Hello everyone! Allow me to introduce myself, I’m Richard and I’ve been lurking in THP for a while. Finally decided to take the plunge and register to become an active member. As a bonus introduction, I’ll add some background and a trip report to Scotland to play St Andrews….so settle in, here we go!
I first started golfing as a teenager with my dad, but only stayed with it for a couple of years. Then after college and some years at work, I got back into it in the late 90’s. After only a couple months of lessons/playing, I made a trip to the UK and spent a couple weeks riding the trains. Of course I went to St. Andrews, but not with the intention of playing the Old Course. I showed up without any clubs or plans and walked onto the Strathtyrum Course with a rented set and a sleeve of logo balls. I was excited to break 100 and not lose a single ball! But more importantly, I fell in love with St Andrews!
Fast forward almost 20 years to 2015, and golf was again on the backburner. My wife and I spent 10 days in June driving around Scotland, and I made another trip to St Andrews. But believe it or not, I didn’t even hit a single ball. Soaking in the atmosphere of the town, golf courses, and surroundings was just as enjoyable for us!
Back home in Northern California, a good friend of mine invited me on his annual guy’s golf trip to Tahoe. Despite my terrible game, it was an awesome trip and jump started my interest all over again. This time for good! The same friend announced his plans for his 60th birthday….play the Old Course in St Andrews in 2023. He gave all of us 5 years to get ready. Game on! Time to get serious with lessons and playing.
August of 2022 put us around the dinner table filling out the St Andrews lottery form. Six of us committed to the trip knowing the odds were against us. But even without a lottery miracle we were going to St Andrews in July of 2023. Late September and the golf gods granted our wish…I received the email that our application was selected, and we were scheduled to play the New Course on July 9 and the Old Course on July 10. WOW!
My wife and I arrived in Edinburgh several days early for some sightseeing. Walking up to the Royal Mile we encountered road closures and a very large crowd. Apparently, everyone was waiting for King Charles to drive by on his way to his final coronation as king of Scotland. Two hours of waiting for two seconds of viewing as the King’s motorcade sped past. Underwhelming.
The next morning at a local coffee shop I looked out the window to see an old lady walk by. She looked just like Rod Stewart. Spoiler alert…it wasn’t an old lady. (Rod was in town for a concert) Later that day we took a private van to St Andrews, arriving with soft afternoon weather. Checked into our B&B and walked straight to the Old Course. Everyone else in our group would trickle into town over the next couple of days.
First up was a warm-up round at the Strathtyrum Course (par 69). I even brought along the original sleeve of logo balls from the 1990’s and played them on the short par 3’s. My wife joined me as my caddy. Kinda. More like she was just along for a nice walk. Nearly 20 years ago I played here and didn’t lose a single ball. So of course, my first tee-shot this time sliced into the gorse. Lost. Lost another ball on #2. And a third on #3. My struggles continued on the front 9 with a +14. I somehow calmed down and recorded +4 on the back 9. I shot 87 gross/72 net.
The next day my wife and I visited Hill of Tarvit (about 10 miles west of St Andrews) to see the mansion and gardens. The Kingarrock Hickory Golf Course is also located on the grounds. This is a fun 9-hole course set up exclusively for play with hickory golf clubs. Each golfer is given a canvas bag with about six vintage clubs to play with. We had the course entirely to ourselves. My wife even played this time. This was a very enjoyable experience, but it takes some adjustment to swing a 100yr old hickory club and strike the ball effectively.
Sunday was our first group tee times on the New Course. But first my wife and I had some walking to do. The Old Course is closed to golf on Sunday but otherwise open for anyone to walk the course. We casually strolled from the first tee to the seventh and back, enjoying perfect Sunday weather while the maintenance crew did their thing. (Note to self…pay attention to what the maintenance crew is doing next time…)
After walking the Old Course we made our way to the St Andrews cathedral ruins and cemetery to visit the gravesite of Old Tom and Young Tom Morris.
That afternoon we all met up for our 3:00 tee time. My friend and I each reserved a caddy for the round, which was well worth the fee. Caddy Steve was awesome, keeping me focused around the New Course with great advice when I found myself in a bunker, and encouraging words every time I sliced my drive (“Don’t worry, you’re safe over there”). His green reading was on-point as well, especially when it came to the speed of the greens. I could tell my game was working for me that round, but I also believe a lot of the credit goes to the caddy. I shot 88 gross/66 net.
Monday finally arrived; Old Course tee time at 3:30pm. Unfortunately, there was a vehicle accident with a fatality on the road in front of the Rusacks Hotel. The entire Old Course was shut down because the life flight helicopter had to land on the #1/#18 fairway. Although it was clear before our tee time, the backup would affect our round.
