Golf Course Scouting Report: Part One - The Old Course at St. Andrews

Since I began studying golf course architecture, Oakmont has been my favorite course in the world; however, if I were ever to change my opinion, the Old Course at St. Andrews is on a short list of leading candidates.

Estimated to be roughly 600 years old, the Home of Golf is not just a legendary golf course - it is the very inception of this great game, the original golf course, a wondrous historic landmark created by the subtle caresses of nature over thousands of years. The hundreds of spectacular worldwide golf courses and their iconic constituent holes, the thousands upon thousands of local neighborhood courses where fathers and mothers brought sons and daughters to play, the generations of Major Champions and famous moments that echo endlessly throughout history, all of it began on this very property.

The Old Course at St. Andrews is saturated with history, from the dozens of famous bunkers to the Old Course Hotel to the immense double greens.

• Overall: 9.60

• Memorable Holes: 11.0

• Interest: 10.0

• Par Threes: 9.5

• Difficulty: 6.5

• Finish: 11.0

A more unique and thrilling set of putting surfaces cannot be found: golfers must contend with huge humps, undulations, valleys, shelves, and contours that appear as though they can't possibly be part of the monstrous greens; no architect would even momentarily consider building putting surfaces like this today.

Pot bunkers dot the landscape indiscriminately and are complemented by larger and more distinctly-shaped sand traps; dozens of these bunkers are famous worldwide and have memorable names: There's Cartgate Bunker guarding the third green, The Spectacles on the fifth, the Shell Bunker near the seventh green, Coffins on the 13th, and Hell Bunker on the 618-yard 14th to name some of the most well-known. There are far more to learn about for the hardcore golf historians, such as Students' Bunkers, Seven Sisters, The Beardies, Hill Bunker, Strath, Kruger and Mrs. Kruger, Boase's Bunker, Stroke Bunker, Cat's Trap, Walkinshaw's Grave, Lion's Mouth, Ginger Beer Bunkers, and many more. There are other landforms that receive names, as well, the best arguably being the large mounds framing the 15th fairway known as Miss Grainger's Bosoms.

There is enough greatness at St. Andrews to fill a book (and I will detail it further on my podcast, Linksworms), but its biggest claims to fame are the legendary finishing holes. The difficult par-four 16th features out of bounds tight to the right side of the entire hole and a green with a wild shelf. The Principal's Nose bunkers must be negotiated off the tee, as well. The famous 495-yard 17th, named the "Road" Hole, is considered by some to be the single most difficult golf hole in the world. This par four requires a blind drive over the Old Course Hotel (which, needless to say, is out of bounds) to an extremely narrow fairway. Once this is accomplished, players are left with a lengthy approach to a long and extremely narrow green with a huge shelf at the front portion; the terrifyingly deep Road Hole Bunker guards the left side while a dirt path and an actual paved road sit long and right. If you think you can take free relief from these pathways, not so fast; balls that come to rest on the dirt path or the road must be played as they lie.

The 357-yard par-four 18th is possibly the most famous finishing hole in the world. Past the iconic Swilcan Bridge, the gargantuan fairway is shared with the first hole and golfers will play left to this open area to avoid out of bounds down the entire right side. The severely-sloped green is one of the most difficult putting surfaces in golf and is guarded by the Valley of Sin, a gully that catches all approach shots that come up short or left. The setting of this hole is unlike anything else in the sport, lined down the right side by pubs and residences where locals can watch golf's greatest championships from streets, bars, and rooftops. This location perfectly encapsulates the magical connection between the town of St. Andrews and the game of golf.

For the criteria used to determine these ratings, please click here.