Category: Around the World

Memorable Moments From a Great 2017 Season in Professional Golf

Brian Mull
After sinking a 50-foot eagle putt on No. 15 at Royal Birkdale during the 2017 Open Championship, Jordan Spieth pointed to the hole and told caddie Michael Greller to “Go Get It.” Roughly an hour later, Spieth had completed a dramatic late charge and captured the Claret Jug.

The book is closed on another year of international professional golf. Once again, the world’s best golfers thrilled, inspired and amazed those of us who play the game for recreation and pleasure. Under immense pressure, they remained poised and produced incredible shots that dazzled galleries and television viewers, probably sending more than a few of us racing to the nearest driving range to try and replicate the feats we had just witnessed.

As 2017 winds to a close, it’s appropriate to reflect on some of our favorite golf shots and moments from the past 12 months. What makes our list unique is this: With assistance from PerryGolf and its experienced staff, you can walk many of these same fairways and greens next year on one of many Cruises, Escorted Tours or Custom Tours. Relish the opportunity to test your swing on holes which are forever etched in the history books due to phenomenal performances by the current crop of golf stars. Their talent transcends the game and makes them international ambassadors for the many virtues inherent to his wonderful game we love.

Happy Holidays.

 

Jordan Spieth at Royal Birkdale

It wasn’t just that Spieth, 24, became the youngest American professional to win the Open Championship. Or that he played the final five holes in 5-under-par on Sunday after falling out of the lead for the first time all week. Or, after quite a lengthy delay and debate, he made an unbelievable bogey from the driving range on the 13th hole. It was all of those things and more – the near ace on 14, the 50-footer for Eagle on 15, the way Matt Kuchar answered Spieth’s birdies until the end – which made the 2017 Open Championship at Royal Birkdale an epic for the ages. Spieth claimed his third leg of the Grand Slam and 11th PGA Tour victory, making him the youngest player in history to accomplish such, showing indefatigable spirit and determination in his pursuit of the Claret Jug.

(Take a PerryGolf Custom Tour and play Royal Birkdale and Northwest England’s other legendary links in the Open rota, such as Royal Liverpool and Royal Lytham & St. Anne’s).  

You can also be there to witness history in 2018, on PerryGolf’s Open Championship cruise, which includes playing historic links across Ireland and Scotland, and attending the final round of the Open at Carnoustie.

 

 

Sergio Garcia’s magical year

Best Player to Never Win a Major is an ambiguous description for a veteran professional golfer. On one side, it means a golfer has enjoyed a terrific career, winning regular events on major professional tours and routinely contending for golf’s four major trophies. On the flip side, a person considered ‘BPTNWAM’ can be perceived as afflicted with the inability to close the deal on Sunday afternoons. If you recall, a little more than a decade ago the American lefty Phil Mickelson wore this moniker like a scarlet letter. Five majors later, he’s considered one of the game’s all-time greats. Others, such as seven-time European Tour Order of Merit leader Colin Montgomerie, were never so fortunate and ended their career with a hole in their otherwise impeccable playing record.

Sergio Garcia started challenging for major championships in 1999 at the tender age of 19. And in many years since, he’d been thick in the hunt on Sunday but fallen short, typically slipping down the leaderboard when his putter went awry.

When he arrived at Augusta National in the first week of April 2017, Garcia had 12 top-5 finishes in majors and nearly 30 professional wins worldwide. When he departed on Sunday evening he had donned a Green Jacket, shed other labels and set a magical year in motion.

(Let PerryGolf take you to the final round of the 2019 Masters).

How’s this for a year? Not only did Garcia nip his pal and Ryder Cup teammate Justin Rose in sudden death to win the Masters on what would’ve been his hero Seve Ballesteros’ 60th birthday, he also got married, announced the impending birth of a child in March and won twice more around the world, including the Valderrama Masters in his native Spain in a European Tour tournament hosted by his own Foundation.

(Cruise from Lisbon to Barcelona with PerryGolf and tackle Valderrama, one of the best courses in Continental Europe).

 

Harman makes his mark in Wilmington

With the PGA Championship taking place at Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte, roughly four hours west the Southeastern North Carolina coast received a rare treat, serving as one-time host for the PGA Tour’s Wells Fargo Championship.

