The Old Course - St. Andrews
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| Swilcan Bridge- No. 18 Old Course |
Playing this course is a bucket list item for every golfer I
know. So when we checked the open ballot results Wednesday afternoon for the
Friday draw and saw our names listed for a 3:00 pm tee-time, you can imagine
that my dad and I were beyond elated. To make the news that much sweeter, the
weather forecast was for some clouds, a little breeze and no rain!
We arrived in the town of St. Andrews, Scotland on Thursday
afternoon via Edinburg and really the
only way I can describe the town of
16,000 inhabitants is as a golf paradise. The links courses and the Old Course
Hotel are among the first things you see on the roadway when entering town.
Then as if right out of a fairy-tale, you see the 17th and 18th
of the Old Course making up one of the most dynamic settings of all golf. The
next day couldn’t come soon enough.
Luxembourg, where I have been living, has been lovely, but
it has a serious lack of golf. The tee-shot off #1 of the Old Course would be
the beginning of my first real round of golf in nearly nine months. With my
caddie Allen’s help we picked a target that wouldn’t leave me in bad shape if I
drew or cut the drive and we were off to the races. I picked up 5 straight pars
before a stray drive led me to a bogey on the par 5 6th. Three more
pars led me to a 37 going out and I am left to believe that hiring a caddie was
one of the better decisions I’ve made in my life. The highlight of the front
nine came when my dad drove the green on the 9th and had about 15
feet for an eagle, his putt missed just to the left side and led to a tap in
birdie. I got my own birdie on the 12th after a drive just short of
the green, a putt from the fairway left me only about 4 feet to finish. 
We didn’t play from the tips by any means, in fact the course
was probably only playing 6500 yards on the day. There is one tee set for the
day marked by flat markers and a moveable caddie box. The greens were rolling
perfect but not fast. All-in-all the course wasn’t overly hard. It was easy to
see that how on a calm day, the pros could post really good scores. Again, my
perspective of this may have changed greatly without the help of a
knowledgeable caddie and with a little more wind.
As we made our way to the final and most well-known two
holes of the course, the sun began to poke out from behind the clouds. I was
only two over on the day and had hopes of a birdie, birdie finish to cap off a
near perfect day. Those dreams ended as fast as my tee-ball on the 17th faded
out of bounds. I was yet another victim of the Road Hole.
The last hole on the Old Course provides a golf experience
unlike anything else, finishing in the heart of a historic village there are
tourists and locals watching the last few shots and putts (cheers and jeers
included for free). Of course we stopped on the Swilcan Bridge for a few good
pictures before playing our approaches. And even after each hitting a good
drive, my dad and I both found the deceptively big Valley of Sin from which I
was unable to save par. We finished with bogeys but unforgettable memories and
I can wait until I return to the Home of Golf.
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