The weather was nice that afternoon, with rain predicted for the early evening hours. Our group showed up 30 minutes before tee time, pacing around trying to settle our nerves. The hardest-easiest tee shot in the world was right there in front of us; unfortunately, our caddies were not. Due to the earlier closure, most groups and caddies were still out on the course. We were told to go ahead and tee off on time, and the caddies would find us on the course once they were finished with their first loop. As I was waiting for my turn, caddy Steve walked up and wished me luck. He had just finished his second loop of the day and wasn’t assigned to me…bummer!
Our first foursome teed off in fine form, sending their shots down the widest fairway imaginable. My buddy and I were paired with a nice couple from the east coast. I hate wasting time on the tee box, and don’t want any thoughts or doubts to creep into my head. This was definitely not the place to choke! I confidently (well, on the outside maybe) teed my ball, settled into my stance, and let it RIP! Great contact and nearly down the middle, safely short of the Swilcan Burn. Let out a deep breath and cracked a smile. I could feel all the tension release, time to settle down and soak it all in.
Our caddies had caught up with us in the second fairway. And we then caught up with the rest of the groups ahead of us…four groups mingled at the third tee box; the effects of the early closure were still being felt this late in the afternoon. By the 6th hole the wind started up, and my game was not nearly as good as the previous day. By the 8th hole the light rain started. My speed control on the greens was off, several of my putts rolling way past the cup. I mentioned to my caddie that the greens were so much faster than yesterday, to which he replied that they’re always fast on Monday due to the Sunday maintenance. I had watched the maintenance crew the day before and didn’t make the connection. Oof, that cost me several strokes.
By the 11th hole it was solid rain. Lucky for me I had packed along my rain gear. Unfortunately, the caddies were without theirs. Because of the long delay earlier, none of them had time to fetch their gear. All of them were in shorts and light shirts for the rest of the round so all they could do was put on a brave face and shiver. By this time the groups were spread out enough to play ready golf and make a march to the finish. It was shaping up to be a 6+ hour round. My tee shot on the Road Hole cut the corner nicely, and I stayed well away from the bunker. It was nearly 9:40pm as we walked up to the 18th green with no one to welcome us in the wet, fading light. Quite a difference from the afternoon crowds milling about. I posted a 98 gross/76 net and had the time of my life!
The next day my wife and I bid farewell to St. Andrews and flew to Greece for a cruise from Athens to Venice. I shipped my clubs home with ShipSticks, and have to give a positive shout-out to their customer service. They were quick to reach out to me when the scheduled pick-up at the B&B didn’t occur and then followed up daily until the pick-up van and B&B host finally got on the same page.
So what’s next? Ireland May 2024…Ballybunion, Lahinch, Tralee, and Carne are already booked!
Richard.
I first started golfing as a teenager with my dad, but only stayed with it for a couple of years. Then after college and some years at work, I got back into it in the late 90’s. After only a couple months of lessons/playing, I made a trip to the UK and spent a couple weeks riding the trains. Of course I went to St. Andrews, but not with the intention of playing the Old Course. I showed up without any clubs or plans and walked onto the Strathtyrum Course with a rented set and a sleeve of logo balls. I was excited to break 100 and not lose a single ball! But more importantly, I fell in love with St Andrews!
Fast forward almost 20 years to 2015, and golf was again on the backburner. My wife and I spent 10 days in June driving around Scotland, and I made another trip to St Andrews. But believe it or not, I didn’t even hit a single ball. Soaking in the atmosphere of the town, golf courses, and surroundings was just as enjoyable for us!
Back home in Northern California, a good friend of mine invited me on his annual guy’s golf trip to Tahoe. Despite my terrible game, it was an awesome trip and jump started my interest all over again. This time for good! The same friend announced his plans for his 60th birthday….play the Old Course in St Andrews in 2023. He gave all of us 5 years to get ready. Game on! Time to get serious with lessons and playing.
August of 2022 put us around the dinner table filling out the St Andrews lottery form. Six of us committed to the trip knowing the odds were against us. But even without a lottery miracle we were going to St Andrews in July of 2023. Late September and the golf gods granted our wish…I received the email that our application was selected, and we were scheduled to play the New Course on July 9 and the Old Course on July 10. WOW!
My wife and I arrived in Edinburgh several days early for some sightseeing. Walking up to the Royal Mile we encountered road closures and a very large crowd. Apparently, everyone was waiting for King Charles to drive by on his way to his final coronation as king of Scotland. Two hours of waiting for two seconds of viewing as the King’s motorcade sped past. Underwhelming.
The next morning at a local coffee shop I looked out the window to see an old lady walk by. She looked just like Rod Stewart. Spoiler alert…it wasn’t an old lady. (Rod was in town for a concert) Later that day we took a private van to St Andrews, arriving with soft afternoon weather. Checked into our B&B and walked straight to the Old Course. Everyone else in our group would trickle into town over the next couple of days.