The tournament was played at Eagle Point Golf Club, a Tom Fazio layout in Wilmington, just down the road from PerryGolf headquarters. The course received glowing reviews from the pros throughout the week and delivered one of the more exciting finishes of the 2016-17 season.

Brian Harman, the diminutive lefthander from Georgia, thrilled a capacity crowd surrounding the 18th green by draining an improbable 28-foot birdie putt late Sunday afternoon to steal a one-shot victory over World No. 1 Dustin Johnson and streaking Pat Perez as rising star Jon Rahm watched from the fairway.

Harman’s second PGA Tour victory was worth $1.35 million and vaulted him to his best season as a professional. He finished runner-up to Brooks Koepka later in the summer at the U.S. Open and ended the season with seven top-10s, ranking 25th in the FedEx Cup standings.

 

Records shattered at St. Andrews

Tyrrell Hatton became the first player to successfully defend his title in the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship, a marquee event on the European Tour, contested over the Old Course at St. Andrews, Kingsbarns and Carnoustie – which are three of the more popular courses offered on PerryGolf Custom and Escorted Tours.

https://www.perrygolf.com/escorted-tour/scotland-homeofgolf-escorted-2018.php

Hatton blistered the storied links with a 24-under par total for 72 holes in a week during which records were made to be broken. For most of us mere mortals, the only way to shoot 61 at the Old Course is to end our round after 13 holes. Not for Ross Fisher, who toured all 18 in his 11-under round to set the new course record. Tommy Fleetwood also joined in the record-shattering fun, taking advantage of benign conditions to fire a brilliant course record 63 at the ultra-difficult Carnoustie.

 

Fleetwood claims the Race to Dubai

Speaking of Tommy Fleetwood, he captured the prestigious European Tour Race to Dubai, riding a pair of victories and top-five finishes at the WGC-Mexico event and U.S. Open to the lucrative prize.

Fleetwood claimed trophies at the French Open, played at Le Golf de National and the Abu Dhabi Championship en route to his best season as a professional.

The 26-year-old Englishman vaulted inside the top 20 of the Official World Golf Ranking and served notice that he’s likely to be a mainstay on major championship leaderboards and European Ryder Cup teams in the near future.

https://youtu.be/LsCSIQ-ua50

 

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5 Sights to See in Melbourne, Australia

Brian Mull
The Melbourne Star is one of many attractions and sights to enjoy in this wonderful Australian city.

Last weekend, the 24-year-old pro Cameron Smith defeated Jordan Zunic in a two-hole sudden death playoff to claim the Australian PGA Championship. It was the most significant individual win yet for the young Queenslander, who teamed with Jonas Blixt in April to win the Zurich Classic on the PGA Tour.

The Australian PGA was played on the Gold Coast of Queensland, which is about 1,000 miles north of Melbourne, a featured destination for PerryGolf escorted tours.

https://www.perrygolf.com/destinations/australia-golf-vacations.php

Of course, any PerryGolf trip to Melbourne includes amazing golf at world renowned courses such as Royal Melbourne, Kingston Heath and Metropolitan in the Sandbelt region. Chasing pars and birdies on these magnificent layouts is certain to capture your imagination, create indelible memories and is likely to make you crave a return visit.

In addition to golf at the highest level, the cruises and tours provide ample time for savoring the scenes, sounds and flavor of a wonderful city such as Melbourne, with its comfortable summer weather and friendly people.

Here are five sights to see on any trip to the Melbourne area. Each of these can easily be enjoyed in half a day or stretched into a full day if you’re having so much fun you can’t leave!

Queen Victoria Market

Also known as the Queen Vic Markets or the Queen Vic, and locally as ‘”Vic Market,” this is a major landmark in Melbourne, Australia, and at around seven hectares (17 acres) is the largest open air market in the Southern Hemisphere. The Market is significant to Melbourne’s culture and heritage and has been listed on the Victorian Heritage Register. The Queen Victoria Market is the only surviving 19th century market in the Melbourne central business district.

Officially opened on March 20, 1878, the market has a long, rich history and remains a vibrant and functional part of the city today, offering hundreds of stalls where local farmers and merchants sell fresh fruits, vegetables, seafood and an array of art, crafts, clothing and jewelry, among other items.

