SCOTLAND!!!

[Kyle Henderson]

Kyle,
nice report, but where's the pics???!!!!
Gr8 2 meet U. Sounds like the rest of the trip was fantastic too.

Muchas gracias to Mark P for the kind invite. Crail is 2 good!!! On an architectural note, I noticed and we commented on how much the Craighead course depends on its greensites for any interest. They (Hanse) clearly spent more time and money on the green surrounds than any other part of the course. Ginormous, long, flat, relatively featureless fairways ending in hilarious, great fun, riotous greensites were the recurring feature for me. Pretty nice routing too though, using the back and forth to the ehm, FORTH so well!!! And the Balcomie of course never fails to impress (and remind me so much of my Uncle Bill McB too!!) The coolest 36 hole day on the planet?

Great day and thanks again,
FBD.

Very well put, MGB the FBD. A glorious golfing day in glorious weather made all the better by your company and some award winning fish and chips enjoyed in the Anstruthers harbor.

We'll surely have to plan a sequel someday.

[Kyle Henderson]

Kyle,

Great itinerary!  Looking forward to your pictures.  How many base camps did you have?  Also, did you try the haggis and if so, what did you think?

3 nights in Dornoch, 2 in Aberdeen, 6 in Strathkiness (3 miles outside of St. Andrews), 1 in Auchterarder, 3 in North Berwick. I had haggis twice, once at the links clubhouse in St. Andrews (part of a sample platter, pretty tasty) and once at my B & B in North Berwick (also tasty, though noticeably different from my other sample).

The best food of the trip was certainly lunch at Muirfield.

Pictures are coming very soon.

[Scott Warren]

Kyle,

Could you maybe share the feelings of walking onto the 1st te at TOC?
Did you feel like you were walking up the 18th fairway only a matter of second later? Or did you manage to savour it as you went?

cheers,
Scott

[Tim Leahy]

Welcome back Kyle! After that trip, KP will be a cakewalk
 I would like to hear about your caddy experience also if you took any.

[Kyle Henderson]

Welcome back Kyle! After that trip, KP will be a cakewalk
 I would like to hear about your caddy experience also if you took any.

At the Old Course, I played with a trip of Americans from Wisconsin. One of them had a very good caddy (notably caddied for David Gossett during the 1999 Walker cup) that helped the rest of us out with lines off of the tee. The same trio was out with the same caddie earlier in the day but in different wind conditions, so it was interesting to hear about how the caddie's advice changed with the weather.

At Kingsbarns, I played with a handicapped individual that was driven around the course in a cart while I walked. That caddie also assisted me pro bono and was very useful in picking out putting lines (especially the 10-footer I drained for eagle on the par 4 6th hole!).

Mostly, I used "stroke savers (yardage guides)" that were always available for a few pounds if not included in with the greens fee. It was also quite helpful getting paired with members who were keen to assist without being asked.

Of the courses I played, caddies would be most useful on The Old Course, Brora, Muirfield, Carnoustie, Gleneagles and the Castle Course but I found the stroke savers were all I really needed.

[Kyle Henderson]

Kyle,

Could you maybe share the feelings of walking onto the 1st te at TOC?
Did you feel like you were walking up the 18th fairway only a matter of second later? Or did you manage to savour it as you went?

cheers,
Scott

I walked onto the first tee under warm, sunny skies with a trio of Americans still buzzing from their morning round on the same venerable sod. The starter was very welcoming, taking pictures of us in front of the R & A Clubhouse and trading quips with Scotty, the caddy making his second loop with one of my playing partners. Dozens of onlookers were clapping for a group playing out on the 18th green as we set out. The jitters were minor as I hit my first shot, mostly because I'd already completed a morning round on the Castle Course. We made it around in about 4 hours (not bad for a glorious Saturday afternoon with the St. Rule Trophy Tournament clogging up the New Course), a perfect pace at which to enjoy my round and snap dozens of photos. The only big wait was off of the 10th tee (drove the green... three putted from ~55 feet). At the end, we gathered for the ceromonial picture of our oursome on the Swilcan bridge before punching drives into a blustery headwind, chipping through the valley of sin and tapping in our final putts in front of a few remaining spectators.Then, by happenstance, as I walked off the last green, I was surprisinly greeted by Mark Pearce (missed his email suggesting that we meet at the exact time I happened to finish my unscheduled round) who joined me in the Links Clubhouse for food, pints and merriment. A day as good as any.

Overall, the round still went much too quickly, but I had plenty of other evenings in town to walk around and soak up the scenery. Every serious golfer needs to go there, if only once. Pure magic.