29-584: Royal Troon Golf Club is a links golf course in Scotland , located in Troon , South Ayrshire . The club was established in 1878, and originally only consisted of five holes whereas today, it has increased to a total of 45 holes. Its Old Course is one of the host courses for The Open Championship , one of the major championships on the PGA Tour and European Tour . The Club most recently hosted in 2024 for
58-428: 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
87-567: 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. 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. Sophia Popov Sophia Popov (born 2 October 1992)
116-411: 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. 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. The presence of a seaside location does not guarantee
145-455: A handicap certificate establishing proficiency. The Old Course has four tees – "Ladies", "Short", "Medal" and "Championship". For The 2024 Open Championship : Lengths of the course for previous Opens (since 1950): Opens from 1962 through 1989 played the 11th hole as a par-5. The Open Championship has been held at Troon on ten occasions: The Women's Open Championship has been held at Troon once: Links (golf) A links
174-473: A links golf course. 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 ). 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
203-503: A long, very stern finish, running parallel to the opening stretch. This comprises three long par 4s, two tough par 3s, and a challenging par 5 (the 16th) with its fairway bisected at the halfway point by a ditch, which can only very rarely be carried from the tee. The player very often has to face a strong prevailing wind. Royal Troon is home to the shortest hole in Open Championship golf. Described by Golf Monthly as one of
232-549: A male equivalent), and 2024 . Just prior to Royal Troon hosting its first Open Championship in 1923, the Old Course was redesigned, lengthened, and strengthened by James Braid , a five-time Open champion, one of the era's top architects, and a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame . Other than having new back tees on several holes, six completely re-sited greens, much narrower fairways, (when not changed entirely for
261-525: A potential controversy that could have overshadowed the 2016 Open Championship and led to the club being removed from the Open rota. The Old Course begins alongside the sea, running southwards in a line for the first six holes. This opening section offers full visibility and plenty of space, but does still require accuracy to avoid deep bunkers. Many good rounds have been fashioned through low scores here, often aided by prevailing downwind conditions. Beginning with
290-498: A seaside course possess such magnificent sand craters, as those at Royal Adelaide." 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
319-700: Is a German professional golfer who competes on the LPGA Tour . Popov holds dual United States-German citizenship, having been born in the United States, and moved to Germany with her family when she was four years old. Her paternal grandparents are Bulgarian. On 11 June 2023, she and husband Max Mehles announced the birth of their daughter. As an amateur, she played college golf at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles . She won
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#1732783790944348-486: Is one of the most difficult holes in major championship golf. Now a long par-4, a blind tee shot has a long carry over gorse with out of bounds all along the railway on the right. The lengthy approach shot is to a small green that falls away, with nearby out of bounds. The Old Course is the championship layout at Royal Troon. Its second course, the Portland, also an 18-hole layout from 1895, but significantly shorter than
377-592: 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. The word "links" comes via the Scots language from the Old English word hlinc : "rising ground, ridge" 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
406-586: The Firth of Clyde . George Strath was appointed in 1881 as the club's first golf professional, and together with 1882 Open champion Willie Fernie , designed the original course, expanding it to 18 holes by 1888. The two were assisted by Charlie Hunter , greenskeeper of the neighbouring Prestwick Golf Club , in Troon's formative years. When Strath left the club's employ in 1887, Fernie became head professional, and served in that role until his death in 1924. He laid out
435-603: The U.S. Women's Open at CordeValle , where she finished last of those making the cut, and in 2018 she played in the Women's PGA Championship at Kemper Lakes , finishing tied for 57th place. In February 2019, Popov came within a stroke of gaining a place on the LPGA Tour for the 2019 season via the qualifying school . In 2020, with the LPGA and Symetra tours being impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic , she won three tournaments on
