For the Love of Links Golf

For golf enthusiasts, the Open Championship annually offers a reminder of the complexities presented by the links version of the game. Royal Troon will host the Open Championship for the 10th time this week, and it’s a host with a number of compelling features.

Perhaps what I appreciate most about links play is that it is the last remaining version of golf that rewards experience. Over the past twenty years we have seen the game of golf transform from a sport that was impossible to master, even at the highest level, to one that is dominated by youth and speed. The Open Championship, thanks to its supreme natural challenges of wind, firm turf, and luck, has remained a tournament where age and experience has seemingly remained relevant. The average age of the Open Championship winner over the last 10 years is 32.5. Compare that to the other three majors which have been dominated by youth, with an average age of 29.7 winning over that same time period.

Why is this still the case? A few reasons. Contours and firm turf could be one, as they usher in a vagueness to the challenge. They’re factors that create uncertainty. Professional golfers thrive in the black and white settings the majority of the PGA Tour schedule presents, always preferring the simple nature of hit it here to be in a good spot or hit it there and you’re in trouble. Links golf is much different, as one yard right or left of a contour in the middle of a fairway could be the difference between ideal and disaster. Many members of golf’s fair police write this off as gimmicky, and those players will likely never play well on the links. As Tiger put it in his press conference, “You’re using the ground sometimes as an ally, sometimes as a deterrent…There’s a way of using the ground to your advantage on hitting shots and shaping it correctly. Look at some of the past champions that have been artists in how they’ve been able to maneuver the golf ball and use the ground.” Links golf is less about the scientific approach that has come to dominate men’s professional golf, and more about the art of shot-making and the mental fortitude to be able to overcome the inevitable tough breaks that firm turf and funky contours yield.

Royal Troon’s chief defense will be its deep and prominent bunkers. These pot bunkers litter the property, especially along the flat ground of the front nine. Unlike golf in America, bunkers at Royal Troon are true hazards that need to be avoided. It will be unlikely that any player will be yelling for a wayward shot to find a bunker. A hole that embodies this will be the famous Postage Stamp par-3 8th. Measuring just 123 yards, this hole exacts a penalty via a small green and devastating bunkers. The eighth can ruin rounds and dole out a wide range of scores, and it’s possible we could see numbers ranging from 1 to 8+ on this hole, simply due to the wind and the penalty Troon’s bunkers can present. Royal Troon is arguably the windiest of all Open Championship venues. Its exposed nature, which offers vast views of the Firth of Clyde, will test players’ control with strong gusts, firm turf, and a vast smattering of bunkers. Buckle up for the best version of golf. Hopefully someday we’ll see the best players in the world play the best version of the sport more than two weeks per year.

This piece originally appeared in the Fried Egg Golf newsletter. Subscribe for free and receive golf news and insight every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. For more coverage of the Open Championship, visit our Open hub.