LINKS75 takes the 151 steps down from the hotel to the 1st tee. Number 75. The Grand Finale.

A light breeze in the air but what we feel is fulfilment. Our friend Arran is on the horizon and our new friend Ailsa out the corner of our eye. We have with us as we wander towards the 18th green our links jewellery – as our newly, elected American chief says, “Take care of them“. Today we are also wearing our home game match jerseys – Turnberry. The course was built in 1902 and the hotel 1906 and proudly hosted The British Open in 1977 – “The Duel in the Sun“- Watson v Nicklaus. The famous lighthouse on the point will be our signpost today. LINKS75 collects itself, takes in the soul of all 74 courses into its being and converts it to invaluable links wisdom and today unrequited love for the ground between the land and the sea.
On the 1st – an opening short par 4 – the green is surrounded by eager bunkers. LINKS75 makes an easy par. The 2nd – a par 4 – turns back towards the lighthouse and a headwind. Stable golf – a Turnberry Birdie. The 3rd – a par 4 – in the opposite direction is 393 yards and requires skilful manoeuvring of the white gold – par. Our Links treasure has to wrestle with elephant grass, which proves an uneven struggle as the grass always comes back for more. At the 4th – a par 3 – the sea is to the left and we play over a links ravine and are rewarded with birdie! The feeling of success overwhelms us – all these wonderful links courses pass before our inner eyes – and the scent of kelp and salt intensifies. The 5th – par 4 – into the wind and length suddenly has the upper hand. We struggle in vain and retreat with a bogey. At the 6th – a 222-yard uphill par 3 towards the lighthouse – the Italians behind us play through. “Are you from Larsson land?” asks the caddie and receives approving looks. The 7th is at the course’s highest point and is a 469-yard par 4 into the wind. It is not uneven just unfair. When we return to the clubhouse we are asked, “What did you hit? Driver, 3-wood, 8-iron…?” A par 4 suddenly seems like a difficult par 5. Links golf at its best and under frustration’s hidden grimace we smile with all our links hearts, which even the natural hazards that await us by the green, cannot diminish. Upon leaving the 8th green we are greeted by a natural experience that leaves us gasping for breath. We head for the championship tee, stand at attention before sending our white gold to the links gods and then finish a quite magical opening stretch. LINKS75 makes the turn under par.

Devotion at Turnberry

A few short steps to something so valuable as a halfway house. Coffee with our Links accessories provides new energy and the final march can begin. At the 10th – a par 4 – we get greedy and try and defeat the course and our white gold only just survives. The hole is called, “Dinna Fouter” which appropriately enough means “Don’t mess about”. In front of the green is the famous island bunker. The 11th is a short par 3, which gives some breathing room before three par 4s from the 12th to the 14th holes where three different wind directions play havoc with the mind. The course and the wind come into their own and even though our Links treasure glistens, it dreams of park courses in the sun. The bell chimes for the last lap. a strong tailwind home. The 15th is a par 3, normally a middle iron but today a wedge – par. The 16th is a 422-yard par 4, where a watchful burn of the deeper variety guards the front of the green. We see our white gold disappear to the bottom – diving equipment on – and far down we glimpse our lifeline.

No 16 at Turnberry

The finish. On the 17th – a par 5 – our white gold is carried along by the wind until we putt for eagle – birdie. we look towards the lighthouse – Ailsa, and the sea – this symbol for life’s soul and link land’s kinsman has followed us around the 75. We take deep breaths filled with its essence before beginning the 18th and last hole – “Duel in the Sun“. We finish with a birdie as the consummation of all these impressions. Love for the ground between the land and the sea has never been greater.  LINKS75

LINKS75 makes itself comfortable in the clubhouse’s inner sanctum – light-brown, leather armchairs, and enjoys a quiet coffee before it’s time to tee off. Outside awaits the 8-times host of the British Open – Royal Troon, which will once again have that honour in 2016. Through the panoramic window we see Ailsa Craig on the horizon. Number 74.

