The Origins of Golf in Carnoustie

The game of golf has been played in Carnoustie for well over four centuries. The first indication that the game was being played in the Angus town can be found in the Parish Records of 1560 when the game of gowff was mentioned and there is every indication that the game has played an important part in the town’s life ever since.

Carnoustie’s first golfer might well have been a gentleman named Sir Robert Maule (1497-1560), a local landowner who was described as “a gentleman of comlie behaviour, of hie stature, sanguine in colour both of hyd and haire,” and who was “given to leicherie” and other sports such as “hawking, hunting  and the gawf.” 

Unfortunately, nobody knows how proficient Maule was at “gawf” or, for that matter, “leicherie”. As with so many of the older Scottish golf towns, the history of Carnoustie is not well recorded. We do not know the exact site where Maule and his colleagues “exercisit the gowf” in the 15^th century but we do know that by 1839 the Carnoustie Golf Club had been formed, making it the oldest artisan club in the world.

Around that time, the Carnoustie course consisted of 10 holes, laid out by Allan Robertson, the greatest golfer of his time and the man generally acknowledged to be the first golf professional. Later, in 1867, Tom Morris Snr extended the course to 18 holes but it was not until 1926, when the great James Braid was brought in to overseas sweeping changes, that the course became ready to receive the Open Championship.

Since then, Carnoustie’s Championship course has become regarded as one of Britain’s finest, and most challenging, tests of golf. Occasionally, from time to time, the course was allowed to deteriorate but, under the watchful eye of current Course Superintendent, John Philp, it has been restored and is now, not just a formidable challenge, but also one of the best-conditioned courses in the country as well.

Today, Carnoustie is visited by countless thousands of tourists, both from home and abroad. What they find is a course that is demanding but still eminently playable, provided the golfer hits the right shots at the right time. It is, in short, a wonderful test of golf, and one that compares with anything found elsewhere in the world.

How Carnoustie Got Its Name

The name Carnoustie probably derives from two Scandinavian nouns, “car” meaning rock and “noust” meaning “bay”. However, there is more fanciful explanation that some local inhabitants prefer.

Those individuals will tell you that the town got its name from the Battle of Barry in 1010 in which the Scottish King, Malcolm 11, repulsed a band of Danish invaders led by their general, Camus.

History suggests that the Battle of Barry was a bloody affair that raged for hours until Camus was put to the sword. To this day, a cross in the ground of the Panmure Estate marks the spot where he was buried.

Legend has it that the Norse Gods were so incensed by the loss of their favourite warrior that they put a curse on the neighbourhood, letting thousands of crows loose on Barry Sands. Soon, the crows colonised the woodland on what is now Buddon Ness, their numbers growing to such an extent that the area became known as Craw’s Nestie, later corrupted to become Carnoustie.

The village was elevated to burgh status in 1899 and at that time local officials adopted a crest featuring three crows flying over a leafy tree.

Later, in 1927, an annual amateur tournament was launched. Originally, it was rather unimaginatively titled the Carnoustie Corporation Trophy but, after a while, that name was dropped in favour of the more colourful Craw’s Nest Tassie (a tassie is an old Scots word for a drinking cup)

Carnoustie’s Golfing Ambassadors

 

St Andrews can rightfully lay claim to being the Home of Golf in Scotland but it was Carnoustie, across the water in Angus, which provided many of the game’s earliest ambassadors.

At the start of the 20^th century around 300 of Carnoustie’s sons emigrated, many of them westwards to America, spreading the golfing gospel as they went.

Nowadays, of course, most of these golfing missionaries have long since been forgotten but some did prosper and become leading figures in the history of the game.

At one time or another, Carnoustie natives have won the Open Championships of Britain, America, Canada, South Africa and Australia and several others have also been active in other important roles.

One such was Stewart Maiden who, today, is renowned as the teacher of the great Bobby Jones, the amateur who achieved a unique Grand Slam by winning both the Amateur and Open Championships in Britain and America during 1930.

The story goes that Stewart and his brother, James, emigrated to America together. James became professional at East Lake, in Atlanta, and Stewart succeeded him there in 1908. It was while working at the East Lake club that Stewart, often called “Kiltie” by his friends, came in contact with Jones. Although the young Jones did not copy Maiden’s swing, he developed one that strongly resembled it and, in later life, often called on the Carnoustie man to help him iron out the faults that developed from time to time.

Maiden became a hugely successful teacher but, when it comes to players, there is little doubt that the Smith brothers, Willie, Alex and Macdonald, were Carnoustie’s most successful exports.

Willie and Alex won three US Opens between them. In 1899, the former became the first to win America’s national title, when he emerged victorious at Baltimore GC. His total of 315 (77, 82, 79, 77) gave Willie an 11-shot winning margin, a margin not surpassed until Tiger Woods won by 15 shots at Pebble Beach in 2000.

Seven years later, in 1906, Willie finished second at the US Open at Onwentsia but, on that occasion, his disappointment was tempered by the fact that it was his brother, Alex, who beat him. That year, Alex recorded rounds of 73, 74, 73 and 75 to win by seven shots and become the first man to post an aggregate of under 300. In 1910, he was to win again at the Philadelphia Cricket Club, this time after an 18-hole play-off against Johnny McDermott and his brother, Macdonald.

Sadly for Macdonald, that was not the only time he was narrowly to miss out on a major title. The records show that he never won a major but he did finish second in two US Opens (1910 and 1930) and two Opens (1930 and 1932) as well.

Macdonald’s record for near misses was quite remarkable. Between 1910 and 1936, when he was fourth in the US Open at Baltusrol, he finished within three shots of the winner in five US Opens (1910, 1913, 1930, 1934 and 1936) and six Opens (1923, 1924, 1925, 1930, 1931 and 1932). For that reason, he has inherited the reputation of being arguably the best golfer who never won either of those two national championships, a reputation that was enhanced after his most crushing loss in 1925, when he needed a final round 78 to win The Open at Prestwick but succumbed to an 82.

Key Dates in the History of Golf at Carnoustie

 

1560

The first indication that the game was being played at Carnoustie found in the Parish Records.

1834

Edinburgh author and publisher, Robert Chambers, credited with “properly laying out” a rudimentary course at Carnoustie

1838

The arrival of the railway helps to secure the town’s development

1839

Carnoustie Golf Club is formed

1842

Allan Robertson creates 10-hole course.

1855

George Morris, elder brother of “Old Tom” appointed greenkeeper at Carnoustie. He was acknowledged as the first clubmaker in the town

1867

Tom Morris Snr brought into create an 18-hole course measuring 4,565 yards

1868

Dalhousie Golf Club is inaugurated

1873

Carnoustie Ladies’ Golf Club founded

1883

Bob Simpson takes over as clubmaker and course superintendent

1884

Carnoustie’s Jack Simpson wins the Open Championship at Prestwick

1885

Stewart Maiden, coach to the legendary Bobby Jones, born

1887

Carnoustie Caledonia Golf Club founded

1889

Carnoustie Caledonia clubhouse built

1890

Macdonald Smith born

1892

Town council acquires links “for golf in perpetuity”

Bruce Hotel opens

Carnoustie Ladies’ clubhouse built

1895

Carnoustie Merchantile Golf club founded

1898

Carnoustie Golf Club clubhouse built

1899

Carnoustie man, Willie Smith, wins the US Open at Baltimore GC

1901

Links Management Committee takes over the upkeep of the links from the Dalhousie Club

1902

A piece of land, now the site of the 10^th hole, purchased for £500 from its owner, James Dempster

1906

Carnoustie’s Alec Smith wins his first of two US Open titles at Onwentsia

Inauguration of New Taymouth club

1908

Stuart Maiden becomes professional at the East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta, Georgia.

