Today, it was announced that Royal Troon will host the Open Championship in 2016. Not entirely unexpected, but nice to know the oldest professional golf tournament will be just a short hop down the Ayrshire coast in 4 years time.
The current schedule is as follows;
2012 - Royal Lytham and St Annes
2013 - Muirfield
2014 - Royal Liverpool
2015 - St Andrews
2016 - Royal Troon.
Other courses in the rota, with no Championships scheduled include; Royal St Georges (2011), Turnberry (2009), Birkdale (2008) and Carnoustie (2007). Year in bracket of last year it hosted Open.
This is not a terribly exciting blog, but just brining it up as I love links golf and am greatful that the RandA are so committed to hosting the Open on a Links course. The Open has always been hosted on such a course and it is written in the rules that this must be so.
Most Links venues are tucked away, miles from motorways or airports; they were designed 100 years ago and are not terribly long, or exactly suitable for 140 players, and 25,000 spectators to take part in a golf tournament. If it wasn't for the RandA being so committed to holding the Open at these venues - I'm sure there wouldn't be too much tournament golf played on the Links any more.
We now have the Scottish Open (held at Castle Stuart) and the Irish Open (held at Royal Portrush) as other big events held on Links courses in the summer months.. Also the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship is held over 3 courses in September each year (Carnoustie, Kings Barns and the Old Course). This is great for the traditions of the game.
Golf first started being played on the dry sandy grass between the beach and farming land - the links from the sea to the 'useful' land. This land could not be used for crops or animals and so the sport of golf developed as a past time on this 'spare land'. Lets be thankful that 340 years later - this is still the case.
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