Is links golf obsolete?

[shanker]

Links golf will never die-the main reason there are very few Pro tournaments held on links courses is the lack of infrastructure and the loss of revenue whilst the course is being prepared.

We have lost the Irish Open from links courses to "resort courses" such as Adare Manor and Carton House in the past few years.
Interestingly last year a week before the Open the Irish PGA Championship was played at The European Club a superb links, Harrington won the tournament and credited the practise on a links course as ideal prepareation for the Open.

How sad that the Irish Open is deserting famous golf courses like Portmarnock and Ballybunion!
BTW I don't know whether it's true but I read that Harrington stipulated he would play the Irish PGA only if it was held on a links course. His idea being to get links practice for the British Open while a lot of the others were at Loch Lomond. It seemed to work.

 

[John_Findlay]

A good point has been made about parkland courses being more TV friendly than links courses. I agree.

St Andrews isn't pretty to look at during the Open and all the holes except the 1st, 17th and 18th blend together. Hoylake was even worse.

Could be part of the reason for most pro events being played on nice lush courses which are the same week in week out. And lets face it, truly, how rare is is during the Open for the guys to be shooting the pins out. It doesn't make for good telly for the un-initiated.

Shame more events aren't held on the classic links though but it's all about infrastructure. Does anyone seriously think the Belfry in 1985 was one of the best courses in England at the time? Trust me, it wasn't, but it had the facilities and money spoke. Much the same could be said for the K Club, Celtic Manor and Gleneagles in the following Ryder Cups.

 

[haplesshacker]

In answer to the topic question.

No.

(Must be my shortest post ever!)

 

[Kaizer_Soze]

Links golf is golf as it was meant to be, I'm one of the lucky ones who have played the hallowed turf of the Old Course (and shot a gross 78, nett 71). The feeling of playing Links golf is like no other, and also very, very challenging. Coming from Fife I have numerous choices of Links golf, from St Andrews, Leven Thistle, Lundin Links, Elie, Kingsbarns you could even describe the municipal course at Kinghorn as Links golf. (Also some fantastic parkland courses, Ladybank, Balbirnie and Forrester Lodge to name a few of many)

Drumoig ?, fantastic golf course and a great test but certainly not links.

 

[mrobbie]

I find links courses to be the most challenging and fun variety of courses out there. Sadly, I don't play them nearly enough.

My membership when I lived in Aberdeen was parkland/woodland courses (Alford then Newmachar) and so spent most rounds on home territory. In Australia I again played mostly woodland, but on one occasion played the Cut (south of Perth) which was relatively links-like. Here in Dubai, there is no real links golf.

When home last week I played Royal Aberdeen for the 1st time... WOW! I never want links golf to become obsolete! That course was fantastic, and definitely requires a different style of game to play the course well.

I always saw Ernie Els as a handy links type player for some reason.

 

[madandra]

I love Galsgow Gailes and other real links on the Ayrshire coast but I am not impressed by the new courses at St Andrews. Perhaps the new Castle course can break the mould as far as that area is concerned.

 

[DCB]

Madandra,

Looks like they are not looking after things the way the last owners did. I played there, the Devlin, in its first year of opening and felt they had opened too early. Another year would have made such a difference. Next visit was a year later and although it was in good condition it wasn't what I expected of a resort course. On both those occassions the greens were the best part of the course. Firm and true and a good pace. Some of the fairways were wet/soggy in places which was a disapointment.

I felt that some of the holes were a bit contrived, set out to fill/fit an area of ground. Even the Torrance had a bit of that feel for the first few holes.

Other than that they are two long courses when you play off the back tees. But, given the choice I think I would play one of the other Links Trust courses rather than go back to St Andrews Bay next time up there.

 

[Toad]

I have a lot of away days and we usualy end up at a links course in Fife, Angus or Ayrshire.

Links is in my opinion the best type of course to play as it tests all aspects of your game.
You have to bump and run, play low punch shots etc and you have to be straight off the tee or you get punished, on most parkland courses you can spray the ball around and still have a second shot to the green.

As said before everyone would love to play links most of the time so it will never be obsolete.

 

[USER1999]

Most of the parkland courses I play have holes which are surrounded by trees. Bad tee shots are severely punished. If the course is such that you can block it right, cross two fairways and wedge it back to the original green, that's not a parkland course, it's a rubbish course.

