The Old Course - St. Andrews

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 17^th and 18^th 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 6^th. 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 9^th 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 12^th 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.