1909

New Starter’s Box built

1910

Alec Smith wins his second US Open title at the Philadelphia Cricket Club. Smith beats his brother, Macdonald, in a play-off.

1926

James Braid employed to upgrade Championship course

1927

Craw’s Nest Tassie inaugurated

1930

K. Greig defeats T. Wallace in the final of the first Scottish Amateur Championship held at Carnoustie

1931

Tommy Armour wins the first Open Championship staged at Carnoustie

1933

PB (“Laddie”) Lucas claims the first British Boys’ Championship at Carnoustie

1934

Carnoustie’s second course upgraded and opened as the Burnside

1936

ED “Eddie” Hamilton wins the Scottish Amateur Championship at Carnoustie

1937

Henry Cotton triumphs at the second Open Championship staged at Carnoustie

Bruce Hotel extended to include 72 rooms

1939

SB Williamson wins the British Boys’ title at Carnoustie

Plebiscite held on whether golf should be played on Sundays. Rejected by 1641 votes to 839

1946

Eric Brown wins Scottish Amateur Championship

1947

America’s William P (Bill) Turnesa claims the title at the first British Amateur Championship staged at Carnoustie

1949

Sunday golf permitted for the first time

1950

Dai Rees triumphs at the PGA Matchplay Championship 

 

1952

Local man, Gordon Dewar, wins the Scottish Amateur Championship at Carnoustie

1953

Ben Hogan wins the Open Championship on his first competitive appearance in the UK

Jessie Valentine wins the Scottish Ladies’ Championship

1957

D Ball claims the British Boys’ title

1960

JR Young beat Walker Cup player, Sandy Saddler, in the final of the Scottish Amateur Championship

1961

Marley Spearman wins the first British Ladies’ Championship held at Carnoustie

1963

M. Norval wins the British Girls’ Championship on its first visit to Carnoustie

1964

South Africa’s Harold Henning wins the inaugural Pringle of Scotland tournament

1966

South Africa’s Bobby Cole beats Scotland’s Ronnie Shade in the final of the British Amateur

1967

Ronnie Shade claims his fifth successive Scottish Amateur title at Carnoustie

Carnoustie’s David Greig wins the Scottish Boys’ Championship at North Berwick

1968

Gary Player wins the Open Championship at Carnoustie

New municipal clubhouse replaces the previous starter’s box

Carnoustie Merchantile Golf Club is founded

Local woman, Joan Smith, wins the Scottish Ladies’ Championship over her home course

1969

JS Macdonald wins the Scottish Amateur Stroke Play title at Carnoustie and Monifieth

1971

Steve Melnyk becomes the second America to win the British Amateur at Carnoustie

1973

Ian Hutcheon wins the Scottish Amateur Championship at Carnoustie

Ann Irvin triumphs in the British Ladies’ Amateur Championship

1974

Plans for a third course drawn up by former Ryder Cup players, Peter Alliss and Dave Thomas

1975

Tom Watson defeats Jack Newton in the last 18-hole play-off for an Open Championship

Management of the Links passes to Angus District Council

Carnoustie’s Alan Brown wins the Scottish Boys’ Championship at North Berwick

1976

Steve Martin wins the Scottish Amateur Stroke Play Championship at Monifieth and Carnoustie

1977

Lindsay Mann, from Carnoustie, wins Scottish Strokeplay Championship

1979

Lindsay Mann wins his second Scottish Strokeplay title

1980

Angus District Council returns management of the Links to the Links Management committee

IC “Belle” Robertson wins the Scottish Ladies’ Championship

1981

Buddon Links opened for play as an 18-hole course

1982

Charlie Green beats George Macgregor in the final of the Scottish Amateur at Carnoustie

Bruce Hotel sold for conversion into flats

1983

Carnoustie’s Lee Vannet wins the Scottish Boys’ Strokeplay Championship

1984

Lee Vannet claims the British Boys’ title at Royal Porthcawl.

1986

David Gilford wins British Youths’ title

Kenny Walker wins the Scottish Amateur Stroke Play Championship

1991

Catriona Lambert wins the Scottish Ladies’ Championship

1992

Scotland’s Stephen Dundas beats Welshman Bradley Dredge in the final of the British Amateur Championship

1995

Wayne Riley wins Scottish Open Championship

1996

Ian Woosnam wins the Scottish Open Championship

1997

Craig Hislop wins the Scottish Amateur at Carnoustie

Municipal and Dalhousie clubhouses demolished

1998

New Carnoustie Hotel opened

1999

Paul Lawrie becomes the second Scot to win the Open Championship at Carnoustie after a play-off with Justin Leonard and Jean van de Velde. Australia’s Rodney Pampling becomes the only player in Open history to lead after the 1^st round and miss the 2^nd round cut.

2000

The Home Internationals are played at Carnoustie for the first time

2001

Paul Lawrie wins the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship

L Morton claims the Scottish Ladies’ title

Stephen Brown, son of Alan, repeats his father’s feat by winning the Scottish Boys’ Championship

2002

Padraig Harrington wins the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship

Mark Pilling claims the British Boys’ Championship

2003

Lee Westwood wins the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship

2004

Stephen Gallacher claims the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship

Carnoustie becomes the first Open venue to launch a free online tee time booking service

2005

Colin Montgomerie wins the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship

Carnoustie Golf Club member, Eric Ramsay, wins the 100^th Australian Amateur Championship

2006

Padraig Harrington claims his second Alfred Dunhill Links Championship

2007

Padraig Harrington wins the Open Championship after a play-off against Sergio Garcia

Nick Dougherty wins the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship

2008

Robert Karlsson wins the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship

Calum Macaulay wins the Scottish Amateur Championship

2009

Simon Dyson wins the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship

2010

Bernhard Langer wins the Senior British Open Championship

Graeme McDowell wins the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship

The Carnoustie Golf Links Management submits a planning application for a new £2 million Golf Centre

A Course to Test the Best

 

Nowadays, the word Championship is sometimes devalued, but not in the case of Carnoustie, a course that deserves it reputation as one of the finest challenges in world golf.

The Championship Course at Carnoustie has always been considered to be a special place to play the game of golf. The legendary Walter Hagen intimated during the 1930s that he regarded it as the “greatest course in the British Isles” and since then a succession of other leading golfers have also queued up to sing its praises.

Carnoustie may not possess the natural beauty of a Turnberry or Royal Co. Down but what it lacks in that department is more than made up for by the challenge it presents. “Carnoustie is the toughest course anywhere,” argued Gary Player after winning the Open Championship there in 1968 and former five-time Amateur champion, Michael Bonallack, agreed. “When the wind blows it (Carnoustie) is the hardest course in Britain,” intoned the man who went on to become a much-respected Secretary of the Royal & Ancient Golf Club. “Actually, even when it doesn’t blow, it is probably the toughest. At no time can you ever afford to relax.”

