07 Mar '08

Golf Trivia

What is a Links Course? 

The word ‘links’ is sometimes used to describe any bit of rough ground, but a true golf links lies by the sea.  It is where the coastal sand, over the years, been blown into dunes and become grass covered.  With wind and time, sand hollows form and dunes move, so the area becomes undulating. Links’ grasses tend to be short and tight because, in the early days, sheep and other animals were free to roam,  grazing on the links.  Scrapes in the grass erode to form natural bunkers and pot bunkers are commonplace.   Trees are rare because the strong winds off the ocean make survival almost impossible.  Most links courses have little or no man made drainage because they are generally situated on very sandy ground which drains superbly.  The wind and the natural elements are key factors of play on links courses.  Successful play involved the ability to keep the ball low in flight and choosing ‘running’ shots to the greens as opposed to high ‘hit and stop’ shots.

As many well credentialed USA golf professionals have found in their first visits to Britain for the Open Championship, playing well on links courses is a totally different matter to the well watered courses in the home country.  The great, RT (Bob) Jones, arguably the best ever, gave up in disgust on his first visit to St. Andrews in the early 1920’s.  When he returned to Britain in the years to come, with a superior array of shots and self control, he went on to win multiple Open and British Amateur Championships.

Classical links course are located in quantity around the coast in Britain, with St. Andrews being one of the most famous.  In Southeast Queensland, Hope Island on the Gold Coast is one example of a course that is very close to a true links format with its hard bouncy greens, tightly cut fairways and multiple pot bunkering.