The Starter asks for our handicap – “You can choose the white tees sir,” – “Thank you, but today we choose happiness – yellow.” We smile Colgate-smiles to ourselves. White tees on a British Open course, on the very course where Jesper Parnevik had one hand on the Claret Jug in 1997. We play into the wind off the sea and are in good position for our approach. “Excellent,” says the Starter before we head off onto the 1st fairway. From the 1st to the 6th we follow the sea. Design, configuration and putting are all in LINKS75 class – pure enjoyment. On the 7th – a 405-yard par 4 from the Open tee – we turn inland and the landscape changes drastically: sand dunes; a slight dogleg right; biting bunkers, and a narrow green with wonderful, shallow, sunken bunkers on the right of protective sand dunes. A wonderful hole, where from the tee the course’s treasures come closer.

Postage Stamp, Troon

The 8th is the shortest hole on the Open circuit and one of the most famous par 3s in the world – “Postage Stamp”. From the open tee 123 yards; an elevated narrow green; five waiting bunkers – the left-hand bunker was added in 1923 on the advice of James Braid, which was later moved from the sand dune to the same level as the green, according to evil tongues as a result of the German amateur who scored 15 on the hole in 1950 – “The Coffin” still today is a daunting challenge. LINKS75 makes par and goes on with head held high. The 9th – a par 4 – before the turn invites us to visit gorse. the 10th – a par 4 – has a big hollow containing elephant grass at driver distance and a bell worthy of the Onedin Line. The 11th – “The Railway” – a par 4 – has a terrifying tee shot all of 488 yards from the Open tee: narrow; railway track to the right; gorse left; surgical precision – almost like a laser. At the 12th we are out among the dunes again. The 13th has a fairway as convoluted as a moon landscape.

15th green, Troon

On the 16th – par 5 – the burn from the 3rd turns up again. Lay up if your drive is under 300 yards. LINKS75 plays safe and is rewarded with a birdie. Bubbling with joy – real manicured links, wonderfully designed – big smiles. On The 17th – a part 3 – “Rabbit”. the chief rabbit comes hopping. Course groundsmen gather. We hit a controlled draw to the middle of the green. A slight nod of the head from our demanding audience. The 18th – clubhouse in the middle – pin furthest back – dare we? With Lytham fresh in our memory we lay up short and putt for par. Back in the serenity of our leather armchairs. Troon – like a Daft Punk summer hit, elegant and tasteful, playfully joyful. Troon – Royal Troon – played with skill and power.

After major links75 problems we try once again to fly to Islay. The first time the flight ended in Glasgow because of fog as dense as at a West Cornwall graveyard. Number 73.

After toasting our successful arrival at the world’s best-stocked Islay whisky bar we order a full Scottish breakfast before the day’s upcoming adventure. We arrive at Machrie GC and Hotel. The hotel has been abandoned since 2010 – foreboding isn’t the word – and immediately “The Shining” comes creeping into one’s thoughts. In the extremely small locker room someone has written “Flog” on the mirror and our blood runs cold. In the combined bar / pro-shop the armchairs seem to have come right out of the late 1800s. A sense of security returns when our host tells us of his 16 years at the club – from weddings without electricity to today’s disputes over water access with the neighbouring landowner. Suddenly the owner turns up. LINKS75 is introduced to Sue Nye, Gordon Brown’s former secretary, who together with her husband, Gavin Davis, has bought the course and the hotel in order to restore them to their glory days by 2015. Our writer friend has talked warmly of Machrie and its scraggy character.

