Style of golf course
A
links
is the oldest style of
golf course
, first developed in
Scotland
. Links courses are generally built on sandy coastland that offers a firmer playing surface than parkland and heathland courses.
[1]
The word "links" comes via the
Scots language
from the Old English word
hlinc
: "rising ground, ridge"
[2]
and refers to an area of coastal sand dunes and sometimes to open parkland; it is
cognate
with
lynchet
. "Links" can be treated as singular even though it has an "s" at the end and occurs in place names that precede the development of golf, for example
Lundin Links
in Fife.
[3]
It also retains this more general meaning in standard
Scottish English
. Links land is typically characterised by dunes, an undulating surface, and a sandy soil unsuitable for
arable farming
but which readily supports various indigenous
browntop bent
and
red fescue
grasses. Together, the soil and grasses result in the firm turf associated with links courses and the 'running' game. The hard surface typical of the links-style course allows balls to "run" out much farther than on softer turf course after a fairway landing. Often players will land the ball well before the
green
and allow it to run up onto the green rather than landing it on the green in the more targeted-landing style used on softer surfaces.
Geographic location and course management
[
edit
]
Links courses tend to be on, or at least very near to, a coast, and the term is typically associated with coastal courses, often amid dunes, with few water hazards and few, if any, trees. This reflects both the nature of the scenery where the sport originated and the limited resources available to golf course architects at that time. Soil movement, for example, had to be done by hand, and thus was kept to a minimum, as was irrigation. Even today, some links courses do not employ a greens staff, use only basic machinery such as hole cutters without boards, resulting in a hole that is cut unevenly, and use grazing animals to keep the grass cropped.
[
citation needed
]
Determining factors
[
edit
]
| This section
needs expansion
. You can help by
adding to it
.
(
April 2019
)
|
Although the term links is often used loosely to describe any golf course, few golf courses have all of the design elements of true links courses, including being built on linksland.
[
citation needed
]
The presence of a seaside location does not guarantee a links golf course.
[
citation needed
]
Many famous courses regarded as links do not, as presently constituted, have all of the necessary characteristics (e.g.,
Pebble Beach Golf Links
, Old Head Golf Links at
Kinsale
,
The Ocean Course
at
Kiawah Island
).
[
citation needed
]
On the other hand, some courses located hundreds of miles from a seacoast, such as
Whistling Straits
, near
Kohler
,
Wisconsin
, on the
Great Lakes
, can have all of the characteristics of a seaside links except for proximity to saltwater.
Notable courses
[
edit
]
Links courses remain most common in
Great Britain
, especially in Scotland, as well as in Ireland.
The Open Championship
is always played on links courses, and this is one of the main features which differentiates it from the three
major championships
held in the
United States
. The first exception to this was the
2004 PGA Championship
, which was played on a links-style course,
Whistling Straits
, located near
Sheboygan
,
Wisconsin
.
[4]
The
2015 U.S. Open
was played at
Chambers Bay
, a British links-style course in
University Place
,
Washington
.
Royal Adelaide Golf Club
is a links course in
Adelaide
,
South Australia
, and was partly designed by
Alister MacKenzie
, who said of the location, "One finds a most delightful combination of sand dunes and fir trees. I have never seen a seaside course possess such magnificent sand craters, as those at Royal Adelaide."
[5]
Playing style
[
edit
]
The unique nature of links courses necessitates a distinct style of play. The challenges links traits present fall into two categories: topography, which tends to be characterised by uneven fairways, thick rough, and small, deep "pot
bunkers
"; and climatic, dominated by windy conditions created by their coastal location and lack of trees, and frequent intermittent rain squalls.
Links topography favours a controlled style of golf, as hazards abound. Low and even bouncing shots allow balls to be skipped onto greens rather than high flights landed with strong backspin. Windy or blustery weather also calls for low, accurate shots.
[6]
Damp conditions demand concentration and caution.
As many traditional links courses consist of an "outward" nine in one direction along the coast, and an opposite "inward" nine returning, players often have to cope with contrasting wind patterns in each half of their round.
References
[
edit
]
|
---|
Overview
| |
---|
Technical
| |
---|
Facilities
| |
---|
Governing
organizations
| |
---|
Majors
(
Grand Slam
,
Triple Crown
)
| |
---|
International
events
| |
---|
Rankings
| |
---|
Golfers
| |
---|
Lists of
golf courses
| by feature
| |
---|
by country
| |
---|
by designer
| |
---|
|
---|
Countries
| |
---|
Years
| |
---|
Miscellaneous
| |
---|
Variations
| |
---|
Media
| |
---|
|