Your Links Golf Primer - Royal Birkdale and More

It's a fine morning in the Kingdom.... I arose at my usual construction worker hour, and immediately tuned in to the Scottish Open from Royal Aberdeen, reveling in its linksy goodness.  Let's see how we do on our checklist:

• Flags whipping in the wee breexe - Check!
  
• Revetted bunkers - Check!
• Guys playing from revetted bunkers on their knees - Check!
• Ski caps - Check!

What more could any of us want?  A great leaderboard?  Check!  Royal Aberdeen looks spectacular, though scoring looks to be pretty low.  And as an amusing side note, the only gu\y I actually saw in a ski cap was Russell Knox, a Scot.  Though Elsie will likely blame that on the American father...

Ewan Murray, writing for The Guardian, had this cautionary note:

Eyebrows will be raised if the winning score at the Scottish Open is higher than that at the Open Championship seven days later. First impressions of Royal Aberdeen, where the Scottish Open begins on Thursday, suggest this tournament could be back to its brutal best; or worst, depending on your outlook.

When this event was last staged at Carnoustie, in 1996, players regarded it as too severe a test immediately before the Open. Colin Montgomerie went so far as to claim his swing had been “destroyed” by the experience. Ian Woosnam won at one-over par. The Scottish Open was subsequently held at relatively tame venues, including Castle Stuart – until now.

I totally get it, and Castle Stuart may be the widest golf course on the planet.  But it's always going to be weather dependent, isn't it now?  Shack had this take on it:

Because Royal Aberdeen is short by modern standards it has remained relatively tight sincethe 2012 photos I posted, which isn't necessary, especially when the forecast calls for rain and three different wind directions during Scottish Open play.

Golf Channel is stepping up its game with an amazing eight hours of coverage, more even than I can possible watch.  But now on to the ladies, who tee it up at Royal Birkdale.

In his linksapalooza post at The Loop. Shack had this from the great Bernard Darwin on Birkdale:

The first green at Royal Birkdale.

Royal Birkdale is difficult and big in scale. The Ricoh Women's British Open is going to give the ladies the sternest test imaginable, which was not to Bernard Darwin's liking. "There seemed to be rather too many holes of one type, with greens running up to a point at the base of a hill and having heathery banks on either hand. They have grown a little intermingled in my head which may be my head's fault, but so be it." ESPN2 has the coverage starting Thursday.

I'm quite surprised by Darwin's dislike of Birkdale, as he literally wrote the book on the great links of the British Isles.  My thoughts at the time are captured here, and you'll see that we liked Birkdale very much indeed.  One thing I didn't note in that piece is that I found it to be a great driving course, with each tee shot wonderfully framed by bunkers or natural mounding, as in the picture at the right.  

Birkdale is further inland than many links, so there's no water view eye candy to be had, except perhaps from the blimp.  But it winds through spectacular dunes, is dotted with the occasional tree and is otherwise a first-class links.

Now, about that clubhouse?  Built in the deco style prevalent in the 1930's, it was designed to look like an ocean liner, an homage of sorts to the Liverpool-Southport area's ties to the seas.  It's not everyone's taste, but the reader can decide for him or herself:

Coverage today and tomorrow is on ESPN2 starting exactly now, which is 9:00 a.m. New York time.  I'm going to stick with the lads at Royal Aberdeen, and will watch the lasses this evening with the bride.  But go, Lydia!