One of Carnoustie’s great strengths is that it has no weaknesses, something that is evident right from the start of a round. The 401-yard par-4 1st hole, played to a blind green hidden behind a mound, is no pushover and neither are the 435-yard par-4 2nd or the shorter 337-yard par-4 3^rd, where the landing area has recently been tightened and the golfer is required to play his second over Jockie’s Burn which eats insidiously into an undulating green.

That stream, which has claimed many victims over the years, also comes into play on the 375-yard par-4 4^th and the dog-leg 387-yard par-4 5^th and the 520-yard par-5 6^th, recently re-named Hogan’s Ally as a tribute to the way the famed American golfer played it on his way to victory in the 1953 Open.

The 6^th, with an out-of-bounds fence running down the left, a cluster of bunkers in the landing area, not to mention the continued presence of Jockie’s Burn, is a classic card-wrecker but not for Hogan in his one and only appearance in The Open. Instead, in each of the four rounds, he hit his drive onto the thin sliver of fairway that separates the bunkers from the out-of-bounds fence and then despatched his second towards the distant green. Altogether, the “Wee Ice Mon”, as he was known locally, played the hole in just 16 shots, contributing greatly to an impressive four shot victory that is still discussed in reverential tones more than 50 years later.

In modern parlance, the long, treacherous 6^th might be described as Carnoustie’s “signature” hole, but that is not to suggest that what follows is a pushover. The 394-yard par-4 7^th also places a premium on accuracy, the 167-yard par-3 8^th hugs the out-of-bounds fence and the 413-yard par-4 9^th requires two fine shots to reach a green built out at the extreme far end of the course.

At the start of the 20^th century some 300 of Carnoustie’s residents emigrated, many westwards to the Americas, spreading the golfing gospel as they went. However, one local caddie did not quite make it, Instead, the story goes, somewhat the worse for wear after a leaving party held in his honour, he got as far as a copse of trees beside the 10^th hole before falling asleep and then awakening to find himself still in Scotland.

To this day the 446-yard par-4 10^th is still called “South America” in his honour and it, too, played a crucial role in Hogan’s march to victory in 1953. There, on the final afternoon, he pulled out the same 4-iron he’d used to hit the green in the morning, only to be told by his caddie, Cecil Timms to switch to a 2.

“Aye, the wind’s changed up there,” the local man insisted, only to be proved right a few moments later when Hogan’s ball came to rest some 12-feet from the hole. Subsequently, it has been said, Hogan did not thank the caddie for his sage advice. Clearly, though, the alternative could have been a good deal worse because, before he hit the shot, Hogan is reputed to have turned to Timms and said: “If this goes through the green, I’m going to bury the club in your forehead.”

Nowadays, amateur golfers following in Hogan’s footsteps can stop for respite at the halfway hut to the rear of the 10^th green before progressing onto the 362-yard par-4 11^th, the 479-yard par-5 12^th and the 161-yard par-3 13^th. The 12^th, in particular, provides a birdie opportunity but the 13^th, with its ring of bunkers round the green, is a good deal more demanding and is the start of one of the most challenging closing stretches in golf.

The 483-yard par-5 14^th, named “Spectacles” after the two bunkers built into a dune about 100 yards from the green, is one of the most-photographed holes on the course and it was there, in 1968, that Gary Player cemented his second of three Open titles when in the final round he hit a towering 3-wood to within two feet of the flag. To become known as “the shot” Player often comments on that being the best shot of his career.

The green on the 459-yard par-4 15^th can be much more elusive target and it is the same at the par-3 16^th, which measures 245-yards and is the longest and most demanding short hole on the Open Championship rota.

Local man, MacDonald Smith, took six on the 16^th during the 1931 Championship, eventually finishing tied fifth, three shots behind winner, Tommy Armour. Tom Watson also failed to get to grips with this monstrous short hole, posting bogeys during all four rounds of the 1975 Championship before finally beating Australia’s Jack Newton in an 18-hole play-off.

The 16^th is named “Barry Burn” and that same treacherous expanse of water also snakes its way all over the 433-yard par-4 17^th and in front of the green on the 444-yard par-4 18^th. Needless to say, Hogan found little trouble on either hole during the 1953 Championship, but the same cannot be said for many of his successors. Johnny Miller, for example, lost his chance to win the 1975 Championship on the 18^th when he tried and failed to reach the green from a fairway bunker. 24 years later, Jean Van de Velde, came even more of a cropper, taking a seven when a six would have made him the first Frenchman to win the title since 1907.

At the time, Van De Velde’s collapse hogged all the headlines, particularly when in true gaelic fashion he shrugged his shoulders and said: “I went for all the glory. Now, I have to play the price”. In hindsight, though, those extraordinary scenes put into perspective just how difficult a course Carnoustie can be when a golfer lets his concentration slip.

For 71 holes Van de Velde did just about everything right. No-one anticipated the craziness that would follow, no-one, that is, apart from Paul Lawrie, the eventual winner, who hails from up the coast at Aberdeen and knows Carnoustie well.

As everyone else prepared to anoint an unlikely French champion, Lawrie practised his putting instead. When asked later why he hadn’t thrown in the towel, he showed his knowledge and his respect for the course.

“I didn’t expect a play-off but you never know,” he smiled.

“Strange things can happen, especially round here.”

Card of the Course

Hole	Yards	Par	S.I.	Hole	Yards	Par	S.I.
1 Cup	410	4	10	10 South America	446	4	3
2 Gulley	435	4	4	11 Dyke	362	4	15
3 Jockie’s Burn	351	4	14	12 Southward Ho	479	5	9
4 Hillocks	375	4	16	13 Whins	161	3	17
5 Brae	392	4	12	14 Spectacles	476	5	1
6 Hogan’s Alley	512	5	2	15 Lucky Slap	459	4	7
7 Plantation	394	4	8	16 Barry Burn	245	3	13
8 Short	167	3	18	17 Island	433	4	5
9 Railway	413	4	6	18 Home	444	4	11

 

Championship Course Hole Guide

(* yardages as the course played during the 2007 Open Championship)

 

Hole No. 1

Cup

406 Yards

Par 4

Right from the start, the visitor to Carnoustie learns the importance of hitting the tee shot into the right place. Here, the ideal drive is down the left, albeit not so far left that it goes out of bounds, thereby affording a sight of a sunken green built behind a sand dune. In contrast, if you hit a drive down the right you will face a blind second shot, over a mound, and over a deep bunker to a green that is difficult to hit from that angle.

Hole No. 2

Gulley

463 Yards

Par 4

The second hole features one of the tightest landing areas on the course, protected by Braids bunker in the middle of the fairway and others to the left and right. Then, the fairway sweeps slightly to the right to a long, narrow green that measures 50 yards from front to back, and is guarded down both flanks by bunkers and rough.

Hole No. 3

Jockie’s Burn

358 Yards

Par 4

The third, the shortest par four on the course, was extensively re-modelled in time for the 2007 Open, making the tee shot much more challenging than it used to be.  While still measuring 337 from the Championship tee, the new design provides a series of options from the tee which was designed to make even the world’s best golfers pause and think. Following the changes, a finger of rough extends out into the fairway at around 230 yards, meaning the player has to decide whether to carry this but still stop short of the ditch in front of the green, or else lay up. The lay up option is the safest, but not without difficulty because a new island of rough also sits in the centre of the fairway and must be avoided. Too cautious a tee shot will leave a shot of about 170 yards over Jockie’s Burn to a tight and undulating green.

