
False Fronts: History, Evolution, and 10 of the Best
When a serious green jacket contender sees his ball land on the false front short of the flag at Augusta National’s 9th hole on Sunday afternoon and reverse 20, 30, even 40 yards back down the hill toward him, the patrons can barely stifle their groans. They’ve probably witnessed the same distressing sequence befall a […]
Five Hidden Gems in Fife
Pilgrims from all points come to the county of Fife to play the Old Course at St. Andrews, booking tee times years in advance, entering a ballot drawn two days ahead of play, or trying their luck by arriving at the starter’s hut in the wee small hours and hoping for no-shows. A round on […]
