Returning Home: Scottish Golf Breaks
July 2005 sees the return of the world's greatest golf tournament to its spiritual home on the Scottish East Coast. With the 27th staging of the British Open taking place on the Old Course in 2005, St Andrews has held the event more often than anywhere else which has reinforced its strong reputation as the "Home of Golf". This year's event comes at a period of time where the Scottish Golf Industry is enjoying something of a renaissance, with more and more people choosing to visit the country for golfing holidays and test themselves on some of the world's most famous courses.
The Old Course at St.Andrews, where this year the world's greatest golfing talent will compete for the famous Claret Jug, originally consisted of 22 holes - eleven out and eleven back. However, in 1764 the local society of St.Andrews Golfers decided that the format of the course needed to change as the many of the holes were simply too short. As a result the total number of holes was cut to 18 - which is now synonymous with golf courses around the world.
However, despite the now settled structure of the course many in the town felt the links would be better served as a commercial opportunity rather than a playground for golfers. This combined with the local councils financial difficulties led to the links being sold in 1799 to a rabbit breeding company! This proved to be a very controversial move which essentially led to what is known locally as the "Rabbit Wars" for the best part of twenty years. Eventually, in 1821 a gentleman called James Cheape bought the links for the sole use of local golfers - which essentially led to the great golfing legacy which still exists to this day.
While in many countries golf is seen as a game for the financial elite, it has always been a sport that was accessible to all levels of society in Scotland. The popularity of the game continued to grow and in 1860 Prestwick Golf Club held the first Open Championship and won by Willie Park. St Andrews first held the Open in 1873 when Tom Kidd claimed the title and more than a century later the course has seen some of the most exciting opens including the famous Tiger Woods victory in 2000 where he set a low-scoring record of 19 under par while becoming the youngest player to have achieved a career "grand slam" of golf's four major tournaments.
In addition to the famous win by Tiger Woods the winner of the 2005 Open will be following in the footsteps of other legends such as Nick Faldo, Seve Ballesteros, Jack Nicklaus, Bobby Locke and James Braid who have all won over the famous links. Put simply winning the Open at the home of golf is the absolute pinnacle of achievement that any golfer can hope or even dream to achieve.
It seems hard to imagine that a country with the rich history of golf that Scotland enjoys could lose its way in terms of promoting itself as a great golfing destination. However, during the 90's this was certainly the case. Countries such as Portugal, Spain and even Ireland worked tirelessly to sell themselves to the outside world as the ideal destination for a golfing holiday. Scotland was perhaps guilty of arrogance thinking that it could survive on its historical reputation alone.
However, the last four years has seen a definite shift in the market with large amounts of (particularly English, American and Japanese) golfers once again visiting Scottish shores. Helped by the publicity surrounding this years Open at St.Andrews more and more golfers are looking for golfing breaks and have a large number of companies competing for their business.
One such company is the short break specialist www.superbreak.com whom offer a range of golfing breaks to top Scottish resorts such as Marriott Dalmahoy which is set in 1000 acres of wooded parkland at the foot of the Pentland Hills and has hosted both the Solheim Cup and the Scottish PGA Championship. In St.Andrews itself the relatively new St.Andrews Bay Golf Resort provides 5 star luxury that rivals the best of golfing hotels anywhere in the world. Sitting amidst the rugged coastal landscape of East Fife the hotel is within a short distance of all the St.Andrews courses as well as other top local courses such as Lundin Links, Leven Links, Scotscraig and Ladybank.
It seems despite heavy investment in promotion of golfing resorts in other countries Scotland will always command a very special place in the global golfing community. Lessons seem to have been learnt and the Scottish golfing industry is unlikely to rest on its laurels again. While a rich history and flagship tournament are important, if the industry is to continue to flourish then continued and focussed investment most remain a priority.
Richard currently lives just outside Edinburgh, working hard for a leith based media company, and writes occasional articles for web sites.
