Carnoustie (Championship)

The Carnoustie Golf Links , located at the Royal Burgh in Carnoustie, Angus, in east Scotland , is perhaps the oldest course in the world with golf being played here in as early as 1527.

History of the course
Though the Carnoustie Golf Links has been home to golf from the 1500s the Championship Course came into existence 1847. Designed by Alan Robertson of St Andrews it was originally a 10-hole course which criss-crossed its way around. As the course became more popular, it was converted into an 18-hole course by renowned golf architect Old Tom Morris in 1867.
In 1926, the Championship Course was totally overhauled by James Braid, another famous architect. The final three holes were redesigned again in 1937 by James Wright, a local man, making the finishing one of the toughest finishing holes in the world.
The course belongs to the people of Carnoustie, who in turn have entrusted its administration to the Angus Council. It is a public course and many clubs have the right to play on the greens here.

Course Trivia

The Championship Course has been home to a number of major tournaments over the years.

It has hosted The Open Championship, one of the four majors, six times and will again hold it in 2007. Besides this, it has hosted other prestigious tournaments like the Walker Cup, Scottish Internationals, etc.

Besides the Championship Course there are two other courses: the Burnside Course and the shorter Buddon Links.

The course is nick-named “Car-Nasty” in North America due to the difficult nature of the course.

The term “Carnoustie Effect” was coined during the 1999 Open Championship. The winner finished six-over par which is considered as bad amongst top golfers. The phrase means “ that degree of mental and psychic shock experienced on collision with reality by those whose expectations are founded on false assumptions.”

The closing holes are famously called ‘sting-in-the-tail', due to its tricky nature.

Famous for its difficult nature, the Carnoustie Championship Course is the 12 th best course outside the US , according to Golf Digest magazine in 2005. As we continue on this tour we will learn about the other top-100 golf courses in the world.

Scotland Golf Tour