Two of very few bunkers at Machrie

We head off with the day’s hired set of clubs – all of them extremely forgiving. At the 1st hole we encounter an unusual swarm of gnats. These small blood-suckers have found the only place on Machrie out of the wind, so we play as quickly as we can to escape them. The 3rd plays alongside thee sea and we end up in the elephant grass, which swallows our white gold. The landscape ahead is full of sand dunes covered by thick elephant grass. An original, gnarled response to Trump’s modern implant. Things pick up – the 3rd, a par 3, contains 4 of Machrie’s 12 bunkers! We suddenly find ourselves in a links labyrinth – blind tee shots over high elephant grass-carpeted dunes – approaches over even higher examples of the same – the sea as neighbour – fairways as narrow as pencils – fairways like hidden islands – greens with hidden bunkers that simply must be visited – cairns showing the way to the next hole – and beyond the sea on one side and something like the Swedish high country on the other. Not a single car.  Not a living soul. We are alone. Completely alone. We will talk again after the round. The 2nd and the 10th holes are being re-laid. Ian Woosnam is the designer and architect. The 10th will be a spectacular hole with the tee being elevated onto a sand dune. We are already keen to play it. The entrance to the green on the 13th – a par 5 – is only 10 yards wide. To gamble on a long approach gives really bad odds. On the 15th we once again enter the labyrinth, which serves as a premonition of one of the most addictive closing holes LINKS75 has seen, the 17th – a par 4 – “Ifrin”, which is Gaelic for Hell! A completely blind tee shot, which must be achieved with a wood to have any chance of attempting an approach,  over and below a high elephant grass-covered mound, and is like an extremely knotty version of Prestwick’s 17th, more elephant grass and mounds, past small, hungry bunkers to a waiting, rollercoaster green. Scoring par creates LINKS75-delight.

17th green, Machrie

We want to go back and play it over and over again. Links love at its purest. The 18th has a blind approach to the green. We smile broadly as we make our way towards the empty hotel, which is lit up by the glow of our links delight. Machrie has a secure place in our links hearts.

We travel from England – the Isle of Man – back to Scotland. We take the car to Kintyre on Scotland’s answer to State Highway 1 before stopping at Campbeltown. Once the capital of the whisky world, now the gateway to links heaven – Machrihanish. With an oyster catcher as its emblem, the course has been laid out as nature intended among sand dunes with views over the islands of Islay and Jura. In honour of all this we are blessed with sun and clear, blue sky. Number 72. The 1st hole – “Battery” – has been described as the world’s best opening hole and sets the scene. A drive over, the beach, surfers and Sunday strollers to a waiting fairway at a 90-degree angle. Links delight! A part of our white gold ends up on the beach, to the huge delight of a waiting group of Danes. At the 3rd the course turns 90 degrees and has a blind tee over the 16th green.

Third green with Jura in the background, Machrihanish

The 4th is a short par 3 of great charm. On the 5th – a par 4 – “Punch Bowl” – we are waived through by a group ahead in meter-high elephant grass. dogleg left with sighting post in the middle of the fairway. In front of the green is a deep hollow with hidden bunkers and a grassy ravine to the right. The course proceeds naturally with every fairway laid out 200 yards away like small well-cut surfaces in the middle of a sea of elephant , with the sea and rolling dunes always in attendance. The 7th is a 476-yard par 4 with high ridge and sighting post 320 yards away towards the left. An extremely effective guarding mound lies in front of the green. A hole that reflects the grandeur of the front nine. The 8th is called “Gigha” after a small island offshore Kintyre, whose name means “God’s island”. The approach is towards a high, expectant green from links heaven. The 9th has a sighting post and parallel shifted fairway. LINKS75 has difficulty keeping to the true course. We look along the coast and see our neighbour – Machrihanish Dunes – greet us with a smile. We head for home after nine memorable holes still fresh in our minds. The 10th and 12th are both par 5s. The 12th has a closing sand dune on guard at the entrance to the green and finally a hollow with elephant grass and bunkers. We manoeuvre with class – birdie! The 15th and 16th are two straight par 3s that require precision and length. we escape with bogey and par.

