Category: Classic Golf Courses

Nairn to host 2012 Curtis Cup

PerryGolf Staff

The 2012 Curtis Cup will be held at Nairn Golf Club on the 125th anniversary of the founding of the club.   The course, which has hosted a number of important tournaments over the years, including the 1999 Walker Cup and the Scottish Amateur Championships, will be the most northerly venue yet.

The announcement will provide another boost to the Highlands, which over the past two years has increased in popularity with overseas visitors after the opening of the fantastic Castle Stuart Golf Links which is being tipped to be the next host of the European Tour’s Scottish Open once Loch Lomond ceases to become host venue.  When you add these two fantastic courses to Royal Dornoch, which is in the top 20 world rankings, it gives the area a huge appeal to all golfers.

By Keith Baird.  Keith has been with PerryGolf for over 10 years and is one of our Golf Travel Specialists.

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Royal Liverpool Video

PerryGolf Staff

I recently came across this video (click here to view) while doing some research on the three Royal courses in North West England.

My Granddad, Willie Aitchison, can be seen caddying for Roberto Di Vicenzo in the 1967 Open Championship at Royal Liverpool.  I recall him telling me the story about this being the last time the Open was won without the use of yardages and all distances were measured by eye.  These were the days when good caddies were worth their weight in gold!  This was Di Vicenzo’s first and only Major Championship victory, but the first of 3 which my Granddad won as a caddie.  The other 2 victories were with Lee Trevino at Royal Birkdale in 1971 and at Muirfield in 1972.

By Gary Sheppard.  Gary has been with PerryGolf for over 4 years and is one of our Golf Travel Specialists.

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Scottish Open Confirmed at Castle Stuart

PerryGolf Staff

After much consideration, the European Tour announced today that the Barclays Scottish Open will relocate from Loch Lomond Golf Club to Castle Stuart Golf Links near Inverness.  It is believed that the tournament will remain in the Highlands for 3 years and I’m sure the locals will welcome this news with open arms.  Loch Lomond has hosted the event for the last 15 years and every year was a resounding success with large crowds ever present.  I’m certain this tradition will remain now that Castle Stuart is taking over.

After its official opening in 2009, Castle Stuart has been on the receiving end of very high praise – and for what it’s worth, I was one of those who praised it.  Being awarded with the Scottish Open is acclaim of the highest order.  This is one of the European Tour’s biggest events and it attracts a top quality field on a yearly basis.  I’d like to think that it’ll attract an even higher class field now that it will be played on a links course.  This was always a major consideration for some players as the Scottish Open is played the week before The Open Championship.  Loch Lomond is an outstanding course, but the parkland layout and soft fairways haven’t suited some players’ practice regimes the week before The Open. 

Click here for more information.

By Gary Sheppard.  Gary has been with PerryGolf for over 4 years and is one of our Golf Travel Specialists.

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Which is the Oldest Course?

PerryGolf Staff

Much of Scotland’s history has been as wild and changeable as its weather…but on a more light-hearted note, the oldest golf course in Scotland; ‘The Home of Golf’, is often fiercely disputed.

Musselburgh (near Edinburgh) can prove existence in 1674 and it is even suggested that Mary, Queen of Scots played there in the late 1500’s.  The Old Course at St. Andrews has records of golf played there in 1574 and is the most widely known ‘Home of Golf’.  Stirling, with it’s much fought over castle, insists that King James IV played a round of golf there in 1506 with the Earl of Bothwell, so it is assumed there was some sort of course there at that time.  Now Perth golfers have come up with some interesting facts to claim the title as theirs.

It is well-known that golf was banned in 15th Century Scotland and all men were encouraged to practice archery in readiness for any invasion by their neighbours in England.  James IV was crowned at Scone Palace, near Perth in 1488, and by 1502 (in a more peaceful period) he had decided that an invasion was unlikely and golf could again be played.  The King was a keen sportsman and took up the game himself.  He commissioned a set of clubs from a local bow-maker and is reputed to have used them on the town’s North Inch course the same year.

By Yvonne Shaw.  Yvonne has been with PerryGolf for over 10 years and is a member of our admin team.

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Kohler’s Development Plans for Hamilton Grand

Mhairi

Kohler Co., the current owners of the Old Course Hotel in St. Andrews, have revealed approved development plans for Hamilton Grand which they purchased at the end of 2009.

One of the most sought-after locations in the world of golf, Hamilton Grand boasts views over the 18th Green of the Old Course and of St. Andrews Bay, and is neighbor to the Royal & Ancient Golf Club in St. Andrews.

To read more, click here.

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