Royal Aberdeen Golf Club, Scotland
Back in the late 1700s, golf had developed from a “short” game played in streets and churchyards to a “long” game played in open areas. Taking their cue from St. Andrews, the golfers of Aberdeen moved out to the coast. But a series of social upheavals, including the Industrial Revolution, sharply reduced the number […]
Kingarrock Hickory Golf Course, St Andrews
On a hill just outside St. Andrews you can take a step back in time
Rye Golf Club, England
At this Classic english links, not much has changed since the days when
Winston Churchill and Bernard Darwin were members
The Renaissance Club, Scotland
One of the finest courses in Britain gets even better thanks to new holes on new land
acquired from an old, and revered, neighbor
Letter from St. Andrews: They Watched In Awe
Memories of Jack and the 1978 Open
Letter from St. Andrews: It Doesn’t Add Up
A critical look at the wacky British handicap system
Letter from St. Andrews: Beware of the Blob
If you’re going to be playing in Scotland, it may help to familiarize yourself with on-course terms like ‘stonker,’ ‘Barney Rubble,’ and ‘jammy’
Letter from St. Andrews: A Closed Open
I’m not sure why—maybe I haven’t fully and truly expatriated, or maybe it’s just that I’m a congenital jackass—but I get uncommon pleasure from tweaking my fellow St. Andreans with a question. When the 19th-hole conversation turns to the game’s majors, I ask, “So who do you like in the LCSE?” “What?” they say. “The […]
The History of Golf and Royalty
No country takes royalty as seriously as the United Kingdom does. Although the British crown is no longer the seat of government, it still holds plenty of historic, symbolic and popular interest. Members of the royal family are celebrities, and titles bestowed by Queen Elizabeth II are coveted rewards of status and accomplishment. It’s an […]
Royal Porthcawl Golf Club, Wales
A prospective guest at Royal Porthcawl appears before the club’s secretary. A round at Porthcawl, arguably the finest layout in Wales, is no small feather in a golfer’s cap, and its guest policy is somewhat more stringent than at most courses in the British Isles. Thus, the interview with the all-powerful secretary is neither […]