Browse or shop, spend a few hours or make it a day as you absorb an iconic location in Melbourne’s culture.

 

Royal Botanic Gardens

These internationally renowned botanical gardens are located near the centre of Melbourne on the south bank of the Yarra River. Sprawling 94 acres (38 hectares) these well-manicured and landscaped gardens feature a mixture of native and exotic vegetation, numbering more than 10,000 species.

The Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne are adjacent to a larger group of parklands directly south-east of the city, between St. Kilda Road and the Yarra River known as the Domain Parklands, which includes Kings Domain, Alexandra Gardens and Queen Victoria Gardens.

The gardens play a significant role in helping to preserve threatened and endangered plants while studying their habitats.

 

Eureka Skydeck 88

Located inside the 297-meter (975 foot) Eureka Tower in the Southbank precinct of Melbourne, the Skydeck is accurately described as “an experience above all else.” The Skydeck is located 12 meters from the top and passengers arrive there in 38 scintillating seconds aboard the Southern Hemisphere’s fastest elevator.

Daring guests can accelerate the experience by stepping out onto “The Edge” – a glass cube that extends from the 88th floor of the Tower and suspends guests more than 900 feet above Melbourne.

Eureka Tower opened in 2006 after a four-year construction process. Any visitors wishing to see Melbourne from a different point of view would be remiss to forego this heightened enlightened vantage point.

 

Melbourne Star

Previously known as the Southern Star, this giant Ferris Wheel is located in the Waterfront City precinct in the Docklands area of Melbourne. The only giant observation wheel in the Southern Hemisphere is 120 meters (394 feet) tall and has seven spokes to reflect the seven-pointed star on the Australian flag.

A ride on the Melbourne Star consists of one complete rotation, which takes 30 minutes and delivers unobstructed views stretching nearly 25 miles (40 kilometers). Sit back and enjoy the breathtaking scenery encompassing the entire Docklands precinct, Melbourne’s central business district, Port Phillip Bay and as far as Mount Macedon, Arthur’s Seat and the Dandenong Ranges.

Melbourne Zoo

Officially called the Royal Melbourne Zoological Gardens, the Melbourne Zoo features 320 animal species from Australia and around the world. Located 2.5 miles north of the city centre, the zoo is easily accessible via a short taxi ride or public transportation (Stop 24 or Stop 25).

You may spot something cuter than this baby Asian Elephant during your trip to Melbourne, but we seriously doubt it!

From the Giant Tortoise to the Baw Baw Frog and the Philippines Crocodile, there’s an animal for everyone at this well-routed zoo. Be sure to enter Lion Gorge, where you’ll come face-to-face with a magnificent African Wild Dog Pack and learn plenty about this agile, active hunter. Walk the elevated boardwalk above the orangutans and watch them swing, climb and feed as they would in the wild.

The Wild Zoo is the largest exhibit at the Melbourne Zoo and showcases the natural beauty of Victoria’s coast and ocean. Be prepared to swoon over a seal or fall for a penguin.

 

 

 

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How the 2019 Open Championship at Royal Portrush came to be

Brian Mull
Royal Portrush, ranked No. 14 in the Golf.com World Top 100, welcomes the best golfers in the world for the 2019 Open Championship.

The Open Championship was last held in Northern Ireland in 1951 and the champion earned 300£ (or roughly $11,000 today). Max Faulkner surely cherished clutching the Claret Jug as he stood on the 18th green at Royal Portrush and the winner’s check was a welcome sight as well. However, when compared to the $1.8 million Jordan Spieth collected for winning last summer at Royal Birkdale, the paltry pay Faulkner received reflects the immense growth professional golf has enjoyed during the last 66 years.

As the purses and galleries increased, having sufficient room to erect the necessary infrastructure on and around the course became a requisite ingredient for any club wishing to play host to the Open Championship. Few doubted the quality of the Dunluce Links at Royal Portrush – it’s routinely ranked in the top 20 in the World – and whether the golf holes provided a stern enough test to deserve a spot in the Open rota. But the tight quarters around the course seemed too cramped to welcome 200,000 spectators during tournament week and ensure they enjoyed a pleasant experience.

