Every trip anywhere on the British Isles starts precisely the same way: after collecting baggage and rental car and reacquainting yourself with a manual transmission stick in your left hand, the first stop is without fail a golf course for an immediate round fresh off the plane. It’s the international golf traveler’s version of trunk slamming, and it is the perfect tonic for avoiding jet lag.
In 12 Old World journeys, the initial courses change – St. Andrews Bay, Llanymynech, Adare Manor, the Old Course, Dunbar, Crail, Walton Heath, St. Annes, the New Course, Renaissance, the Island, Prestwick – but whether it’s a trophy venue or not, the experience is always the same. Any overnight flight fatigue washes away the moment you step onto the first tee. The exhilaration of the round carries you through the day and the subsequent week. The exercise, plus a pint or two at the end, makes for a good night’s rest.
Last week’s Genesis Scottish Open was played at the Renaissance Club, the newest addition to one of the most perfect stretches of golf in the world nestled between two of the planet’s greatest courses – Muirfield and North Berwick. The East Lothian region east of Edinburgh is rich with the greatest concentration of championship links courses, boasting 21 tracks in a 30-mile stretch of coastline along the Firth of Forth to the North Sea. Rain or shine (or even sleet blowing sideways in 30-mph winds), golf journeys there never disappoint.
Neither does the beer, as East Lothian is also the home of Belhaven Best, our preferred pint brewed in Dunbar. The first sip immediately conjures all the views beyond the links of Bass Rock, Fidra, The Law, Gullane Hill, Winton Castle, Edinburgh up the coast or the Kingdom of Fife across the water. East Lothian lingers with those who’ve experienced it.
Golf Digest writer Jamie Kennedy – “a proper stick,” as Brits might call him – recently detailed the culmination of his lifelong dream of slinging a bag on his shoulder and playing a nearly 50-mile long “course” including one hole on 18 courses along “Scotland’s Golf Coast,” from the first hole of old Musselburgh Links to the 18th at Dunbar. He accomplished the task (on foot in 89,749 steps) spanning 47.9 miles in 17 hours and 19 minutes in only 66 strokes (even par). I’m not envious that he’d beat me (handily) but that he beat me to it.
American golfers are accustomed to asking certain questions about our courses such as what strain of bent, Bermuda or zoysia grasses make up the greens and fairways. Ask that silly question about the turf of a links superintendent and you’ll get a quizzical look and the same response: “It’s grass.” And it’s perfect, especially when it’s tinged brown and “fiery.”
Outside of Masters week, “links season” from the Scottish to the Open is an annual favorite on the schedule whether in attendance or not. This week I’ll be watching from home instead of on hand at Hoylake, so there’ll be envy of friends taking advantage of the daylight with rounds at Wallasey or West Lancs.
Hopefully next year the opportunity arises to attend the 152nd Open at Royal Troon. Already daydreaming of where to kill the jet lag on the Ayrshire Coast. Western Gailes, with a pint overlooking the Ailsa Craig, sounds like a plan.
Scott Michaux
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