 

[viscount17]

I want a chance to play a links course so don't talk them down. To me they just seem to represent 'real' golf.

 

[Toad]

Murph,

I am not rubbishing all parkland courses as I play on tree lined one myself, it's just that more than most are set up with very light rough and there is very little penalty for a wayward shot.

The reason being is that they rely heavily on visitors and know if the course was to tricky with heavy rough etc then rounds would take too long and visitors would not return.

 

[toonarmy]

Just as a matter of debate, might the very small number of links-style courses not be in some way linked to the litigious nature of society? The majority of inland courses have lots of nice big trees (75% air my arse) stopping balls from flying all over the place. Out on the links, there is nothing to stop that violent slice careering towards someone's head three fairways away. That, plus all the hold-ups while someone plays from the 11th fairway to the 2nd green are probably seen as less VFM than other styles of course. And there is considerably less coastline than land mass of course.

As someone who started on links courses on the south coast (Hythe Imperial etc.) I can only imagine what it would be like now with the increased number of people hacking about.

Just a thought.

 

[USER1999]

Courses in my neck of the woods have penal rough. My course certainly does. Especially in May/June. It is really a case of hack it out sideways if you can find it.

I just can't see why (and it is reflected all over this post), links golf is viewed as 'proper' golf, as if all the other types of course (and some of these are among the best in the world) are lesser challenges.

Yes, a bit of links is interesting, but if I played it all the time, I would find the need to go inland for a change, in the same way that tourists come to scotland to play something different from their home tracks too. It is just not neccessarily better, or more technically difficult.

 

[John_Findlay]

I don't think tree-lines courses are easier, Murph. I tend to play worse on them because I don't have the game to be able to produce big draws around trees. Parkland with few trees is a different matter. It's just that I watch parkland golf all the time on telly and am more of a traditionalist. Play one of the classic links courses and I'm in heaven.

 

[DCB]

"Beauty is in the eye of the beholder"

We all have differing ideas as to what makes, for us as individuals, a good course. Whether it be the way it looks and fits the eye or whether it is the way it plays and challenges us as mere mortal golfers. What works for me may well not work for J_F for instance, but the main thing is that we all enjoy this great game on whatever type of course we play it on.

Lets agree to differ as to which type of course is a better test of golf than others. We all get what we want out of this game don't we, otherwise we wouldn't put ourselves through this torture every weekend!

Oh, as a Scotsman, I have to say that links is best though! (even though my home track is a parkland course)

 

[toonarmy]

I think it is right to say that Links golf is a purer form if only for the fact that you could play a links course with ancient equipment and still be able to shoot a score. You'd have no chance of shooting a decent score around a parkland course with old gear though.

In this sense, links layouts enable the game to be played pretty much as it was in the beginning. I'm not saying this makes it better, just purer.

Personally, I've played links, parkland, heathland, flat, hilly, brown, US-style - you name it.

I love them all! A good course is a good course regardless. A bad links is not better than a good parkland and vice versa.

 

[Nico]

Great point Toon well made,I love all good courses!

 

[USER1999]

I like good courses too. Interestingly, out of GMs top 20 UK courses, 18 are links, the other two are Loch Lomond and Woodhall. Hmm. Bit of a lack of balance perhaps. If this was a good looking lady list, you would not necessarily expect 18 out of 20 to be blonde.

Might explain why the yanks are all over the links though. If they go by this list, then that is what they will play.

Mind you, I don't trust this list coz Bovey castle is on it somewhere.

 

[John_Findlay]

Murph, just out of interest, which of the links courses on the list have you played? Maybe you're not getting a true flavour for the best of links golf. It's not all wind, no trees and bare fairways, you know.

I may never change your mind but I took a group of 9 pals up to Nairn and Dornoch last week, most of whom only play the parkland courses around Midlothian. They are all converts and have signed up for next year's trip already. They didn't realize golf got that good.

You can't tell me you wouldn't enjoy playing here?

And this is only No, 26 on the list!

 

[Nico]

John,if you could see heather on the horizon not the sea the top picture could be at any of the great heathland courses in Surrey, it particularly looks like the 17th at Hankley common.