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The Swilcan Bridge on the 18th Fairway of the Old Course, St. Andrews, Scotland.Scottish Tourism
The first time I laid eyes on the Old Course at St. Andrews was in the summer of 1970. I was sitting in front of a television at home in Ontario, a young teenager enthralled with the game of golf.
It was love at first sight.
That year, the Old Course was the site of the Open, mostly known back then as the British Open. It was my introduction to “links golf” – courses shaped by nature, often near the sea, often exposing players to driving rain and cruel wind. They offered a dramatic contrast to the highly manicured, often overly designed courses in North America.
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The Old Course comes by its name honestly: It’s recognized as the oldest in golf, dating back some 600 years. The town of St. Andrews is often referred to as the birthplace of golf and a mecca, of sorts, for those who love the game. In 1764, the Old Course’s 22 holes were reduced to 18, becoming the standard worldwide.
In the years that followed, the mystique around links golf only grew. In 1992, American golf writer Michael Bamberger wrote a seminal book called To the Linksland, which chronicled his journey to “the primal heart of golf,” including the Old Course. His intimate description of playing golf’s holiest venue only whetted my desire to get there myself one day.
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Golfers have teed off on the Old Course at St. Andrew for centuries, including legends such as Tiger Woods, pictured here in July, 2000.ALASTAIR GRANT/The Associated Press
While extremely difficult to get on, it is not impossible to play the Old Course. The St. Andrews Links Trust, which runs seven courses in the area, controls tee times. You can also book through golf tour operators or sign up for a “Private Advanced Tee Time” ballot.
The course has a daily ballot you can throw your name in for, but showing up in town hoping you’ll get a tee time on the Old Course is pure folly.
Members of the Royal and Ancient Golf Club (R&A) have a better chance of getting on. I was in St. Andrews as the guest of a friend who is an R&A member. When his invitation arrived by e-mail earlier this year, I had to read it twice to make sure I wasn’t imagining things. I ran from my home office to the kitchen to tell my wife the good news. To which she replied: “Well, I’m coming too!”
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We arrived in Edinburgh in early May and, after two days, arranged for a driver to take us to St. Andrews, which is about an hour away. (He charged us £150, about $280. Cheaper options include the bus and train.)
We wanted to explore the town for a couple of days before my playing partners arrived and golf took over the agenda.
We had a room at Rusacks St. Andrews for two nights. This was a bucket list hotel, given the prominence it always receives during telecasts of the Open.
Our room was exquisite, with a decorative royal-blue pillow on the bed, embroidered with two gold-coloured golf clubs, to remind you where you were.
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The Rusacks St. Andrews hotel often makes an appearance during telecasts of The Open.Alexander Baxter/Marine & Lawn Hotels & Resorts.
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The One Under Bar at the Rusacks St. Andrews hotel.Marine & Lawn Hotels & Resorts.
It was when we cast open the drapes, however, that we were truly flabbergasted: The Old Course’s 18th fairway was a stone’s throw away, yet our eyes were drawn beyond it, to West Sands beach and the North Sea. It was on that same stretch of sand that the famous running scene from the 1981 classic Chariots of Fire was shot. And to our immediate right was the famous 18th green, where three years earlier Australian Cameron Smith won the Open, breaking Rory McIlroy’s heart in the process.
Besides golf, St. Andrews is known for its namesake university, where two young undergraduates named William and Kate fell in love. Their courtship and marriage are celebrated in the town, no more so than at the Northpoint Café (24 North St.). It has a prominent sign that reads: Where Kate Met Wills (for coffee).
Buildings associated with the university, the third-oldest in the United Kingdom after Oxford and Cambridge, whose beginnings date back to 1431, are scattered throughout the town, as are the students who occupy them.
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St. Andrew is the patron saint of Scotland. In medieval times, some of his bones were brought to the town – by whom is a matter of dispute – and instantly conferred special status on it. It became Scotland’s ecclesiastical heart, and a massive cathedral was built in recognition of that fact. Today, all that exists are its skeletal remains, which are stunning nonetheless.
The grounds are also home to a cemetery where the graves of people such as Old Tom Morris, recognized as the world’s first golf pro and a four-time Open champion, and his son, Young Tom Morris, also a four-time Open champion, can be found.