Bordered by Bushmills / Dunluce Road on one side and the North Atlantic Ocean on the other, it appeared Royal Portrush in County Antrim, Northern Ireland must remain content to live forever as a one-time Open Championship host and savor the fading memories from Faulkner’s magical week.

That was the situation until 2014 when leaders from the Royal & Ancient Golf Club along with noted golf course architects Tom Mackenzie and Martin Ebert formed a plan to renovate Dunluce Links, create the necessary room for the Open’s Spectator Village and make the golf course a demanding test for the modern professional without compromising legendary Harry S. Colt’s design from the 1930s. The legendary golf writer Bernard Darwin described Dunluce Links as such in 1951:

Mr. H.S. Colt, who

designed it in its present

form, has thereby built

himself a monument more

enduring than brass.

Upon receiving unanimous approval for the renovations from the Royal Portrush membership in 2015, the R&A awarded the club the 2019 Open Championship. On-course construction began that fall and was completed in the summer of 2017. Each step of the journey, Mackenzie and Ebert surely saw Colt’s vision and heard Darwin’s words, as they steered their crew to execute a renovation fit to carry the course through the Open and decades beyond.

With the R&A intending to use the former 17th and 18th holes on Dunluce Links as the Spectator Village, it was Mackenzie and Ebert’s task to create two new additions on the existing property. They added the 7th, a 572-yard par-5, and the 8th, a 435-yard par-4, which fit the terrain and routing as if they’ve been in place for decades. No. 16, the brutish 235-yard par-3 known as Calamity Corner, is one of the only bunkerless holes at Royal Portrush – not as if sand is needed to protect par. Open contenders will aim to avoid Bobby Locke’s Hollow which lines the left side, poised to collect a wild hook or pull.

In all, Dunluce Links has the fewest bunkers (70) of any course in the Open rota. By comparison, there are 150 at Muirfield and 210 at Royal Lytham & St. Anne’s.

Now, the refreshed and enhanced Dunluce Links at Royal Portrush, measuring more than 7,300 yards, sits along the shore waiting to test the world’s best in the summer of 2019. Once again, Mackenzie and Ebert have doctored a course in the Open rota and prepared it to face the extraordinary talent of the modern professional golfer.

Golf observers, club members and historians hope for a mystical week in July 2019 to extend a golden era for Irish golf as Dublin native Padraig Harrington, local favorite Graeme McDowell, longtime Royal Portrush member Darren Clarke and world No. 10 Rory McIlroy – who grew up in Holywood roughly 60 miles away – have claimed major titles in the last decade.

PerryGolf can take you to Royal Portrush. Join the Hogan Bracket on the 2018 Open Championship Cruise and you can test your game on the renovated links, pausing certainly to snap a photo on No. 13, a beautiful par-3, known as ‘Feather Bed.’

You can also attend the final round of the 148th Open Championship in 2019 and play other great links in the rota along the way, such as Royal Liverpool and Royal Birkdale, by joining PerryGolf on a 12-day cruise from Edinburgh to London aboard the luxurious Azamara Journey.

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3 Golf Destinations for Couples in 2018

Brian Mull
L’Hemisfèric, an IMAX Cinema, planetarium and lasertarium is a central component in the innovative, remarkable City of Arts & Sciences in Valencia, Spain.

Traveling with your spouse creates an opportunity to recharge and reconnect, while sharing lifetime memories visiting interesting locations that are rich with history, beauty and fantastic golf. PerryGolf recommends these three destinations for adventurous couples who enjoy spending time traveling, chasing birdies and basking in the wonders of the world.

IBERIAN PENINSULA

Take delight in the finest ports throughout Portugal and Spain on the 690-guest Azamara Quest, featuring 8 Nights and 5 Rounds of golf.

https://www.perrygolf.com/golfcruising/iberian-peninsula-2018-cruise.php

Enjoy the antics of the cute Barbary apes near the Rock of Gibraltar. These lovable primates are the only wild monkeys in Continental Europe.

Barcelona captures the imagination of thousands of visitors annually.

Savor the majesty of Barcelona, with its ideal blend of food, scenery and nightlife. The second-largest city in Spain is one of the most frequently visited destinations in the world and was the host of the 1992 Summer Olympics.