Hole No. 4

Hillocks

412 Yards

Par 4

Into the prevailing wind, the fourth hole requires a good drive to carry a bunker built into the corner of the dogleg. The second shot then has to be hit to a flat green protected by bunkers to the left and the right green. The fourth features the only double green on the course, shared with the 14^th.

Hole No. 5

Brae

415 Yards

Par 4

The fifth is a left-to-right dogleg protected by two bunkers built into the left and the right of the landing area. Down wind, Jockie’s Burn can also be a problem as it crosses the fairway 300 yards from the Championship tees. Like on the second, the green is over 50 yards long and also features two distinct tiers.

Hole No 6

Hogan’s Alley

520 Yards

Par 5

The sixth is one of the most famous holes in Championship golf and in 2007 was renamed Hogan’s Alley in recognition of Ben Hogan’s exploits at the 1953 Open when on all four days of the Championship he elected to hit his drive down the narrow gap separating the fairway bunkers and the out-of-bounds fence on the left. Today’s golfers will find the tee shot even more demanding than in Hogan’s time. Ahead of the 2007 Open, the existing fairway bunkers, situated 280 yards from the tee, were deemed not to offer a sufficient threat to the modern golfer so a new bunker was added behind and slightly to the right of the existing bunkers, extending the carry to 310 yards. The intention was to tempt the golfer to go down the traditional, but risky Hogan Alley route and, if successful, then be rewarded with a more straightforward second shot down the fairway. A drainage ditch narrows that fairway about 80 yards short of the green. The green itself is heavily contoured and protected by bunkers at the front and rear.

Hole No. 7

Plantation

410 Yards

Par 4

Like on the sixth, there is out-of-bounds all the way down the left. The tee shot has to avoid bunkers built into the left and right of the landing area and the second then has to be threaded between two other bunkers that protect the shallow green. On the face of it, the seventh does not seem as demanding as some of Carnoustie’s other holes but don’t let appearances lull you into a false sense of security, it provided all sorts of problems to competitors in the 1999 Open.

Hole No. 8

Short

183 Yards

Par 3

The eighth is the first of Carnoustie’s par-3s and can be a real card-wrecker, particularly in a cross wind. Here, a sea of heather and gorse obscure the view of the green, making club selection difficult. Sometimes, when the wind is left to right, you have to send your tee shot out over the out of bounds fence and back to a green protected by bunkers to the left and right. The green itself falls away at the back and front, making it even more difficult target to hit.

Hole No. 9

Railway

478 Yards

Par 4

Carnoustie’s front nine closes with a classic par four that was rated as the toughest hole during the 1999 Open Championship. Here, the tee shot has to be accurate or else. The fairway is well bunkered in the driving area and further protected by trees to the left and a ditch that meanders its way down the right rough. The hole also has a long, narrow green, measuring 43 yards from back to front and protected by bunkers on both sides.

Hole No 10

South America

466 Yards

Par 4

Carnoustie’s back nine starts like its front nine ended, with a tough par four. As on the ninth, bunkers pose the biggest threat from the tee. The second shot then has to clear the Barry Burn, which crosses the fairway 30 yards short of the green, and meanders behind a sole tree to the right of the putting surface. The hole is called South America. It got its name from the exploits of a local caddie who announced he was emigrating to South America, but then got no further than this hole before deciding to stop and sleep off the effects of the whisky he had consumed at his farewell party.      

Hole No. 11

Dyke

383 Yard

Par 4

The 11^th is another hole that demands great accuracy, both from the tee and into the green. Bunkers eat into the left and right of the landing area, and four other traps also protect both sides of the green.

Hole No. 12

Southward Ho!

499 Yards

Par 5

On the 12^th, the second of Carnoustie’s par fives, the tee shot has to be hit down the left, away from two bunkers and an unseen ditch. The approach then has to be threaded between two mounds, both protected by bunkers, to a green built below the level of the fairway. The putting surface is wide but also surprisingly narrow, making it even more difficult to hit. The hole was played as a long par-4 during the 2007 Open Championship

Hole No. 13

Whins

176 Yards

Par 3

The 13^th is the shortest hole at Carnoustie but is certainly no pushover. The green, which narrows in the middle, rises from front to back and is protected by two bunkers, one on the left and one on the right. There is also a large horseshoe-shaped bunker to the front of the green. It catches anything that is under-clubbed and also masks the fact that the green is 40 yards in length.

Hole No. 14

Spectacles

514 Yards

Par 5

On the 14^th the golfer faces a blind drive over an expanse of gorse and rough to a landing area protected by three bunkers on the left and another on the right. Then, he has an option, either to lay up or to hit a long second shot over two huge bunkers situated about 50 yards short of the green. These bunkers, known as the “Spectacles”, completely obscure the view of the green. They also hide two bunkers that guard the entrance to a double green shared with the 4th.    

Hole No. 15

Luckyslap

472 Yards

Par 4

The 15^th starts what is sometimes considered to be the toughest closing stretch in British Championship golf. Here, the fairway slopes from left to right, throwing any loose tee shots towards two bunkers. Then, the second shot has to be guided over a nest of bunkers to a green that is largely hidden from view.

Hole No. 16

Barry Burn

248 Yards

Par 3

The 16^th at Carnoustie is often described as the hardest par-three in golf. Downwind it is difficult, into an easterly wind it is practically impossible to hit the green from the tee. The green itself is long but slopes off on all sides. It is also protected by five bunkers, situated short and to the left and right of the putting surface.

Hole No. 17

Island

461 Yards

Par 4

Revered golf writer, Bernard Darwin, once described Carnoustie’s Barry Burn as “the ubiquitous circumbendibus” and it is easy to see why once you reach the 17^th hole. Here, the burn loops backwards and forwards across the fairway creating an island into which the tee shot should be hit. For the 2007 Open, this tee shot was also been made more challenging by the addition of a series of dips and swales down the right side of the fairway where rough was encouraged to grow. The second shot has to be hit to a green that is protected by a mound on the left and bunkers on the right. Paul Lawrie birdied this hole during the play-off for the 1999 Open. For most others, a par would be considered to be an excellent result.

Hole No. 18

Home

499 Yards

Par 4

Carnoustie’s 18^th hole will always be remembered as the scene of Frenchman, Jean Van de Velde’s amazing capitulation during the 1999 Open. Leading by three, he needed only a six or less to win the title but contrived to take seven and then lost the ensuing play-off to Scotland’s Paul Lawrie. On that occasion, Van de Velde drove right but avoided the Barry Burn. Sadly for him, however, his second shot struck a grandstand and rebounded into the rough on the right side of the fairway. His third found the Barry Burn where it crosses the fairway just short of the green. Dropping out under penalty, he hit his fifth shot into the bunker that guards the right of the green before blasting out and holing a 10-foot putt for his triple bogey. It was arguably the greatest catalogue of disasters that any golfer has ever experienced on one hole, and could only have been worse only if he had he also hit a ball over the out of bounds fence that is situated all the way down the left of the hole.  

Carnoustie’s Other Courses

A True Hidden Gem

 

Carnoustie’s Burnside course is a classic links that seldom receives the kudos it deserves

There is no doubt that Carnoustie’s Burnside course is a victim of its geographical location.

