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Since
1947, when Mackenzie Ross redesigned the Ailsa course at
Turnberry, it has been regarded as one of the finest
in the world. The last half-century has seen countless moments
in international golf history unfold on this rugged perch of
coast that traces its way along Turnberry Bay, including the
captivating Nicklaus-Watson duel in 1977, and the play of Greg
Norman and Nick Price in Open Championships eight years apart, when
their dominant play cemented their legends. Mackenzie Ross
built the stage long before that, in the aftermath of World
War II on a links that had been used as an airfield, and a
hotel that had served as an infirmary for injured Allied
soldiers. Long after the tragedies of the era were forgotten,
the legend of Turnberry Point resurfaced, as the rebuilding of
a bunker on the second hole two years ago marked the discovery
of a bomb deep below the surface. The runways still exist as
well, as if to remind golfers of the recent
history that transformed the links into one of the best in
Britain.
Perhaps
these reminders of a mutinous time are fitting, because the
sublime vistas of the North Atlantic from these grassy bluffs
belie impressions of war. There is an overriding sense of the
fusion of nature and nation here, and an assortment of icons
to illustrate them: Ailsa Craig, a massive rock 11 miles out
to sea, a monument to Allied soldiers at the 12th, and the
legendary Turnberry lighthouse that has made the ninth hole
one of the world's most recognizable. The character that these
identifiers offer as a complement to the Ailsa Course make it
one of the world's great links courses, and yet the course
itself would still thrive handsomely on its merit alone.
The
course evolves from the beguiling short opening hole to a magnificent run of seaside holes from the fourth to the 11th,
a stretch to which the course owes its majesty. However,
the holes that depart the seaside and make up the finishing
stretch at
Turnberry are of equal challenge, highlighted by stunning burns and
dunes.
The first
three holes suitably introduce the golfer to the test that's
to come, but it is standing on the fourth tee, 165 yards from
a flagstick swaying violently in the wind atop a bluff, that
the feeling of true seaside golf begins to take hold. Playing
to one of the smallest greens on the course, the iron shot up
the hill must be struck with authority. Irons played away from
the falloff to the ocean left will often find the hillock
flanking the green's right edge, from where par is a tall
order.
The fifth
provides a glimpse into the diversity of the Ailsa, with its
perched tee overlooking the ocean and the sunken fairway
flanked by dunes. This 442-yard brute is challenging from tee
to green. The two bunkers that line the inside of this dogleg
left cause most golfers to play to the right side. While the
view of the green can be more open from the right, the
approach is lengthened significantly. Three pot bunkers guard
the front of the green and only a narrow entrance accepts the
running shot, which means that ideally the ball will carry to
the green. ‘Fin Me Oot,’ as the hole is known, may not be
the longest par four on the course, but it is surely one of
the most demanding.
The
sixth hole, 'Tappie
Toorie,' shares two unique distinctions. The green is set
squarely before the first glimpse of the lighthouse that
borders the ninth tee, and it is the
longest three par on the course. At 231 yards from the
championship markers, the hole provides one of the sternest
tests anywhere. Three pot bunkers guard the front, with the
largest guarding the front right. The view from the tee shows
the ominous face of the bunkers, as well as the steep slope in
front. The need to carry this slope cannot be stressed enough,
as anything short spells disaster.
The tee
of ‘Bruce’s Castle,’ the ninth, is one of the most
dramatic anywhere. The name is derived from the view of the
site of the Scottish King, Robert the Bruce (1306-1329). The
tee is set on a rocky sliver
of land hugging the sea, where the ocean laps against its
edges and the grandiose lighthouse stands faithfully on the
left. The tee shot must be aimed over the surf to a marking
stone some 220 yards away. Should the fairway be found -- an
achievement in itself -- the approach is played to a green that
is unguarded, except by its own undulations. The view back at the
hole from the green of both the lighthouse and Ailsa Craig is
stunning. The notorious local saying is that “if you can see
Ailsa Craig, it’s about to rain; if you can’t, it is
raining.” Either way, the scene is splendid.
The
back nine begins by hugging the coastline on the 452-yard par
four 'Dinna Fouter.' While long on the scorecard, this hole plays
significantly shorter than one would expect, as the fairway
rolls downhill between the water's edge and a line of dunes.
Finding the major slope in the fairway can yield an even
longer drive in the right conditions. From there, players
stare down a modest green complex centered behind the Ailsa's
course's oddest bunkers, a large, circular hazard with an
island of grass some 70 yards short of the green. Second shots
that are misplayed here could leave players with any number of
recovery shots from an awkward stance.
‘Maidens’
is the last of the seaside holes, with the tee on this 174-yard
11th perched on the tip of the bluff. The small green and two
deep bunkers that flank it mean that unless the golfer plays a
boring, well-struck shot, par here is an evasive score. There
is no shelter from the wind here, so a slight miscalculation
or mishit will be magnified.
The
12th hole is aptly named ‘Monument,’ in honour of the tall
statue that commemorates the fallen soldiers. If your game is
in that same condition, this 446-par four hardly qualifies as
a reprieve. Standing over the approach, one will be moved by
the tribute atop the hill, while the task at hand is to strike
a flush iron shot that carries two front bunkers and the false
front on a narrow putting surface. Par hinges on the approach
here.
The first
of the bedeviling four closing holes is the 209-yard 15th
hole, which can rival the sixth for sheer difficulty. The tee
shot must be carved over the scrub to avoid the three bunkers
on the left and the steep falloff right. History buffs will
recall this hole as the one where Tom Watson drew even with
Jack Nicklaus in their 1977 British Open duel. The ‘Showdown in
the Sun,’ where Watson finished 65-65, to Nicklaus'
65-66, took a dramatic turn when Watson
holed a 60-foot putt on the 15th to take the lead
The 16th
is named ‘Wee Burn,’ but late in the round Wilson’s
Burn, which runs short of the green, can be more than enough to unnerve
the golfer. The slyly placed fairway bunker on the left side
of the fairway makes the approach especially difficult. With its
steep, shaved banks, shots that carry the burn but do not
carry to safety will tend to trickle back into the hazard.
While modest in length, this little par four is just enough to
trip up any golfer protecting a good score.
After
an awesome short par-five 17th, which plays through the dunes,
the golf arrives at 'Ailsa Hame,' the closing chorus at
Turnberry. Played from the championship tee, the hole doglegs
to the left, which puts extra emphasis on the two fairway
bunkers that protect the bow in the fairway. Tee shots must be
played conservatively to the right, leaving a straight but
long approach to a green set just above the fairway. From the regular tees, the
drive favouring the right side avoids the two bunkers and
leaves a relatively easy finish. From either tee, the Westin
hotel provides the backdrop from its perch up on the bluff; an
appropriate final image for closure on one of the grandest
layouts in golf. |