18th green, Machrihanish

Finally we stand on the 18th and a waiting clubhouse, and share fairway bunkers with the 1st. On the beach a stray golfer adjusts his stance in the middle of Sunday lunch of a bemused holidaying family.  We want to play the first nine again, master the teeing off on the 1st, survive the 7th, and take pleasure in the “Punch Bowl”. A remote, archetypal links which arouses strong feelings of joy.

LINKS75 heads to England and begins its countdown. Number 71. The Isle of Man, perhaps best known for its mighty, classic TT-race – which is being held at the weekend. On the island there are 8 golf courses but only one LINKS75-course, Castletown. The course has had new owners for only a year but they plan to restore Castletown to its glory days. Next to the course lies a hotel well past its prime but in pole position and discussions are on-going between the course’s and the hotel’s owners. A new clubhouse, sparsely decorated in American east coast- style has been built and we have our breakfast overlooking the 1st and 18th fairways. Clubs-for-hire of forgiving character stand ready by the 1st tee. The course had been laid out on a three-edged headland with play towards the sea on three holes, rough, cliffs, gorse and heather. Bunkers have character with steps leading down into the waiting sand. After a short start the pace picks up. The 3rd – a par 5 – has three bunkers on guard at the entrance to the green. The 4th – a par 4 – dogleg left, has gorse close to the swing – classic links, sighting marker – pleasure rises. In the clubhouse we have seen a gigantic framed picture of the 5th – “The Road Hole” – the road to the clubhouse to the right, with the sea below. Our ball bounces on the road but stays within the courses boundaries. Two more bounces into the members slope to the left and we move on making a simple par.

Road Hole, Castletown

The sea follows us no matter where we turn – to the right – SEA, to the left – SEA, straight ahead – SEA. The wind is waiting at a distance. We can, all alone let the white gold take the paths that suit us best – at least for the moment. We head up-hill on the 8th – a classic par 3 with the sea to the right. On the 9th – “Hog’s Back” – we drive towards a classic links ridge – Rye’s 4th comes to mind. Suddenly, the air feels thicker. The 11th – a 446-yard par 4. We drive with everything we have got.

Greenbunkers att no11, Castletown

The next stretch turns back before reaching the top – views everywhere. The sky darkens. The finish. The 16th – a 185-yard par 3 – has a number of grassy mounds in front of the green. A wonderful par 3 that requires knowledge as well as courage. A few steps towards the edge of a cliff and we are on the next tee. A howl of delight echoes around the course – a truly remarkable view, which we have waited for for 16 holes – a classic cliff-hanger. We sacrifice a drive to the golfing gods. “Gully”, a par 4, 421 yards over rocks, gorse, and heather. A gigantic ravine in front of us with the sea below, and beyond that a fairway formed by islands of rough and grassy contours. Links75 class. Wrap up this hole and give it to us for Xmas. The 18th – sighting marker towards the clubhouse and an approach over the sea. With a beaming smile we head for the clubhouse’s leather sofas and a Guinness before heading for Douglas before the roads are closed in honour of the weekend’s race.

Just like in C.S.Lewis’ book – “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe” – LINKS75 follows in Lucy’s footsteps and goes through a gateway after the 3rd green and is met by golf’s answer to Narnia. Outside the high wall there are 14 links holes – 7 away and 7 home  -  laid out between the wall and the sea. Inside the wall are the clubhouse and a waiting Belhaven Black. Outside the ground between the sea and land – links landscape – consists of sunburnt grass and hard fairways. We venture out and let the course, which two weeks ago was host for the Final Local Qualification, take us on a journey outside the wall. The 4th – a par 4 – with fairway like concrete, and wind at our backs, allows our hybrids to do the talking and we survive without the beach edge taking our white gold. The 6th has a burn running in front of the green and the wall all the way along the right. We underestimate the distance and have to fish out our white gold. On the 7th tee – par 4 – there is a pin placement meter, the wall curves away after 200 yards and we manage to hit over the curve. The green slopes towards the next tee, with a big mound in front. Wonderful – links75 class – and celebrated with a birdie.

