St Andrews Trip Report April 2019

[Argonne69]


 

[Argonne69]

Definitely no energy for the Eden course this afternoon. The old knees are aching something fierce. I'll finish up on the New course tomorrow before heading to Glasgow.

[mci711]

Thoughts on where you are staying?

[Argonne69]

I'm at The Golf Inn. The location is less than a block from the Old Course, so walking with clubs is no problem. The downside is that the hotel is a few blocks from the main street. Not a huge deal, but it does mean venturing out each day.

 

The breakfast that's included is OK, but needs more variety for a 5 day stay. It's also served between 8 am and 9 am, so if you have an early tee time, you're out of luck.

 

The room is small, especially with my golf bag in the way. Two people would really be tripping over each other. Bed is comfortable, but the TV is mounted up high on the side wall. Not ideal. There's no closet, so clothes hang stacked on coathooks. The water is HOT. No complaints there.

 

Overall it has served its purpose. A lot of the local hotels look very small, so I imagine one would have to pay a lot more to get a large room.

[Argonne69]

I finished my rounds with a round at the New Course. It was overcast with a sprinkle now and again, a light breeze off the sea, and temps in the upper 40s. I was the first one out, and I sailed around in 2:40. I think I spent a bit too much time taking pictures of the rainbows. Lol.

 

Honestly, the New is not much different than the Jubilee course. Maybe a little easier, as the back doesn't have the long par 4s. The two 200+ yd par 3s are tough, though. Fairways are very generous. Greens may be a bit larger than Jubilee, but not overly difficult. The bunkers didn't seem to come into play off the tee. The layup areas on the par 5s seemed more dangerous.

 

Yesterday's late rains seemed to have soften the course a little. Drives weren't quite getting the same rollout. Otherwise conditions were excellent.

 

Nice way to finish the week. I went out in three over, and came in even. 12 fairways and 13 greens. No birdies this morning, but a couple of nice scrambles. I can't believe how well my driver behaved this trip. I've been struggling with a hook since last fall, and it only reared its ugly head a handful of times this week.

 

Overall I thought the New Course was fairly benign. I'd probably pick Jubilee over New, but neither is going to knock your socks off.

 

Time to pack up, hop on the bus to Leuchars, and then the train to Glasgow.

[Argonne69]


[Argonne69]


[Argonne69]


[Argonne69]


[Argonne69]

One last look at the town.

 


[TheInfidel]

There's some dreamy shots in there, reminds me why I try and get up there once a month.

[theboypinoy]

Thanks for providing the pics. Really adds a lot, and they're gorgeous

[Argonne69]

Thanks. I'll post full photo sets when I get home. Currently enjoying the train ride from Dundee to Glasgow. Beautiful countryside. One of these days I'm going to have to get up to northern Scotland.

 

[ceejay81]

> @Argonne69 said:

> Thanks. I'll post full photo sets when I get home. Currently enjoying the train ride from Dundee to Glasgow. Beautiful countryside. One of these days I'm going to have to get up to northern Scotland.

>

 

Royal Dornoch for your 600th? ;)

[Argonne69]

Lol. I think I'm going to ignore the centuries until #1000. Too much pressure. Of course, I'll have to find a member of Augusta National in a few years.

[duffer987]

The gorse is blooming nicely this Spring, hopefully it holds up for a month or so.

[Argonne69]

Yeah, the gorse was beautiful. From a distance. Only managed to hit into it once.

 


 


 

[Hawkeye77]

Sounds like a perfect trip was experienced!

[Schley]

> @Argonne69 said:

> I'm starting to think about a personal souvenir. I certainly don't need another ball marker, as it would simply get lost in my bag pocket along with all the other ball markers. I would get some use out of yet another polo shirt, but it would be one of dozens.

>

> For a few years I've considered getting some Galvin Green waterproofs, but they're not available in retail stores in the U. S., at least not in the Chicago area. My Footjoy rain gear is decent, but it simply doesn't breath like GoreTex. I don't want to drop top dollar without trying them on. I'm glad, because I stopped in a golf store to try on a few models, and found that the fit was iffy depending on the style/model. I need a 3XL, and a few styles were tight across the back with just a polo underneath. I hate to think how they would fit with 3 layers of winter wear. Nothing worse than Ill fitting outerwear. I'll check out a few more stores in town, and hopefully I'll have some luck.

>

> Waterproofs with a St Andrews logo may not be exciting, but at least I'd get 20+ uses per season out of them.

>

So did you find a good souvenir?

 

[Argonne69]

Nope. Went with the standard polo shirt, ball marker, and golf towel. Lol. I have great memories, and some excellent photos.

[Edward_Majorwin]

Fantastic pics, got them on my desktop background loop!

I need to get over there and play sooner rather than later.

[CMCSGolf]

Great write up as always. I'm curious about the Jubilee. I found that to be a much tougher course than the old because I thought it was significantly tighter. You can always bail out left on the old course on every hole, but I didn't feels that same freedom at the Jubilee. However, I'm basing my thoughts on one round on each, but curious if my memory is failing me? Since the Jubilee is a modern links, it just felt different to me than the old. That said, all all golf in St. Andrews is a treat.

[Argonne69]

> @CMCSGolf said:

> Great write up as always. I'm curious about the Jubilee. I found that to be a much tougher course than the old because I thought it was significantly tighter. You can always bail out left on the old course on every hole, but I didn't feels that same freedom at the Jubilee. However, I'm basing my thoughts on one round on each, but curious if my memory is failing me? Since the Jubilee is a modern links, it just felt different to me than the old. That said, all all golf in St. Andrews is a treat.

 

Yes, Jubilee is tighter off the tee, but I thought the bunkers were more in play on TOC. The greens were also tougher on TOC.

[Argonne69]

I managed to get my pics Photoshopped, and I'll start with a few from the (Sunday) evening of my arrival. Hopefully I'll find some time during the week to add additional comments. Honestly, a lot of the holes on the St Andrews Links courses look alike, and I did take quite a few panoramic shots.

 


 

 


 

 


 

 


 

 


 

 


 

 


 

 


 

 

 

 

[Argonne69]

First look at Kingsbarns Links

 


 

The front nine

 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 

 

[Argonne69]

Kingsbarns Links Back Nine

 


 


 


 


 

The par 5 12th

 


 


 

The par 3 13th

 


 


 


 

The par 3 15th

 


 


 


 


 


 


 

The 18th

 


 


 


 


 

 

 

[Argonne69]

A walk around St Andrews

 


 

St. James

 


 

Museum of the University of St Andrews

 


 


 


 

St Andrews Castle

 


 


 


 


 

St Andrews Cathedral and St Rules Tower

 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 

 

 

 

[Argonne69]

The first look at the Castle Course

 


 


 

Front 9

 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 

 

 

[Argonne69]

The Castle Course Back Nine

 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 

The par 3 17th

 


 


 

The par 5 18th

 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 

 

 

 

[Argonne69]

West Sands Beach