Tour the gothic cathedral in Valencia, and savor Oceanogràfic inside the City of Arts and Sciences, which is one of the 12 Treasures of Spain

Equally unforgettable is the beautiful port city of Malaga and its glorious renaissance cathedral, which was built between 1528 and 1782 and whose interior includes both the renaissance and baroque styles.

Walk in the footsteps of golf’s legends during a round at Valderrama, considered the top ranked course in continental Europe and site of the Andalucia Valderrama Masters, won this year by tournament host Sergio Garcia.

Finca Cortesin, which played host to the Volvo World Match Play Championship on three occasions, is a divine Cabell B. Robinson design routed through a dramatic valley located near the Mediterranean. It’s routinely ranked as one of the top courses in Spain.

ITALY

When it comes to romance, history and gastronomic delight, Italy is difficult to beat.

https://www.perrygolf.com/escorted-tour/italy-escorted-golf-vacation-2018.php

PerryGolf’s escorted tour includes 14 Nights and 6 Rounds of Golf.

Admire the countryside while traveling stress-free on Italy’s wonderful railway system.

Enjoy the Roman Edifices while touring the city of Verona, which served as the setting for three Shakespeare plays, including Romeo and Juliet as well as The Taming of the Shrew.

Perhaps glimpse a celebrity while taking a moonlit stroll on the banks of Lake Como.

The elegance and beauty of Italy’s Lake Como defies description.

Spend time studying the intricacy of Leonardo Da Vinci’s magnificent painting, ‘The Last Supper.’

The Marriott Venice Resort & Spa is known across Europe for the most luxurious accommodations. Nights spent there are relaxing and divine.

And, of course, there are terrific golf options.

Roma Acquasanta is Italy’s oldest golf course and features stunning views of the Rome skyline.

Also located only 10 miles from Rome is the delightful championship layout Marco Simone, which is the site of 2022 Ryder Cup. Saint Peter’s Dome is within view from several holes on this Jim Fazio design which unfolds on the grounds of an 11th century castle.

Venice Golf Club basks in a spectacular setting between the Adriatic Sea and Lagoon of Venice and features distinct links characteristics and the ever present bora and sirocco winds. Great champions from Palmer to Jacklin to Trevino have battled this formidable foe.

NEW ZEALAND

New Zealand has roughly four million residents, making it one of the world’s least populated countries. Golf is the most popular sport with more courses per capita of population than any country in the world. And the world-class courses are complemented by food, wine and phenomenal scenery.

PerryGolf takes you there for a 13-Night, 7-Round Escorted Tour that simply must be experienced first-hand.

https://www.perrygolf.com/escorted-tour/new-zealand-escorted-golf-package-nov5.php

The Kiwi is a small, flightless bird that’s considered a symbol of sparsely populated New Zealand.

Admire native birds like the Kiwi or the Moa. The Kiwi, which is a flightless bird, has loose hair, strong legs and no tail. It is the national icon of New Zealand and the unofficial national bird. They can live from 25-50 years, although they are vulnerable to predators because they lack a sternum and have underdeveloped chest and wing muscles.

For the wine lover, Hawke’s Bay and its world-renowned wineries, is a highlight of any trip to New Zealand. It’s the nation’s oldest wine producing region in New Zealand is known for its full-bodied red wines and complex Chardonnays.

Speaking of breathtaking beauty, the golf at Cape Kidnappers provides the pinnacle.  This unique Tom Doak design in Napier ranked No. 44 in the world in Golf.com’s 2017-18 rankings delivers stunning panoramic views of Hawke’s Bay. The fairways perched 157 meters above the sea, on the grounds of what was formerly a 5,000-acre sheep station.

 

Our goal in designing golf courses is to create interesting holes you wouldn’t find anywhere else. That wasn’t hard to do at Cape Kidnappers, because the site is not like anywhere else in golf. If it were any bigger or any more dramatic, it would probably be cordoned off as a national park. – Tom Doak

 

Cape Kidnappers features amazing scenery and thrilling golf.

Tour the Lord of the Rings trilogy filming locations around Wellington, which is described as ‘the coolest little capital in the world.’

The only Jack Nicklaus signature course in New Zealand, is Kinloch, a links-style design tucked between gorgeous views of Lake Taupo and rugged farmland.  Often compared to the classic seaside links of the British Isles, Kinloch is a fair, yet demanding and memorable test of golf.

