New Course - St Andrews Links
St Andrews, Scotland
We landed in Edinburgh at 10 am without a tee time. 70 degrees and sunny - there was no doubt we were playing golf. We dropped our bags, grabbed the nearest coffee, and hit the phones. A group of 13 golfers full of airplane food fresh off a red-eye, we weren’t the easiest group to accommodate. But within the hour, we were throwing balls at the first tee of The New Course to figure out pairings.
The New Course opened in 1895, 343 years after The Old Course. Although the two courses share the same stretch of Scottish seaside property, The New does not have nearly the same history or famously named bunkers and/or bridges.
They also happen to play very differently. Left is trouble on The New while Right is trouble on The Old. The New Course has only one double green compared to the Old’s seven. It is also much less quirky than The Old. With fewer deep run-off areas and flatter, more normal-sized greens, The New Course is a good entry point to Scottish links golf and will serve as a good warm-up for The Old Course, the main event.
It won’t be the most memorable course you play on your trip, but you’ll be glad you did.
Public: Course Website | Opened: 1895 | Designer: Old Tom Morris, Benjamin Hall Blyth