Pin position at No7, Dunbar

The 9th – a par 5 – consists of concrete class1 and the wind takes our balls on a never-ending journey. A large mound stands between the tee shot and the green. We manage to get there in 2 and once again make birdie. After the 10th the course turns. Suddenly it gets chillier, the wind is in our faces – Is this the White Witch? The 11th and 12th are two par 4s that set the benchmark. LINKS75 is admonished for its disrespectful earlier birdie putts. On the 13th we turn with a tailwind, a real bonus like winning the jackpot. We use the neighbouring fairway and rough in order to once again attack a bathtub green. The 14th has an elevated tee overlooking the sea and a slight dogleg towards the houses behind the 4th and 14th greens. We search for the cut fairways from hole to hole but there seems to be no difference between the cut and uncut. The green is hand-watered by yet another network of member’s garden hoses. On the 15th – half of LINKS75′s white gold is seized by the White Witch on the beach while the other half lands in position for birdie next to the flag in the cup. On the 16th -  a par 3 – the cold makes itself felt with the strong side wind and fear of the wall resurfaces- commit to the shot! We go towards the 17th tee, change to harder balls because soon we must return to reality away from linksland.

Leaving Narnia!

We will soon be back in August to once again visit Narnia – links land. We raise our hands to the skies – DE-LIGHT!

We cross the border to England, from Open-land to the land of gammon steaks. In front of us is Berwick-upon-Tweed  Goswick links. High summer with no irrigation systems. We look out over sunburnt fairways in concrete-class 3. The members have brought with them all their garden hoses and connected them together into one giant hose that stretches round a single hole. They are positioned around two counter-clockwise nines, which start and stop at the clubhouse with a high ridge facing the sea. We fill our bags with more water than a camel and head for the 1st up on the ridge. The 2nd – a par 3 – links delight – has a classic links ravine with waiting rock-hard green.

No2, Berwick upon Tweed

On the 3rd – par 5 – we hit long and land on the 7th tee. The Secretary from the happy 80s greets us, “Welcome to Muirfield’s look-alike,” as we head for the green A well-directed drive finds the rough, a simple lay up bounces down into a fairway bunker, the greens shake off any attempt to approach, and a simple two-putt becomes a three – you can call me TOUGH. LINKS75 cannot make par – it’s not possible! After the first nine we seek comfort in some melted English chocolates, change balls, slap each other’s faces, choose a lower club and hit as hard as our tattooed friends in the group behind. Already on the 11th it brings results – a par! The 12th – pure links – has a huge, leaning slope that takes all attacking balls to the right, a half-blind green and a waiting double church-bell green – delight! On the 14th – a par 4 – we test Stenson’s  4-iron and score a simple par – cured?

Best par 4 at Goswick Links, No14

The 15th – a par 3 – has a bathtub green and a mishit 8-iron almost goes in the hole. We bounce along. The 17th – a par 5 – we are on in 2 – silence – actions – applause! The last hole remains. All morning we had sat and studied how the members coped with this short, well-bunkered finishing hole. High tee shot – 250 yards – par 4 – straight at the clubhouse. We long for a birdie, set our tees low, swing hard and score par. As dry as dust we cross the savannah towards a cold shower and a Belhaven Black.