A scenic cruise of Lake Taupo features the Mine Bay Maori Rock Carvings and full commentary on the Maori culture and the area’s vast volcanic history.

And, tucked inside Lake Wakatipu and the Remarkables Mountain Range, is Jack’s Point, located 20 miles from the cozy resort town of Queenstown. Measuring nearly 7,000 yards from the championship tees, the course winds through a natural environment of tussock grasslands, native bush and massive rock outcroppings.

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The 3 Best Golf Clusters in the World

Brian Mull
Golf Digest ranked The Royal Melbourne West Course No. 6 in the World in 2016.

 

Traveling across the world to play golf and absorb the culture is a thrilling opportunity, one to be seized and relished. Once you arrive at your destination, however, it’s a nice perk if there are many exceptional golf courses located within a small radius. Then you can simply unpack your bags, settle in, and spend more time chasing birdies, enjoying the scenery and your companions while you spend less time traveling between your accommodations and the first tee.

These three remarkable clusters, located around the globe, offer exceptional, unforgettable golf, enabling you to play the world’s finest layouts while limiting your travel time. Each area is serviced by PerryGolf through an array of Custom Tours, Escorted Tours and Cruises.

 

 

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA  

With a population of more than 4.5 million, Melbourne is a beautiful, culturally intense cosmopolitan city in Victoria on the southeast coast of Australia. Combining delightful winter weather and friendly English-speaking people with an entertainment and gastronomic wonderland, it’s easy to see why Melbourne is a popular destination for curious and adventurous global visitors.

Complementing the charm is this delicious appeal to golfers: Just a half-hour drive south of downtown is the Sandbelt region and some of the highest ranked golf courses in Australia – and the world.

“Australia has the ability to become a golfing destination on par with Ireland,” PerryGolf president and co-founder Gordon Dalgleish said following a recent trip Down Under.

Of course any mention of Sandbelt golf starts with the wonderful layouts at the oldest club in Australia, Royal Melbourne’s East and West. The West course, designed by the legendary Alister MacKenzie is routinely Top 10 in the World and No. 1 in Australia while the East course is Top 100 in the World as well. Royal Melbourne played host to the Presidents Cup in 1998 and welcomes the matches back in 2019.

Just down the road is Kingston Heath, designed by Australian pro Des Soutar in 1925 with  an assist from MacKenzie, who suggested the bunkering. The course entertained the World Cup of Golf in 2016 and received glowing reviews from the world’s elite professionals for its conditioning and playability. Metropolitan Golf Club might be less well known on a global scale, yet it features bunkers carved into the edges of the greens, a feature unique to the region. Beware the slick but smooth undulating bentgrass putting surfaces.

Golfers interested in onsite lodging coupled with a world class championship challenge will relish the opportunity to visit Victoria Golf Club, site of the 2011 Australian Masters (won by Ian Poulter). The design is credited to William Meader, Oscar Damman and MacKenzie and noted golf writer Geoff Shackleford described their work as such: “I can’t think of a better compliment. You would never tire of playing it on a daily basis.”

Commonwealth is yet another course holding a spot in the rotation for the major men’s and women’s championships held each November and December in Australia. Beware the beautiful yet daunting dogleg left par-4, No. 16 where you’ll face a demanding drive from an elevated tee to a landing area guarded by a large water hazard. Yarra Yarra is a historic layout nearby that features four of the finest par-3s anywhere and the Woodlands Golf Club is a fine, fair test which has encompassed the spirit of the Sandbelt since 1913.

 

LANCASHIRE COAST, ENGLAND

Golfers wanting to trace the steps of the Open Champion in a history-rich land loaded with exquisite golf must visit this region on the west coast of England.

Encompassing towns such as Liverpool and Southport, golfers can walk in the footsteps of every great champion to ever form a grip and swing a shaft, spanning generations from hickory to graphite.