First up was a warm-up round at the Strathtyrum Course (par 69). I even brought along the original sleeve of logo balls from the 1990’s and played them on the short par 3’s. My wife joined me as my caddy. Kinda. More like she was just along for a nice walk. Nearly 20 years ago I played here and didn’t lose a single ball. So of course, my first tee-shot this time sliced into the gorse. Lost. Lost another ball on #2. And a third on #3. My struggles continued on the front 9 with a +14. I somehow calmed down and recorded +4 on the back 9. I shot 87 gross/72 net.
The next day my wife and I visited Hill of Tarvit (about 10 miles west of St Andrews) to see the mansion and gardens. The Kingarrock Hickory Golf Course is also located on the grounds. This is a fun 9-hole course set up exclusively for play with hickory golf clubs. Each golfer is given a canvas bag with about six vintage clubs to play with. We had the course entirely to ourselves. My wife even played this time. This was a very enjoyable experience, but it takes some adjustment to swing a 100yr old hickory club and strike the ball effectively.
Sunday was our first group tee times on the New Course. But first my wife and I had some walking to do. The Old Course is closed to golf on Sunday but otherwise open for anyone to walk the course. We casually strolled from the first tee to the seventh and back, enjoying perfect Sunday weather while the maintenance crew did their thing. (Note to self…pay attention to what the maintenance crew is doing next time…)
After walking the Old Course we made our way to the St Andrews cathedral ruins and cemetery to visit the gravesite of Old Tom and Young Tom Morris.
That afternoon we all met up for our 3:00 tee time. My friend and I each reserved a caddy for the round, which was well worth the fee. Caddy Steve was awesome, keeping me focused around the New Course with great advice when I found myself in a bunker, and encouraging words every time I sliced my drive (“Don’t worry, you’re safe over there”). His green reading was on-point as well, especially when it came to the speed of the greens. I could tell my game was working for me that round, but I also believe a lot of the credit goes to the caddy. I shot 88 gross/66 net.
Monday finally arrived; Old Course tee time at 3:30pm. Unfortunately, there was a vehicle accident with a fatality on the road in front of the Rusacks Hotel. The entire Old Course was shut down because the life flight helicopter had to land on the #1/#18 fairway. Although it was clear before our tee time, the backup would affect our round.
The weather was nice that afternoon, with rain predicted for the early evening hours. Our group showed up 30 minutes before tee time, pacing around trying to settle our nerves. The hardest-easiest tee shot in the world was right there in front of us; unfortunately, our caddies were not. Due to the earlier closure, most groups and caddies were still out on the course. We were told to go ahead and tee off on time, and the caddies would find us on the course once they were finished with their first loop. As I was waiting for my turn, caddy Steve walked up and wished me luck. He had just finished his second loop of the day and wasn’t assigned to me…bummer!
Our first foursome teed off in fine form, sending their shots down the widest fairway imaginable. My buddy and I were paired with a nice couple from the east coast. I hate wasting time on the tee box, and don’t want any thoughts or doubts to creep into my head. This was definitely not the place to choke! I confidently (well, on the outside maybe) teed my ball, settled into my stance, and let it RIP! Great contact and nearly down the middle, safely short of the Swilcan Burn. Let out a deep breath and cracked a smile. I could feel all the tension release, time to settle down and soak it all in.
Our caddies had caught up with us in the second fairway. And we then caught up with the rest of the groups ahead of us…four groups mingled at the third tee box; the effects of the early closure were still being felt this late in the afternoon. By the 6th hole the wind started up, and my game was not nearly as good as the previous day. By the 8th hole the light rain started. My speed control on the greens was off, several of my putts rolling way past the cup. I mentioned to my caddie that the greens were so much faster than yesterday, to which he replied that they’re always fast on Monday due to the Sunday maintenance. I had watched the maintenance crew the day before and didn’t make the connection. Oof, that cost me several strokes.
By the 11th hole it was solid rain. Lucky for me I had packed along my rain gear. Unfortunately, the caddies were without theirs. Because of the long delay earlier, none of them had time to fetch their gear. All of them were in shorts and light shirts for the rest of the round so all they could do was put on a brave face and shiver. By this time the groups were spread out enough to play ready golf and make a march to the finish. It was shaping up to be a 6+ hour round. My tee shot on the Road Hole cut the corner nicely, and I stayed well away from the bunker. It was nearly 9:40pm as we walked up to the 18th green with no one to welcome us in the wet, fading light. Quite a difference from the afternoon crowds milling about. I posted a 98 gross/76 net and had the time of my life!
The next day my wife and I bid farewell to St. Andrews and flew to Greece for a cruise from Athens to Venice. I shipped my clubs home with ShipSticks, and have to give a positive shout-out to their customer service. They were quick to reach out to me when the scheduled pick-up at the B&B didn’t occur and then followed up daily until the pick-up van and B&B host finally got on the same page.
So what’s next? Ireland May 2024…Ballybunion, Lahinch, Tralee, and Carne are already booked!
Richard.
