View from 12 green at Kingsbarns
The general consensus from both Scottish and American alike before I even stepped foot on Kingsbarns was, “You’ll *love* it” and “It’s spectacular.” I nearly didn’t play because I felt bad/guilty about playing hooky for one of the practice days at the Ryder Cup the Wednesday of that week, but everyone told me, “You *have* to play Kingsbarns.” So, I eventually made an executive decision and did just that.
Coming “Home” on no. 18!
When I walked from the car park onto the grounds at Carnoustie Golf Links, I immediately knew it was going to be a memorable experience. I was about to play a course that’s obviously in the Open Championship rota, so that immediately makes it special, but when you step onto a major championship golf course, you can feel something particularly distinct in the air.
The atmosphere at Carnoustie is welcoming and relaxed, but there’s a grandeur to the venue. After covering nearly every major over the last four years, you can sense that feeling right away. (Then again, you also show up at some major venues and don’t get that vibe, but I won’t go into naming some of those places.)
Just a bit off the beaten path in a picturesque old town along the water — though only about 15 miles from St Andrews — lies The Golf House Club at Elie, a quaint course played across classic links terrain. The game has been played at Elie since the 15th century and you can tell with the rich history seen in the clubhouse, starting with the row of old lockers lining the walls of the main entrance.
It’s not a course that will wow you or awe you the way some other gems in Scotland will, like North Berwick or Royal Dornoch (my two favorites), but it will certainly charm the heck out of you and want you coming back for more. In short, Elie was a fair and fun test, not to mention memorable.
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