Let us start with the three courses in the Open rota: Royal Birkdale played host to golf’s oldest championship 10 times from 1954 to 2017 and enjoys an impressive list of champions, with legends like Palmer, Watson and Trevino hoisting the Claret Jug here. The young American star Jordan Spieth added his name to the prestigious list last summer, finishing with a furious flurry to overtake fellow countryman Matt Kuchar.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XypqxCQrpVw?rel=0&w=560&h=315]

Royal Lytham & St. Anne’s opened its current course in 1897 and boasts its own rich tradition. Designed originally by the pro George Lowe and later altered by the prolific Harry S. Colt, Lytham & St. Anne’s was the site of Bobby Jones’ Open victory in 1926, four years prior to his remarkable Grand Slam. The course has welcomed the Open 11 times, most recently in 2012 when Ernie Els claimed his third major title.

Returning to the Open rota in recent years was England’s second-oldest seaside course, Royal Liverpool, also known as Hoylake. In the land where The Beatles formed and catapulted to stardom, another mega star, Tiger Woods, strategically dissected the course and outdueled a quartet of competitors by two shots.

While those are the most familiar courses in the area due to their visibility during the third week of July,  there are additional options within a short car ride available to golfers visiting the Lancashire Coast.

Southport & Ainsdale, established 1906, was designed by James Braid, a five-time Open Champion, member of the Great Triumvirate and renowned architect. S&A is also a two-time Ryder Cup host (1933, 1937) and features a spectacular clubhouse and patio, delivering sweeping views of the rolling dunes and dicey heather and gorse. West Lancashire is a stern test, which has undergone many incarnations over the last 140 years. The current design is credited to C.K. Cotton and is certain to please, delight and challenge as golfers battle the brisk breezes and swift rolling terrain. Any listing of the area’s finest would be incomplete without Formby, established in 1884 and widely considered one of British Isles’ finest links. Birkdale, Liverpool and Lytham are all within a 45-minute drive of Formby, which stretches to 7,028 yard from the back tees and offers few, if any, flat lies in the fairways.

 

AYRSHIRE, SCOTLAND

Lancashire’s neighbors to the north would surely argue, over a friendly pint no doubt, that their area is steeped in history and tradition equal to anywhere in the world. Scotland is, after all, the Home of Golf and the first ever Open Championship was played in Ayrshire in 1860.

The county in southwest Scotland is located on the Firth of Clyde and is the home to an array of links, spanning more than 150 years of design philosophies and alterations, spiked with the ever present and often gusty breezes.

Royal Troon has been the host for the Open Championship on nine occasions from 1923-2016.

Royal Troon is known for the infamous Postage Stamp green, which turns the 123-yard par-3 No. 12 into a threat more menacing than the yardage might suggest. The hole is just one piece of the puzzle that forms the inward nine, where many a player has watched the Claret Jug slip out of his dreams and vanish into the ether above South Bay.

Trump Turnberry Resort (Ailsa) checked in at No. 22 in the world in the most recent Golf Digest world rankings after undergoing a massive renovation engineered by architect Martin Ebert. The course re-opened in June 2016 and features significant changes since the 2009 Open Championship when American legend Tom Watson, 59 years old at the time, lost his bid for a sixth Claret Jug to Stewart Cink in heartbreaking fashion.

A regular site of final Open qualifying, Gailes Links showcases the genius of architect Willie Park Jr. because he designed it in 1903 and other than the addition of a handful of new back tees, the course remains intact is relevant, challenging and playable. “One of the world’s truly great tests of links golf,” is how former Masters and Open Champion Sandy Lyle described the course.

Tucked between the railway and the sea, Western Gailes features seven holes to the north of the clubhouse and 11 holes to the south, with no hole spared from the howling winds ripping across off the Firth of Clyde. From Vardon to Sarazen to Watson to the best of the current era, the appreciation for this links runs deep among pros and amateurs alike. Prestwick is where the Open Championship began in 1860, beginning a glorious run for golf’s longest-running competition. Located a half-hour from Glasgow, the course measures more than 6,900 yards at par-71 from the championship tees and is a must-play for golf history buffs.

In the heart of the Ayrshire Golf Coast is Dundonald Links, familiar to some as host of the Scottish Open and Ladies Scottish Open in recent years. Designed by Kyle Phillips, this new member of this golf-rich region is a worthy addition, enhancing the overall portfolio and giving visitors yet another option to tackle during their trips here.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r1F82j3dHVE?rel=0&w=560&h=315]

 

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