Discerning local golfers will tell you that it is an excellent test of golf but further afield it seldom receives the accolades it deserves simply because it has the misfortune to sit in the shadow of its more illustrious neighbour.

The Burnside is what could be described as a true hidden gem because it is a much better test than it is ever given credit for. It might be only just over 6,000 yards in length but it offers a strenuous examination and is invariably in excellent condition as well.

The Burnside started life as a 9-hole course back in the 1890s and it was subsequently extended to 18-holes in the mid-1930s. It has as fine a set of par-3 holes as you could ever hope to find and has been used as a venue for more than one Open Championship Qualifier.

One of those occasions came back in 1953 when eventual champion, Ben Hogan, marked his first competitive round in Britain with a 70 that was only beaten by Bobby Locke (65), Max Faulkner (68) and Flory va Donck (69). Hogan raced to the turn in 32 (3,5,3,4,3,4,3,4,3) but then came home in 38 (4,5,4,4,4,5,3,5,4). The same day Roberto de Vicenzo took 73 and Peter Thomson carded 74. Luckless Ryder Cup prospect Wally Smithers stumbled to a 78 that included an outward half of 45 (4,8,3,5,4,7,4,6,4).

The Burnside course can be described as a classic test of links golf which features narrow and undulating fairways bordered by heather, whins and strategically-placed pot bunkers. The greens are small and sloping and a further element of danger is introduced by the Barry Burn which meanders over the course and features on several holes.

The most memorable hole is arguably the 158-yard par-3 5^th hole where the burn eats into the right and the front of the green and trees stand guard on the left. The 163-yard 9^th and the 228-yard 14^th are also challenging short holes and no golfer can relax until he has successfully circumnavigated the 473-yard par-4 17^th and the 307-yard par-4 18th which can both wreck a card if you happen to stray off-line.

Card of Burnside Course

Hole Yards Par S.I. Hole Yards Par S.I. 1 Peninsula 324 4 18 10 Kopje 336 4 15 2 Ravensby 450 4 4 11 Deil’s Ha’ 375 4 7 3 Fence 175 3 16 12 Heather 386 4 13 4 South America 460 4 2 13 Punchbowl 382 4 5 5 Burn 158 3 10 14 Scoup 228 3 1 6 Camp 348 4 14 15 Sou’western 500 5 11 7 Shelter 368 4 12 16 Whins 163 3 9 8 Battery 432 4 6 17 Island 473 4 3 9 Grog 163 3 8 18 Home 307 4 17

 

Into the Fray

 

Carnoustie’s newest course, the Buddon Links, has developed into a thoroughly enjoyable test of golf

 

The Buddon Links is the newest course at Carnoustie and was built to complement the older Championship and Burnside courses. It has proved to be a popular addition to the town’s golf facilities and has subsequently become a firm favourite, both of visitors and local golfers.

The original Buddon Links was designed in the late 1970s by former Ryder Cup stars, Peter Alliss and Clive Clark, but has since been upgraded by a local committee headed by John Philp, Carnoustie’s redoubtable Greens Superintendent. Philip’s contribution can be seen quite literally everywhere. He altered the lay-out to comprise seven par-3s, ten par-4s and one par-5, he introduced heather, gorse and water hazards to make it a more memorable golfing experience and even sited a Suggestion Box in the centre of the lake on the 390-yard par-4 4^th hole, put there in jest for the use of those golfers who dare to challenge his expertise.

The resultant Buddon Links is a fine links course measuring 5,420 yards. Although shorter than the Burnside, it still packs a hefty punch, particularly round the turn where the 7^th, 9^th, 11^th and 12^th all test a player’s accuracy and control. The 405-yard par-4 7^th , named Vimy after one of the greatest battles in Canada’s history, is particularly challenging and so, too, is Waterloo, the 409-yard par-4 14^th where trouble awaits even a slightly errant shot.

All 18 holes on the Buddon Links are named after famous (and not so famous) battles but a round is far from being an unrelenting experience and is the ideal choice for the golfer who wants a quick 18 holes, either before or after a game on the more challenging Championship course. 

Card of the Course

Hole	Yards	Par	S.I.	Hole	Yards	Par	S.I
1 St Valery	284	4	13	10 The Hook	138	3	18
2 Alma	427	4	3	11 Caen	366	4	8
3 Corunna	172	3	11	12 Somme	382	4	4
4 Wadi Akarit	390	4	5	13 Marne	175	3	16
5 Ypres	160	3	17	14 Waterloo	409	4	2
6 Kohima	332	4	9	15 Falaise	165	3	10
7 Vimy	405	4	1	16 Cassino	498	5	12
8 Mareth	164	3	15	17 Tobruk	165	3	14
9 El Alamein	369	4	7	18 Rhine	419	4	6

 

Carnoustie’s Open Championships

 

Carnoustie has hosted seven Opens including some of the most memorable Championships ever staged

 

Armour Wins Carnoustie’s First Open in 1931

 

Tommy Armour was a popular winner when Carnoustie staged its first Open Championship in 1931.

Armour, who was born in Edinburgh in 1896, but who emigrated to America in the 1920s, produced rounds of 73, 75, 77, 71 to finish one shot ahead of Argentina’s Jose Jurado and two in front of England’s Percy Alliss and America’s Gene Sarazen. However, he might not have won the title had his Argentinean rival not miscalculated what he needed coming down the last.

Jurado, the first of the great Latin America golfers, came to the 72^nd hole thinking he needed a five to tie. After hitting a good drive, he elected to play short of the water, rather than go for the carry over the burn, and it was to prove to be a costly decision because he later found he needed a four to tie Armour on 296.

Armour, known as the Silver Scot, lost an eye in a mustard gas attack while fighting in the British Army during the World War 1 but that did not stop him compiling a fine record as a Tour professional. In addition to the 1931 Open, the Scot also won the 1927 US Open and the 1930 USPGA Championship. Later, he went on to become one of the game’s finest teachers, penning the instruction classics, How to Play Your Best Golf All The Time and A Round of Golf With Tommy Armour.

At the 1931 Open, the Scottish émigré missed a short putt on the 71^st hole and had a similar putt on the last. “I took a new grip, holding the club as tightly as I could and with stiff wrists,” he recalled. “From the instant the club left the ball on the backswing I was blind and unconscious. I do not know how the ball went into the hole.”

Carnoustie native, Macdonald Smith, who, like Armour emigrated and became a naturalised American, shared fifth place at the 1931 Open with Johnny Farrell, thus perpetuated his series of near misses in Major championships. Between 1910 and 1936, MacDonald came within three shots of the winner in eleven different Opens and US Opens. He was runner-up in two Opens, in 1930 and 1932, but never won the major title he craved. His brothers, Alex and Willie, won three US Opens between them.

Cotton Claims his Second Open Title at Carnoustie

 

In an age when no British golfer won the Open more than once, Henry Cotton stood out like a colossus. He won the world’s oldest championship three times, elevating him into a position alongside Nick Faldo as the two greatest British golfers of the modern age.

Cotton’s first Open win came in 1934 when he won by five strokes at Royal St George’s despite closing with a 79. Three years later, he came to Carnoustie and won again, this time with one of the finest final rounds ever played in an Open.

