Old Course before The Open

[Cmoney710]

We had our trip to Scotland postponed for a second time and are now booked for the second week of June 2022. When does the Trust start putting regulations on the OC and using mats? 
 

Cheers and stay safe!

[johnsomp]

I believe this is posted elsewhere and I heard TOC would likely be on mats all year leading up to the Open.

[srs06d]

 

[philsRHman]

I can see that they word the policy in a pretty vague way. "A number of fairway landing areas" wouldn't be bad if they're limited, but I'd actually like if they were a little more descriptive. I'm hoping someone will see this and have played in this situation, or even in the winter when mats are necessary everywhere and chime in with how big a difference the experience is. I mean, you're still on the Old Course, you're still teeing off on hallowed ground, putting those storied green and hitting out of the bunkers. One a scale of 1 (barely notice after the first shot or two) to 10 (might as well be on a pitch and putt with fake turf) I have to imagine it's much closer to 1 than 10. Of course, as my trip is on the brink of cancellation, I'm also trying to convince myself that Spring of 22 won't be that bad.

 

Here's the policy:

 

Quote

 

Course Protection
It will be necessary to protect areas of fairways and rough on the Old Course in the months leading up to the Championship. This will be done in the following ways:

Fairways – a number of fairway landing areas will be marked and a golfer whose ball lands in this area will still play from the same position but will need to play their shot from a small astroturf mat which will be provided.

Rough – some areas of rough will be roped off to try to reduce the trampling of the grass and allow it to grow. A golfer whose ball lies in this roped off area will still play the ball as it lies but should refrain from taking a trolley into the area.

All other aspects of the course should remain in play although this may change subject to weather conditions.

 

 

[hammergolf]

20 hours ago, Cmoney710 said:

We had our trip to Scotland postponed for a second time and are now booked for the second week of June 2022. When does the Trust start putting regulations on the OC and using mats? 
 

Cheers and stay safe!

That close to the Open I would think you’ll be mostly if not completely off mats.

[philsRHman]

2 hours ago, hammergolf said:

That close to the Open I would think you’ll be mostly if not completely off mats.

What's it like? Ever play from mats in the offseason? I don't want to jump the conclusion that it's heresy if it's actually not that bad. But I can see where if you're local and play the Old 30 times a year, it's one thing. If it's a bucket list experience, it's a bit of a tarnish.

[hammergolf]

2 minutes ago, philsRHman said:

What's it like? Ever play from mats in the offseason? I don't want to jump the conclusion that it's heresy if it's actually not that bad. But I can see where if you're local and play the Old 30 times a year, it's one thing. If it's a bucket list experience, it's a bit of a tarnish.

Basically you carry a mat with you, and where your ball is, you put down the mat and hit your shot. Obviously not the “full” experience, but I suppose it’s better to play TOC from a mat rather than not playing at all.

[MattyO1984]

I suspect that you would be pretty lucky to get out there. Not saying that it will 100% not happen but looking on the Royal St Georges website a moment ago, they are closing the course there in June in advance of The Open this year. Obviously it doesn’t say when in June but I suspect that for the 150th Open, the R&A are not going to want anything to detract from the spectacle and they will be looking to have the course absolutely immaculate.

[kenmich]

I was in St Andrews for the month of June in 2015, prior to the Open being played in July. I played 12 rounds on the Old Course, and used a mat anywhere from 0-2 times per round. Each area where the mats were to be used was roped off, and several mats were in the area for your use. Some people would just move their ball out of the roped-in area, but that was very much frowned upon. The mats were under 1 sq. ft. in size.  I recall that the best way to use a mat was to anchor it with a tee, in the hole in the mat, away from the green . If you anchor it closest to the green, it can "bounce" or rotate when struck. Also, don't forget to choke down on the club a bit, as the mat raises the ball up a bit. According to standrews.com, the last day the Old Course is open, before the Open, is June 17.  Let me know if you have any other questions - I may be a bit slow to reply, but since you are going next year.... 

[spud3]

Sort of a similar question:  I may be pushing my 2021 Scotland trip out to 2022, but it would be after the Open, probably first week of August.  How long does it take for them to remove all the infrastructure (temp buildings, grandstands, etc.) after the Open has concluded?

[Stetson]

Not quite on topic of the mats, but same time frame.  As of now singles are pretty much out of luck at TOC.  They wont let singles book times in advance and they got rid of the morning waiting line.  

 

How might a single go about making a tee time for 2022?  

[milesgiles]

On 5/14/2021 at 6:24 PM, spud3 said:

Sort of a similar question:  I may be pushing my 2021 Scotland trip out to 2022, but it would be after the Open, probably first week of August.  How long does it take for them to remove all the infrastructure (temp buildings, grandstands, etc.) after the Open has concluded?

 

 

when Lehman won at Lytham there was a huge crash as they disassembled a stand the last group had gone past a few minutes before.

 

Basically immediate