Latest News
 The Southern Ledger | Victorious US Ryder Cup team greeted warmly at White House PGA.com - The US Team presented Bush with a personalized Ryder Cup golf bag, the same Sunday red golf shirt and sweater vest worn by the team and a Ryder Cup money ... US Ryder Cup winners visit White House Boo Weekley goes to Washington Bush welcomes US Ryder Cup team to White House |
 Hürriyet | Sports Briefing | Golf Sorenstam Is Second in Mexico New York Times, United States - By AP Annika Sorenstam nearly holed her third shot on the par-5 18th, then lipped out a 9-foot birdie try to give Angela Stanford a one-stroke victory in ... Sorenstam's place in golf history, especially at home, stands ... Golf in Morocco, Ochoa on Annika Sorenstam's legacy, new ... Golf | Annika Sorenstam puts pressure on Stanford |
Golf Course Damaged By Car's Tracks WDIV, MI - The Livingston County Sheriff's Office is looking for the person responsible for damaging the Honors Golf Course at the Oak Pointe Country Club in Brighton ... Driver of SUV that ripped up golf course near Brighton sought Deputies arrest five in cocaine bust in W. Md. |
Road Trip: Myrtle Beach set to complete season on Golf Channel WorldGolf.com, AZ - The eclectic foursome of two musicians and two professional golfers will visit to the "Golf Capital of the World" to complete their ultimate golf vacation ... Annika Week on GOLF CHANNEL: Nov. 17 - 23 |
Element 21 Golf Company Announces Record First Quarter Sales MarketWatch - (FRANKFURT: BJQ), the leading manufacturer of advanced Scandium Alloy golf and fishing equipment, announced today record first quarter results for the ... |
 CBC.ca | Golf, six other sports make their pitches to the IOC Los Angeles Times, CA - Baseball, softball, karate, rugby, roller sports, squash and golf are competing for two spots for the 2016 Games. None of those sports got enough votes for ... Woods in video promoting Olympic inclusion for golf IGF Presents Case for Golf's Inclusion in 2016 Olympic Games To IOC Maginnes: How can golf not be part of the Olympics? |
Hireko Golf announces the launch of the Extra Income Program WorldGolf.com, AZ - This innovative program allows golfers to make a 10% commission selling Hireko custom golf clubs to their families, friends or co-workers. ... Hireko Golf unveils Power Play Caiman Raw Power fairway woods |
Naples resident wins Land Rover, Rolex in charity golf classic The News-Press, FL - Naples resident Tom Cusick won a Land Rover and a Rolex today after acing the par-3, 170-yard 16th hole at Bay Colony Golf Club in North Naples during The ... Clunk! Tee shot hits pin, falls in hole to win Land Rover, $28000 |
UND women's golf signs two to National Letters of Intent UND Fighting Sioux, ND - GRAND FORKS, ND -- University of North Dakota golf coach Dan Frei announced today the signing of Megan Grozdanich and Shantel Montgomery to National Letters ... |
Western Blue Raises $10000 for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Sacramento MarketWatch - On October 3rd, Western Blue hosted their Annual Charity Golf Tournament at Teal Bend Golf Club in Sacramento. With the help of their partners, Western Blue ... |
Resources
-
The Simple Golf Swing
Unlock Your Hidden Potential by Discovering the Golf Swing that is Delivering Consistent, Accurate Distance to thousands of golfers world-wide.
-
Golf Options: Hit Fairways Your Way.
New Golf System that Explains How Setup and Swing Factors Affect Ball Flight and Solutions to Common Golf Problems.
-
Golf Fitness Book - Golf Exercise Guide - Golf Training Workouts
Golf fitness exercise training book providing Golf workouts,Golf stretches,Golf exercises and Golf swing tips to improve Golf swing.
-
Golf Tips, Golf Lessons and Golf Instruction- Guide On How To Break 80
How to Break 80 is an instructional guide for golfers looking to get Golf tips, Golf lessons and Golf instruction.
-
Golf FREE At Golf Courses And Get Paid!
Discover the secret to playing free Golf at Golf courses anywhere and make up to $897 a week for playing Golf.
-
The Dave Way.
Destroy your Golf Slice in a matter of Minutes using this Revolutionary New System! Success Guaranteed. Sports & Recreation.
-
ShopUntilYouDrop.net - Get paid for shopping, eating out and more...
Get paid for shopping and eating out. Shop at your favorite stores, eat at popular restaurants, see the latest movies, shop the internet. Even your purchases are free!
-
Golf Fitness Experts provide comprehensive guide to better Golf
Golf exercises, mental strategies, and swing instruction from 7 leading Golf experts.
-
Play Golf For FREE And Get Paid To Play...
PaidToGolf reveals how to play FREE Golf and get paid to play.
-
Golf Game Method Book Putting Scoring Clubs Teeing Off Golf Instruction Ebook To Score In the 70s Im
This Revolutionary New Instructural Method is So Simple So Easy to Learn So Effective Golf putting Golf book shooting in the 70