I have been reading Balfour's comparison of the the present double greens layout compared to the single greens layout. I find it astonishing how much Balfour disapproved of the changes which made the course far more strategic and created one of the greatest back nines in golf. In fact, I cannot detect a single change which Balfour appproved of. The best he can offer is "...thus the breadth of the course for golfing was gradually increased, till now it is about two-thirds broader than it used to be. This was probably unavoidable, owing to the increased number of players...". I am guessing this was written about 1875. Does anybody know the exact date? Perhaps this desription is also in a little book by Balfour. I don't recall the title, but it is silver and very short.
A few questions about the different courses just before the changes.
1. Was the first tee left of the current 18th? According to Balfour the sea came quite close to the 18th of the clubhouse) perhaps 1830ish(?) and on occasion water lapped up the stairs.
2. The reverse 5th. Balfour claims the tee shot was always played to the right of the bunker with the uncouth name. The second shot to the left of Elysian Fields. The third contended with The Beardies and the fourth across a horrid bunker.
The phrase "to the left of Elysian Fields" confuses me. Is that wall newish or perhaps was Elysian Fields considerably narrower in th eold days? What happened to the "horrid bunker"? This couldn't be the Hole o' Cross Bunker could it?
3. Was the Strath Bunker on #11 there before the changes?
4. When was the series of bunkers on the "new" 6th to the right of Coffin Bunkers put in?
5. Was Stroke Bunker part of the "old" layout?
6. When was the name of Golfer's Bridge changed to Swilken Bridge? I notice that Dr. Mac called it the Stone Bridge on his 1924 map of the links.
Ciao
Sean