Also to be explored are the ruins of nearby St. Andrews Castle, much of which has disintegrated or tumbled into the sea. But what has been left behind is quite striking.
There are too many pubs in town to mention them all, but a favourite was the Criterion, famous for its “Cri Pies.” These are meat pies made in house every day – they sold 28,000 of them last year – and are the best I’ve ever tasted.
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The 171-year-old Royal and Ancient Golf Club clubhouse in St. Andrews is a familiar sight for lovers of the game.RUSSELL CHEYNE/Reuters
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Professional U.S. golfer Tom Watson walks over the famous Swilcan Bridge on the 18th fairway during The Senior Open at The Old Course in July, 2018.Tony Marshall/Getty Images
I’ll admit I had major butterflies the morning of our tee time. My outfit had been picked out days earlier – or at least the clothes I hoped to be wearing. The thing about going to Scotland on a golf trip is you have to pack for all eventualities: rain, sleet, driving winds. You might enjoy all four seasons during one round. Fortunately, the weather was ideal for our golfing day, and before I knew it, I was walking up to the first tee.
I figured I had watched coverage of the Open at the Old Course 10 times before I got there in May. But nothing could prepare me for the moment I confronted the almost mythical images that had been seared into my brain: the 171-year-old clubhouse of the R&A Golf Club, which sits behind the first tee; the cobbled Swilcan Bridge on the 18th fairway, built before there was a golf course to help shepherds move their flocks over the Swilcan Burn; even the quaint pub adjacent to the 17th fairway called the Jigger Inn.
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Gary Mason, stands on the Swilcan Bridge at The Old Course in St. Andrews.Barbara Mason/Supplied
It felt a bit like being at Disneyland, where all these make-believe places had come to life. But then slowly the awe began to dissipate, replaced by a growing sense of trepidation. I was playing at the cradle of golf.
Because the town is often crawling with tourists, there were dozens of people watching us tee off at the first hole. It was unnerving. Even though my back was to the gawkers, I could feel their presence. Doubtlessly a few of them snickered when my tee shot went a little further than I hoped and landed in the Swilcan Burn, a watery grave one tries to avoid on the first hole. It was not the greatest of starts.
I will not bore you with a shot-by-shot analysis of my round – it was rather unremarkable – but a maiden trip around the Old Course is largely about coming to grips with where you are.
As a first-timer you are confronting areas that have acquired legendary status: the Hell Bunker on 14; the Principal’s Nose on 16; the Road Hole at 17, where your tee shot has to carry over railway sheds and the corner of the Old Course Hotel.
And then there’s the Valley of Sin in front of the 18th green. In many cases, one large green accommodates two holes (going in opposite directions). The green shared by the fifth and 13th holes, for instance, is 37,000 square feet. It is not uncommon, therefore, to have putts that are more than 100 feet long.
For me, playing the Old Course was not about a score, it was about an experience.
It was about walking the same fairways as Nicklaus and Watson and Seve.
It was about taking three strokes to get out of the Hell Bunker on 14.
It was about putting out of the Valley of Sin on 18 and getting down in two.
It was about fishing my ball out of the cup on the final hole, looking out at the course as it stretched out before me and thinking that this was the greatest moment of my golfing life.
If you go
St. Andrews is about 83 kilometres north of Edinburgh, which is the most convenient place to fly into. The town is exceptionally walkable, with not too many changes in elevation.
If you score a tee time for the Old Course, green fees during the high season (April to October) are £340 ($635), and about £100 less during the rest of the year. A caddie will cost you about £110, including tip.
Rusacks St. Andrews is a luxury hotel located alongside the 18th fairway of the Old Course. Its restaurants, the Bridge and the rooftop eatery 18 (where we tried the duck, lamb and ribeye, which were all delicious), are first-rate. From April through September, expect to see rates starting north of $1,000 a night for a double, including taxes and fees. The style is ornate but tasteful, with lots of framed paintings of golfers, past and present.
Since you’re in the area, explore some of the incredibly picturesque little villages in either direction. Some of my favourites include Crail, St. Monans, Elie, Pittenweem and Anstruther, which is the largest of the East Neuk villages, with a truly scenic waterfront. You can get to any of them by car, but a public bus reliably leaves St. Andrews throughout the day for all these stops.
The writer was a guest of Rusacks St. Andrews. The hotel did not review or approve the story before publication.