The records show that Cotton returned a 71, to finish two shots clear of Reg Whitcombe on 292 but that bald statistic gives no indication of the conditions he and the rest of the field had to endure.

Cotton’s 71 was compiled in torrential rain on a water-logged course and, for that reason, it can be considered to be one of his greatest achievements, surpassed, perhaps, only by the course record 66 that gave him his third Open title at Muirfield in 1948. 

Certainly, few of his rivals coped nearly as well in the dreadful conditions. Horton Smith and another American, Charles Lacey, did return 72s on that final afternoon but Byron Nelson had a 74, Sam Snead carded a 76 and Densmore Shute and Henry Picard both ballooned to 80s.

Meanwhile, Cotton seemed almost oblivious to the atrocious conditions. He started 4, 3, 4, 4, 4, 4 and was out in 35. Suddenly, after being three shots behind at the start, he now had a one shot lead and he was soon to go three in front before dropping a shot at the last when the title was already well and truly in his grasp.

Hogan Completes the Third Leg of the Grand Slam

 

Ben Hogan only ever competed in one Open Championship but he certainly made the most of his single visit.

Nowadays, almost 60 years later, Hogan’s win at the 1953 Open at Carnoustie is still remembered as if it was yesterday, not just for the manner in which he won, but also for the meticulous way he prepared for his sole appearance in the world’s oldest golfing event.

The story goes that Hogan only came to the Open because Gene Sarazen, and one or two others, told him he could not be considered to be a true great until he won the title. Be that as it may, because when he did come, there was no doubting his determination to succeed.

Hogan arrived at Carnoustie a full two weeks before the championship started and proceeded to use that time to practise, to get to know the Carnoustie course, and to acquaint himself with the smaller British golf ball.

To no real surprise to anyone, Hogan’s diligence paid off. After opening with a 73, he then produced round of 71, 70 and 68. That gave him a then-record Open aggregate of 286 and a four shot winning margin over an international foursome comprising America’s Frank Stranahan, Argentina’s Antonio Cerda, Australia’s Peter Thomson and Wales’ Dai Rees. It also made him the first, and, to date, only man to achieve the first three legs of the Grand Slam, having previously won the Masters by five strokes and the US Open by six.

Sadly, Hogan was denied the chance to win the fourth leg of the Grand Slam because the US PGA clashed with his trip to the Open. That was a huge shame but has done nothing to dilute his reputation. To this day, the wee ice mon, as he was labelled, is still regarded with awe by a generation of Scots who watched him win at Carnoustie.

Player Produces Wonder Shot to Win 1968 Open

Gary Player won on four Continents during the 1968 season but there is little doubt that the high spot of his year came when he won the Open at Carnoustie.

It was the South African’s second Open title and was achieved with the help of a wonder shot during his final round.

“The shot”, as it is still described in the Angus town, came at the par five 14^th hole. Player had gone ahead for the first time in the Championship at the sixth but, by the time he reached the 14^th, with its famous Spectacles bunkers, he was back in a tie with America’s Billy Casper and New Zealand’s Bob Charles on two under par.

A play-off was starting to seem inevitable but that was before the fearless South African grabbed his 3-wood and used it to despatch his ball to within two feet of the hole before putting out for a decisive eagle three.

Player went on post a final round of 73, for a four round one over par aggregate of 289, two in front of Charles and Jack Nicklaus and three ahead of Casper. England’s Maurice Bembridge closed with a 74 to finish alone in fifth place on 293 while Scotland’s Brian Barnes, England’s Neil Coles and America’s Gay Brewer were one place further back on 295. Alone among the challengers, Player completed the 72 holes without recording a six, and only twice did he three-putt, no mean feat on Carnoustie’s treacherous greens.

The Carnoustie course, lengthened to 7,252 yards, was, at the time, the longest ever presented for an Open. That year, the championship rules were also altered to introduce a cut after 36 holes. Under the rules, the top 80, and those tied on 80^th place, were eligible to continue. After the third round, the field was further reduced to the top 45 and ties.

 Love at First Sight for Watson

Mere mortals take a while to learn all about the nuances of links golf but it is clear Tom Watson does not come into that category.

The American had never played a links course before he arrived at Carnoustie in 1975 for his first tase of the Open but, like Hogan before him, that did not stop him heading home with the game’s most prestigious title in his grasp.

Nowadays, Watson freely admits that he no idea what links golf was all about when he arrived at Carnoustie for that Championship but, with the help of his faithful caddie, Alfie Fyles, and a week of strangely subdued weather, he soon found his feet.

Over the first three rounds, Watson recorded rounds of 71, 67 and 69. That left him just three shots behind leader, Bobby Cole, and in the frame alongside an eclectic group comprising Jack Nicklaus, Jack Newton, Neil Coles, Johnny Miller, Hale Irwin and Andries Oosthuizen.

The following day Watson returned a 72, for a four round aggregate of 279 and then watched as, one by one, the other challengers failed to mount a charge. Some, such as Coles, Oosthuizen, Mahaffey, Coles and Irwin moved backwards. Nicklaus could only replicate Watson’s 72 and when Miller failed to get out of a fairway bunker on the 72^nd hole it was left to Newton to two- putt to tie, necessitating an 18-hole play-off to decide the title.

In 1975, Watson had arrived in Carnoustie with the reputation as something of a “choker”. Previously, he had let several prestigious titles slip from his grasp but this time he was to come of age.

Not unusually, the 18-hole play-off, the last of its kind in the Open, turned out to be strangely muted. The American went one ahead when a 4-iron shot bounced kindly for him on the second and then doubled his advantage when Newton, disturbed by a child, mishit his tee shot on the next. The crucial point for Watson came at the fifth where, twice bunkered, he got down in two to avoid losing the lead. Newton did move ahead with a four on the 12^th but his advantage lasted just one hole. The Australian lost the 13^th. He lost the 14^th to an eagle but then squared the match and on the 16^th when, for the fifth time that week, Watson failed to secure a par. Under pressure, the American then did well to hole from five feet for a halve before claiming the Claret Jug with a regulation par down the last.

In the end, Watson recorded a 71, one better than Newton, thereby starting a sequence that would see the American win five Opens over the next nine years. Watson’s love for links golf had been kindled. It turned out to be an enduring affair.

Lawrie Picks Up the Pieces

Over the years, Carnoustie has staged more than its fair share of great Opens but when it comes to sheer drama none compares with the 1999 Championship, won by Paul Lawrie, but lost by Jean Van de Velde.

The 1999 Championship, Carnoustie’s first since 1975, featured a climax so extraordinary, so unexpected, that it will never be forgotten. It resulted in Lawrie becoming the first Scotsman to win the Open on native soil for 68 years but also made Frenchman, Van de Velde, headline news all over the world.

The records show that Lawrie became the first qualifier to win the Open since the R & A started to give exemptions in 1963 after recording a four round aggregate of 290 and then beating Van de Velde and former champion, Justin Leonard, in a subsequent four hole play-off. However, what the bare facts don’t explain was the incredible scenes witnessed on the 72^nd hole.

To set the scene, Lawrie, then ranked 159^th on the official World Rankings, had started the final round ten shots out of the lead. Despite a fine four under par 67, he was still three shots behind Van de Velde as the Frenchman mounted the last tee and promptly self-destructed right in front of him.