Full of expectation we arrive at North Berwick by the Firth of Forth. Sun. Sunburnt fairways. Two weeks ago host for the Local Final Qualifying. Within the small area between the 1st and the 18th – a miniature of the same at the Old Course – what looks like a bouncy castle is being built but is actually a stage for this evening’s event – Dustin Johnson and Martin Laird will hit long irons towards the 1st green, 210 yards away, in artificial rain to launch Taylor Made’s new waterproofs. In the clubhouse we are informed by our host that Bubba played here yesterday, and as guest he played – just like LINKS75 – from the yellow tees. At the next table the group ahead of us orders a coffee and cognac before facing the challenge of the first tee. LINKS75 goes in a 4-ball with an older couple from Switzerland and their caddie James, who plays for Hoylake’s university team. On the first tee we are met by O.O.B. along the right, a waiting coastal path 180 yards ahead – headwind – so LINKS75 hits a steady 4-iron. Our newly found Swiss friend hits a long shot straight into Taylor Made’s building site – 180 degrees to the left. James apologises. The game can begin. Someone up in links heaven has set the controls at max – weather, grass and delight. The course is of the absolutely highest LINKS75 class – fantastic. The 2nd and 3rd are into a headwind – a par feels like a birdie. Bunkers are masterpieces, the fairway hard as concrete and the greens repel white gold like a mechanical bull. The 7th – par 4 – with finishing burn, has a huge mansion  above the green, which has been hired by Matt Kuchar for the week. We spare a short, envious glance before we return to our enormous delight at playing in the sunburnt grass.

Kuchars residence during the Open

The 8th and 9th – both par 5s – play longer than ever before making the turn, and spending some time admiring Fidra – an island that was the model for the one in Treasure Island. The 10th – a par 3 -has a tee higher than the green, which slopes away. We try completely new shots with mixed results. Someone manages to once more ratchet up links controls a notch. The 13th – a par 4 – has a green lying parallel towards the fairway with an intervening wall – A WALL! Links heaven feels very close. Can it get any better than this?

No13, North Berwick

On the 14th – a par 4 – a high sighting marker behind huge, grass-covered VW-beetles, gigantic bunkers in the foreground and the sea behind.  The 15th – “Already” – is a par 3 that has stood as a model for a number of par 3s the world over. The first shot on the 16th – a par 4 -  is over a wall  and we use the red tee further back than the yellow tee as it is at a higher elevation and makes it easier to get over the wall. This is just the beginning because after long drives we see the green, which is divided into two plateaus with an enormous dip between them. Like a half-pipe with the pin placed on the left or right edge – LINKS75 class in spades.

LINKS75 Green!

The 17th – a par 4 – plays half-blind over a network of bunkers to the 1st’s twin green on the upper level. Are we home yet? Only the 18th to go and suddenly we are reminded of the insurance waver we signed at the start – 300 yards, the Old course in miniature, clubhouse in the background, Taylor Made’s rain to the left, cars and houses to the right. Hesitation.  LINKS75 closes its eyes and strikes the ball long between the green and the cars – Tiger straight – and the Fear from Borth is gone!
We gaze backwards with warmth and euphoria – this is links love at its absolute greatest!

LINKS75 relocates 3km away and suddenly everything is once again under control – great. The sun has returned. In the shop the order of play is being re-shuffled, “If you go out just before 10am you’ll avoid the queue.” We are grateful and earn at least another 60 minutes together with Uncle Belvenie. Panmure has been the Final Qualification for all British Opens at Carnoustie. It is the shortest course but has delivered the highest winning scores. The clubhouse is magnificent – a replica of Calcutta GC – where bookings have been made for one of the members’ two classic Sunday lunches – honouring the day accompanied by live jazz. LINKS75 gets a guided tour of the holiest of holies but are kindly, yet firmly directed towards the spike bar.

Hogans´s bunker

We head off on the 1st – a short par 4. The accompanying pine and spruce trees re-create the feeling from Formby and Southport & Ainsdale again. The fairway is full of cresting waves of grass and our white gold is transported long. The 6th – Hogan – is a devilish par 4 of high LINKS75 standard, which causes problems as well as delight. We send up a second shot to a seemingly impregnable green and then sink the putt for birdie! It was here in 1953 that Hogan while playing with the club secretary mentioned in passing that, “the hole would be even better with a greenside bunker to the right”. Today it is still there – Hogan’s bunker. The 8th is a par 4 with half-blind tee shot from below causes more confusion than pleasure, but on the 9th – par 3 – we restore our composure.

