ayrshire golf
WHY AYRSHIRE?
Harry Ward
In my last article I mentioned Troon and Turnberry very briefly as being the premier links courses on the Ayrshire coast, but I would like you to ponder on what makes all of our Ayrshire golf courses so popular with both members and visitors from all over the world.
Troon and Prestwick, apart from being fantastic courses, have their own historical fascination with overseas visitors, but some of our other venues along the coast are equally appreciated by golfers to Scotland. So what draws them to Ayrshire? Is it the very nature and feel of the rich sandy soil and machair ground which has never been of any use to the agricultural community as arable ground for crops? Or is it simply the fact that hitting the wee white sphere around a links course is so much different from an inland green? And of course, the views are second to none on the Ayrshire coast. Well, almost.
I regard the finest links golf course in the world to be on the island of Iona which is seldom maintained. The natural bunkers remain as they have been for hundreds of years, with the fairways ever so short due to the constant attention of rabbits and sheep. Not forgetting the dazzling white sand from the beach blowing over the ancient machair, where the monks of Iona played centuries ago. And it’s free!
Incidentally, this might be a good time to explain the meaning of ‘links’. It’s basically a grassy area between the sea and land, the word being derived from the Anglo-Saxon word ‘hlinc’, from around 931 AD, meaning a ridge. But you Ayrshire golfers probably already knew that. The word is now commonly used to describe any golf course.
The other huge advantage of our links courses over all others is their natural evolution throughout the years, requiring much less maintenance than most other courses. Most of our Ayrshire clubs were formed around the 1880s into the 1890s when grass cutting machinery was in its earliest development and inland golf was only playable during the winter months due to the long luxurious grass in the summer. Almost all of our other clubs and courses along the coast were formed in this era, hence the lure of the links at this time: Western Gailes – club 1897, course 1898; Irvine Bogside 1887; West Kilbride 1893; Glasgow Gailes 1892 (second home to the Glasgow Golf Club at Killermont); the two earlier exceptions being Old Prestwick and Prestwick St Nicholas, both 1851. The other two courses, Prestwick St Cuthbert and Barassie, are not on the coastline but are nevertheless, a fine golfing challenge.
Another of our old links courses, sadly no longer there, was the old nine hole Ardeer course at Stevenston. On the foreshore, this was formed in 1880 and extended to 18 holes in 1901, with the club eventually being forced to move inland due to the new ICI Nylon plant in 1966.
I’m going to try and remove my old history bunnet for a moment now and see if we can come up with some more practical and up to date reasons why our coastal links courses are so popular. Could it be Scotland’s fantastic weather and climate? Possibly, aye, that’ll be right! Could it be the challenge of some of our iconic golfing holes like the 123-yard par 3 Postage Stamp at Royal Troon which has broken the heart of many an amateur and pro over the years? This hole should just be a flick with a wedge, but if the wind is blowing and you land in the aptly named coffin bunker then you are as good as dead!
At West Kilbride the inward coastal stretch of holes 13 to 16 are a slicer’s nightmare with only an out of bound fence separating the player and fairway from the beach.
Two of my favourite holes are the 6th and 7th at beautiful Western Gailes. Whilst playing the par 5 6th hole, you are walking through a valley of high dunes on either side of the fairway, and with only the sound of the waves lapping on the beach you could be in another world. The elevated tee at the 7th gives the golfer an awe-inspiring view of the whole coastline as well as the club’s signature par 3 hole which is a joy to behold. Nowhere else in Scotland do you have a stretch like this!
Writing this reminded me of an encounter I had with two of the greats – my old buddy, Bob Torrance, and the five times Open Champ, Tom Watson, on the practice area at Turnberry. We were discussing this very topic of why Ayrshire was so popular, when Mr Watson simply said: “I don’t think it is merely the golf courses but also the people, the friendship and the hospitality.”
That’s good enough for me!