Lawrie deserves huge credit for the manner in which he played, both during the last round and in the resultant play-off but, in the end, he still could not have prevailed had it not been for Van de Velde perpetrating one of the biggest collapses in sporting history.

Needing only a double bogey six on the final hole to become the first Frenchman to win the Open for 92 years, Van de Velde ran up a catastrophic triple bogey seven, even having to hole a brave 10-foot putt to get into the play-off.

What transpired left the eloquent BBC golf commentator, Peter Alliss, almost lost for words. The Frenchman hit his drive right off the tee, finding dry land, albeit on a peninsula guarding the Barry Burn. From there, he could have hit wedge, wedge onto the green but, instead, elected to go for the green in two. Sadly for him, his second shot did not come off as he had envisaged. Instead, it hit the upper tier of a grandstand and rebounded into the deep rough.

That was the start of Van de Velde’s problems. Next, the horrified gallery watched as his third shot came out softly and went into the burn in front of the green. After that, the episode became almost surreal. To begin with, the Frenchman chose to take off his shoes and roll up his trouser legs before jumping into the water to see if he could hit his submerged ball. Finally, as the water lapped around his ankles, sense prevailed. Van de Velde took a drop in the rough but then hit his fifth shot into the bunker guarding the right of the green. Under the circumstances, he displayed exemplary fortitude to blast his sixth shot out to ten feet and then hole the resultant putt.

Sadly, though, Van de Velde’s chance to win the Claret Jug had gone. On the first play-off hole, clearly still in torment over what had happened ten minutes earlier, he hit his tee shot into a gorse bush leaving Lawrie and Leonard, the 1997 champion, to battle it out.

In the end it was the unheralded Scotman who prevailed. He moved into the lead when he holed a 12-foot birdie on the 17^th, the third play-off hole, and then sealed his first major title when he hit his second shot to three feet for another birdie on the 18^th.

All in all, it was an admirable performance by Lawrie, albeit one that is often forgotten as a result of Van de Velde’s sad demise.

Harrington Wins as another Carnoustie Open is Settled in Extra Time

Padraig Harrington became the first European golfer to win the Open for eight years when he closed with a two under par 69, despite a dramatic double bogey on the last, and then defeated Spaniard, Sergio Garcia, in a four-hole play-off.

The 35 year-old Harrington, the European Tour’s Order of Merit winner the previous year, put two shots into the burn on the 72^nd hole to drop into a tie with Garcia but then recovered his composure to pip the Spaniard by one shot over the extra holes and become the first European winner since Scotland’s Paul Lawrie prevailed over the same links eight years before.

Harrington also became the first Irishman to win the world’s oldest professional title since Fred Daly triumphed at Hoylake in 1947.   

“To tell you the truth, if I’d lost after what happened on 18, I don’t know what I would of thought about playing again,” said a relieved Harrington after collecting the Claret Jug and a cheque for £750,000

“I have come a long way,” he added. “When I turned pro I would have settled for becoming a journeyman. It’s been great to have been named as someone who could win a major. To actually go and do it, well I don’t know what to think.”

For Garcia, defeat was a bitter pill to swallow after leading for the first three rounds with scores of 65, 71 and 68 and it meant he had finished fifth, fifth and second in his last three Open appearances.

“To be honest, I don’t feel as if I did much wrong,” said the vanquished Spaniard, who, together with his Irish rival, had finished on seven under par 277, one shot ahead of Argentina’s Andres Romero and two in front of Australia’s Richard Green and South Africa’s Ernie Els.

“I didn’t really miss a shot in the play-off. I hit unbelievable putts. They just didn’t go in.

“Every time I get into this position, I never seem to have any room for error,” he added. “I should write a book on how not to miss a shot and not win a play-off,”

Earlier in the day, Harrington took the lead for the first time with an eagle on the par-5 14^th and he was still one clear coming to the last, However, in an episode reminiscent of Jean Van de Velde’s collapse in 1999, he drove into water, dropped out but then hit his next into the Barry Burn to run up a six and leave Garcia with a 10-foot putt to secure victory.

The Spaniards miss resulted in a play-off, in which Harrington opened a two-stroke lead after a birdie three on the first, claimed pars at the 16^th and 17^th and then wrapped up victory with a cautious bogey five on the last where he elected not to go for the green in two.

Carnoustie’s Roll of Honour

This year many some of the world’s leading women professionals will arrive at Carnoustie to compete in the Ricoh Women’s British Open Championship

It is the first time one of the four women’s majors has been staged over the Championship course at Carnoustie, indeed the first time a women’s professional event of any kind has been contested there, but is by no means the only time the course has been utilised as the venue for prestigious national and international tournaments.

Carnoustie first came to the forefront when it was used as the venue for the 1930 Scottish Amateur Championship and since then it has regularly hosted a wide variety of prestigious professional and amateur events.

There follows a brief summary of the leading tournaments staged at Carnoustie over the past 60 years.

The Open Championship

 

Carnoustie staged its first Open Championship back in 1931 when Scottish émigré, Tommy Armour emerged victorious and since then it has staged the world’s oldest professional national title on six further occasions with Henry Cotton (1937), Ben Hogan (1953), Gary Player (1968), Tom Watson (1975), Paul Lawrie (1999) and Padraig Harrington (2007) emerging as the victors.

European Tour Events

The Championship course at Carnoustie staged its first European Tour event back in 1995 when Australia’s Wayne Riley won the Scottish Open.

Riley recorded a 12 under par aggregate of 276 to emerge with a two-shot win over England’s Nick Faldo. Scotland’s Colin Montgomerie opened with a 64 but then fell back into third place with rounds of 70, 75 and 70. US Amateur champion, Tiger Woods, made his first appearance in Carnoustie, posting rounds of 67, 71, 75 and 78 to finish in a share of 48^th place alongside Scott Watson and Terry Price.

The following year, the Scottish Open returned to Carnoustie and this time Welshman, Ian Woosnam, defied gale force winds to register his third success in this event.

Woosnam carded rounds of 70, 74, 70 and 75 for a one over par aggregate of 289, four shots better than the second-placed Scot, Andrew Coltart. Woosnam’s 289 remains the highest winning aggregate in Scottish Open history.

Since 2001, the Championship course at Carnoustie has been used as one of three venues for the annual Alfred Dunhill Links Championship, the others being the Old Course at St Andrews and Kingsbarns. Former winners of this pro-am event include Paul Lawrie, Padraig Harrington, Lee Westwood, Stephen Gallacher, Colin Montgomerie, Nick Dougherty, Robert Karlsson, Simon Dyson and Graeme McDowell.

European Senior Tour Events

Carnoustie broke new ground during 2010 when it hosted the Senior British Open Championship for the first time.

The event attracted a strong field from all over the world and was won by Germany’s Bernhard Langer who closed with a level par 72 for a five under par aggregate of 283 and a one stroke victory over US Open champion Corey Pavin. The following week the German achieved a unique transatlantic double when he won the US Senior open at the Sahalee Country Club in Seattle, Washington.

National Amateur Events

Carnoustie hosted its first Scottish Amateur Championship back in 1930 and has since become a regular feature on the amateur golf calendar.

In total, the Championship course has hosted four British Amateur Championships (1947, ’66, ’71 and ’92), four British Boys’ Championship (1933, ’39, ’57 and 2002), two British Ladies’ Amateur Championships (1961 and ’73) and one British Youths’ Championship (1986).