no10, Panmure

The 13th – a par 4 – has a wonderful links finish with untended mounds and a burn. We smile and get back links inner glow. On the 14th – a par 5  “Daddy’s Luck” – the train to Aberdeen passes just as we lay up for birdie – brilliant. On the 15th – a long par 3 – the balls roll forever in the tailwind and on the 16th the hole tapers and the rough bares its teeth. From the green we can once again admire the grand clubhouse on our way in. The 18th – a par 4 – offers a classic links trail ahead through the gorse. With restored confidence and big smiles on our lips we head in for our waiting lunch together with a boisterous crowd of members and summer jazz.

From the early morning we have seen members go out from the white tee – a number of well-directed tee shots and many short, crooked ones. LINKS75 has got a clear idea of how and where one should strike. At 3pm it’s our turn. We are joined by two Americans and their caddies – father and son from Florida and New Jersey. We are thrown out among 162 hungry bunkers and strike our balls hard left into Barry Burn and the right rough – we still haven’t learned. We immediately find ourselves in an infernal mind-game. Every hole has a series of bunkers to the right of the fairway 220 yards away and several holes have an out-of-bounds to the left, elephant grass waits around the corner and finally a number of deep greenside bunkers. If that were not enough Jockie’s and Barry Burn coil themselves around the course like snakes waiting to pounce. It feels as if someone is playing with us. The course is like no other. On the 3rd – a short par 4 with well-placed bunkers in the middle of the fairway and a burn in front of the green – we lay up short and trick the course for one of the few times during the 18 holes. The morning sun has been blown away, the temperature sinks, and it feels as if we are at a higher altitude. The son smacks kilometre-long drives to the right and father can’t help but laugh, “He was a scratch player 15 years ago. Played at college. Then life got in the way.” The 6th – a par 5 – Hogan’s alley – after having practised at Panmure, Hogan landed his ball between the bunkers and the O:O:B four days in a row. LINKS75 does the same but then hits far out on the second – curtain please.

Hogan´s Alley

The 8th – par 3 – is devilishly difficult. How do you get the ball to stay on the green? A fantastic championship hole engendering masses of links delight. After the 9th we take a deep breath and prepare for the coming nine holes. “Now the easy part is over,” the caddie assures us. Can it be any harder?  LINKS75 breaks out into a cold sweat – the white flag? In the name of links heaven – not bl**dy likely! On the 12th – a par 4 – the son pulls off a shot of 300-yard class. LINKS75 manages to make par and feels nothing but joy. On the 13th – a par 3 – we surprise the course and make yet another unexpected par. The 14th – par 4 – Spectacles – 468 yards slight dogleg left with strong rough and gorse. We land perfectly positioned 210 yards to go. In front of us stand two enormous bunkers and behind these a rock hard, sloping fairway with waiting greenside bunkers and a short pin placement. A bogey would feel like a birdie and make a double still pleased – remarkable.

Fairwaybunkers at no14

Four holes left – one of the most difficult finishes in the world of links golf. The 15th – a par 4 – is 442 yards and slight dogleg left with fairway sloping to the right. Two extremely good shots and we make the heart of the green – par! The 16th – a 235-yard par 3 – a perfect hybrid with fade – we don’t make it. The 17th is par 4 – 421 yards – with Barry Burn, the links world’s only industrial burn, in play – twice. LINKS75 seeks to lay up on an island between Barry’s meandering jaws and we roll our ball 23 yards over the first bridge – great delight.

18th, Carnoustie

The 18th – a 428-yard par 4 – Van de Velde’s demise. LINKS75 hits out – ” Van de Velde should have managed that seven days a week,” says father. Then we do what Van de Velde should have done – hit two straight wedges and putt for par. Completely exhausted we head for our waiting hotel and admit ourselves defeated – by a knock-out.