Rediscovering St. Andrews

Looking Up The 18th Fairway Over The Swilcan Bridge

There is no other landmark that represents golf like the Old Course at St. Andrews. 100 years ago the first Walker Cup Match between the United States and Great Britain and Ireland was played at St. Andrews. It returned in 2023. A special event at a special place in golf. I ventured back for another visit.

The Old Course at St. Andrews, in its current routing, was built in 1764. It is one of seven public courses operated by the St. Andrews Links Trust. Representatives from the town council, the Royal and Ancient Golf Association (the R & A), and several other golf organizations in St. Andrews are on the links trust committee. They oversee all of the public golf in St. Andrews where everybody seems to be playing golf. The practice fields are enormous. People walk down the street carrying clubs.

The Old Course has an aura about it. Looking back at the clubhouse, now a museum, from the 18th fairway is surreal. After spending three days walking the course, I still couldn’t grasp the reality of where I was: the Swilcan Bridge, the 17th green on the Road Hole, standing in the middle of the adjacent 1st and 18th fairways looking back. Some say it’s spiritual, even out of body. The setting can’t be taken for granted or forgotten. A smile continually flows.

The two story gray stone neo-classical museum/clubhouse, built in 1854, stands like the Rock of Gibraltar behind the first tee. It stands solid and permanent representing the game, its rules, conduct, and sportsmanship.

It is humbling to know the greatest players in the game have walked up the same 18th fairway I was on.  Bobby Jones, Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer and many other greats of the game have walked up the gentle slope and onto the green, gazing at the same buildings.

Nothing has changed. They also negotiated the same challenges of the green the Walker Cup Team members would face, as had I, a few precious times in the past.

There are so many aspects of the Old Course one doesn’t absorb while playing. Walking on the 16th fairway with Scotsman Gordon Sherry, a former British Amateur champion, he commented, “I’ve never noticed how this fairway rolled.”

A starting time at the Old Course has become one of the most difficult to obtain anywhere. There are a certain number of times each day set aside for the public. There is a drawing to see who will be honored with a starting time. It’s called the ballot. Many groups sign up for the ballot each day. Failing at the ballot, individuals line up at midnight hoping there might be an open spot for a single the next day.

There are no fixed times left for 2024. Tour companies may have some and half the times are left for the daily ballot, but there are no guaranteed times left. The times for 2025 will be released in February of 2024.

There is no golf on Sunday at the Old Course. It’s a public park. Citizens of St. Andrews picnic on the Old Course on Sundays. “I think the best way to see the Old Course is to walk around  without a ball on a Sunday,” Gordon told me. “When you play you are absorbed in your game and can’t appreciate the course. You can take pictures on the Swilcan Bridge, stand in conversation on how to play the 17th, the Road Hole, or gaze at the sod wall constructed bunkers.”

Some encourage walking the course in reverse. All of the bunkers, hidden when playing the standard routing, become visible. “I went to the tee once and was told the course was to be played backwards that day,” said Gordon. “It was fun.”

One of the secrets of the St. Andrews Land Trust is the other courses.. They are wonderful. The Jubilee Course, the Eden Course, and the New Course, built in the 1850s are as good or better than the Old Course. And they are way less expensive. The greens fee on the Old Course is nearly $500. It’s about $100 on the other three.

“Is the Old Course the best course?” A friend asked Gordon.

The 6’ 8” Gordon considered the question. “No, but it’s special.”

I watched Walker Cup play from a small bank just over the road adjacent to the 17th green. It’s one of the many great things about the Walker Cup, you can get right next to the action. With gaps in play, spectators took pictures standing on the Swilcan Bridge, located in the middle of the 18th fairway. Take a photo and promptly leave, after walking into the middle of a fairway to take pictures. Only at the Walker Cup.

The atmosphere is relaxed. Volunteers handling ropes moved with each group as spectators walked down the fairway with the players. Spectators at the Walker Cup are knowledgable golfers. No shouting at the players or booing from intoxicated groups. Good shots by players from both sides are applauded, though much louder for the home boys.

It’s an event with more access to the leaders of the game than anyplace else. The leadership of the USGA, R & A and the Masters are all in attendance in a relaxed mood, accessible to all.

It’s also old home week for players from past Walker Cup events. Former Walker Cup Team members are treated like royalty. There is a dinner and golf event just for them. I spoke with six members of the USA and Great Britain and Ireland team that played on the 1993 event at Interlachen, my home course.

If you plan a trip to Scotland don’t be discouraged by not getting a tee time at the Old Course,  a better option is to walk around it. There are still plenty of great golf experiences on the adjacent St. Andrews courses.

St. Andrews never disappoints and is a gateway to secret courses in the area. The 2023 Walker Cup at the mystical Old Course with the USA defeating GB & I was a great three days in A Life In Golf.

Flags Flying At The 2023 Walker Cup At The Old Course