The Championship is also regularly used for leading Scottish national events. Having debuted in 1930, it has now hosted ten Scottish Amateur Championships (1930, ’36, ’46, ’52, ’60, ’67, ’73, ’82. ’97 and 2008), five Scottish Ladies’ Amateur Championships (1953, ’68, ’80, ’91 and 2001) and three Scottish Amateur  Stroke Play Championships (1969, ’76 and ’86)

It has also acted as the venue for the Scottish Girls’ Championship (1963) and the Men’s Home Internationals (2000).

The Craw’s Nest Tassie

Carnoustie is famous for its Craw’s Nest Tassie, a scratch and handicap event held every year in early September, which regularly attracts entries from all over the world.

The Tassie, which features 36-hole qualifying over the Championship and Burnside courses, followed by match play over the Championship course, was established in 1927, when it was won by a local golfer, A. Mann. Subsequent winners include SKY TV golf commentator and former European Tour professional, Ewen Murray (1971) and former Walker Cup player, Ian Hutcheon.

Its sister event, for those golfers who qualify for the handicap section, is the Maulesbank which also features 36-holes qualifying on the Championship and Burnside courses followed by match play on the Burnside. It was inaugurated in 1933.

In 2010, the Craw’s Nest Tassie set a record when all 338 places in the field were snapped up within five minutes of the competition’s online application system going live. The Carnoustie Golf Links Management Committee received its first application 30 seconds after the online system was activated and exactly 4 minutes 57 seconds late the complete allocation of place was filled. Entries were lodged from America, Canada, Holland, Sweden and Spain as well as from all over GB & I.

Quote….Unquote

What some of golf’s leading figures think of Carnoustie

“I didn’t realise what a wonderful course it is. It’s terrific.” (Phil Mickelson during the 1999 Open Championship

“It’s got length. It’s got great bunkering. You’ve really got to have your wits about you to play this golf course. It’s probably the best bunkered course you’ll find anywhere in the world. (Ernie Els gives his opinion on the Championship course during the 1999 Open Championship)

“One of the toughest and best courses we have in the world.” (Colin Montgomerie)

“This golf course is hard but it’s fair. It’s a terrific test.” (Tiger Woods)

“There isn’t a player who didn’t find this course a test and enjoyed that test. Credit to Carnoustie, it’s one of the best in the world.” (Padraig Harrington)

“St Andrews is the Home of Golf but Carnoustie is the home of Australian and American professional golf.” (Legendary American golf writer, Herb Warren Wind)

“This will be the end of golf as we know it in Carnoustie.” (The thoughts of an anonymous local club member on hearing that a telephone was to be installed in the Starter’s Box in 1905. He was convinced Dundee golfers would commandeer all the available tee times)

“The greatest stroke of luck I ever had in golf was Stewart Maiden coming from Carnoustie to be the coach at East Lake Golf Club.” (Bobby Jones credits his coach and mentor, a native of Carnoustie)

“The ideal course is the one which gives the greatest pleasure to the many but at the same time constitutes a searching test for the crack golfer – whether professional or amateur. Carnoustie is nearing that ideal. (James Wright in 1933)

“One of the greatest rounds of my life,” (Henry Cotton talks after he defied torrential rain by scoring 71 in the final round of the 1937 Open)

“Lots of players are going to get annoyed at the course and beat themselves (five-time Open champion, Peter Thomson  ahead of the 1968 Championship)

“It’s like an elephants’ burial ground.” (Johnny Miller describes the first fairway during the 1975 Open)

“It’s the most difficult par-3 I have ever encountered,” (Tom Watson describes the 16^th on his way to victory in the 1975 Open. He bogeyed the hole in all four rounds and then again in the play-off against Jack Newton)

“The course is without a single identifiable weakness, which may make it unique… it is one of the wonders of world golf.” (Sandy Lyle, 1982)

“Today’s best golfers are being raped of their comfort zones,” (Graham Spiers, then golf writer for Scotland on Sunday, describes the action during the 1999 Open).

“This could be one of the saddest moments in sport,” (BBC commentator, Alex Hay, describes Jean Van de Velde’s capitulation in 1999)

“Van de Velde single-handedly turned the Open into a stage play as compelling and wretched as Les Miserables.” (Gambling magazine’s description of the finale to the 1999 Championship)

“Strange things happen, especially round here.” (Paul Lawrie speaks after his win in 1999)

“There are worse things in life. Some terrible things are happening to other people. This is only a golf tournament. Yes, I blew it on 18. All it proves is I was capable of being three ahead of the best players on the world with one hole left to go…. I went for it and all the glory. Now I have to pay the price…. Maybe next time I’ll hit the wedge and you’ll forgive me. ” (Jean Van de Velde’s description of his collapse)

“Carnoustie is one of those places that is beautiful and brutal at the same time. It tests every part of your game and, if you are not in good form, maybe your sanity as well.” (Justin Leonard)

“Carnoustie is one of the great links courses. It has a wonderful mix of short holes and long holes and, no matter what direction the wind, it is always a stern test of golf. Undoubtedly, the four finishing holes are the toughest in championship golf, no matter what the weather conditions. It’s always an absolute pleasure to play and I always look forward to returning.” (Nick Price)

“We are not seeking carnage. We are seeking an arena where the players can display their skill to best effect…. Our objective is that everyone will go away from the Open feeling as if they’ve played on a wonderful golf course.” (R&A Chief Executive, Peter Dawson, explains the set-up for the 2007 Open Championship)

“Carnoustie is, day-in, day-out, the toughest course we have (on the Open rota) (Peter Dawson)

“If any golfer has a tendency to hydrophobia, let him beware of the 18^th hole at Carnoustie, for if ever water inspires terror, it does so there. It is the Barry Burn, serpentine and ubiquitous, that is the enemy. The hole is, as the book tells me, 453 yards (though it can be longer) and you are never free from that insidious stream. You carry it with your tee shot or you slice into it as it winds its way down the right of the fairway. You carry it with your second or your third, where it lies guarding the green. There is no getting round it, you must go over it. It’s a grand finishing hole.” (Legendary British Golf writer, describes the 18^th hole in an article which appeared in Golf Monthly)

“Carnoustie is the toughest course anywhere.” (Gary Player)

“When the wind is blowing, Carnoustie is probably the toughest course in Britain. And when it’s not blowing, it’s probably still the toughest.” (Michael Bonallack, former Amateur champion and Secretary of the R&A)

“I always wanted to win the Open Championship and this is probably the next best thing. I will probably not win the Open Championship but I’m very pleased to win the Senior British Open on a great course like this. Carnoustie is a wonderful, tough, links course, maybe the toughest I have ever played.” (Bernhard Langer after victory in the 2010 Senior British Open Championship)

“It’s a tough course, but a fair course. You tend to get what you deserve.” (Corey Pavin, former US Open champion and runner-up at the 2010 Senior British Open)

“It’s a great test of golf. It’s a course where you can’t be too aggressive because you can’t fly the ball straight at the flags like we are used to over the courses we play in America. I have had to learn a whole new game. It’s exciting, but it’s tough. I just tried to stay out of the death bunkers – as I call them – because it’s a one shot penalty every time you go in one of them.” (US golfer, Jay Don Blake, who shared third place at the 2010 Senior British Open gives his take on Carnoustie).