464-411: The 1980s. Its Old Course is one of the host courses for The Open Championship , one of the major championships on the PGA Tour and European Tour . The club has hosted 11 Open Championships, ten for men (most recently in 2024 ), and the 2020 Open for women (no men's equivalent that year). On 1 July 2016, Royal Troon members voted overwhelmingly to admit women into the club as members, avoiding
493-758: The 2010 International European Ladies Amateur Championship and played on the Junior Solheim Cup and Espirito Santo Trophy teams. In 2015, Popov was part of the German broadcast team for German television during the Solheim Cup . Popov played on the Symetra Tour between 2016 and 2020, where she had a best of four runner-up finishes: 2016 Chico's Patty Berg Memorial, 2016 Danielle Downey Credit Union Classic , 2017 Tullymore Classic and 2020 Founders Tribute at Longbow. In 2016, she qualified for
522-513: The Old Course, was redesigned in 1921 by golf course architect Dr. Alister MacKenzie , a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame . The Portland is also of very high standard. It is located slightly further inland and further north than the Old Course, with no holes bordering the Firth of Clyde; it has its own clubhouse. The Craigend Course is a nine-hole par-3 course. The club is private; guests are allowed at certain times, under advance booking, with
551-527: The Year in 2020 , where there was only a tournament for women that year, was regarded as one of the greatest upsets in major championship golf Troon was granted its "Royal" designation in 1978, during its centenary . Its clubhouse, designed by Henry Edward Clifford and built in 1886, is richly decorated with historical golf artifacts. James Montgomerie, father of Colin Montgomerie , served as Secretary in
580-663: The characteristics of a seaside links except for proximity to saltwater. 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
609-501: The club's Relief course, on the site of what would become Troon's New course, designed by Alister MacKenzie; Shortly after opening the New course was renamed in honour of the 6th Duke of Portland, an essential early Troon Golf Club patron and facilitator, who was one of the region's largest landowners. The club's property lies between the Firth of Clyde on the west, a caravan park on the south (slightly further south lies Prestwick Golf Club ),
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#1732783790944638-454: The eleventh time (includes 2020, when The R&A only organised The Open Championship for women). On 1 July 2016, Royal Troon members voted overwhelmingly to admit women into the club as members, avoiding a potential controversy that could have overshadowed the 2016 Open Championship and the club being removed from the Open rota. The club, which now has a total of 45 holes, was founded in 1878, initially with five holes. It lies adjacent to
667-503: The end and occurs in place names that precede the development of golf, for example Lundin Links in Fife. 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,
696-422: The most famous holes in the world, the par-3 8th hole ("Postage Stamp") measures a scant 123 yards (112 m), but its diminutive green measures a mere 2,635 square feet (293 sq yd; 245 m). Two holes earlier, the par-5 6th ("Turnberry") extends to a lengthy 601 yards (550 m) and until the championship at Royal Liverpool in 2023 was the longest hole in Open history. The 11th hole ("The Railway")
725-529: The railway line and main road on the east, and the town of Troon on the north. Glasgow Prestwick Airport is located slightly to the south and east of the club, and low-flying aircraft are nearest its southern section. Its Old Course is one of the host courses for The Open Championship , one of the major championships on the PGA Tour and European Tour . The club has hosted 11 Open Championships -- 1923 , 1950 , 1962 , 1973 , 1982 , 1989 , 1997 , 2004 , 2016 , 2020 (women's, The R&A did not offer
754-546: The re-positioned greens), and vastly different bunkering, the current Old Course is essentially very similar to Braid's finished work. Past Open champions at Royal Troon include Justin Leonard , Mark Calcavecchia , Tom Watson , Tom Weiskopf , Arnold Palmer , Bobby Locke , and Arthur Havers . Six consecutive Opens at Troon were won by Americans, from 1962 through 2004 , ended by Henrik Stenson of Sweden in 2016. German golfer Sophia Popov 's status as Champion Golfer of
783-429: The seventh, the Old Course turns further inland, while simultaneously changing direction, on each of its next six holes, among hillier dunes and thicker vegetation, including ulex (commonly known as gorse, furze, or whin), to severely punish offline shots. This sector, with two blind tee shots on the tenth and 11th, marks a sharp rise in difficulty from the opening holes. With the 13th hole, the player turns northwards for
812-488: 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. Links courses tend to be on, or at least very near to,
841-575: Was played on a links-style course, Whistling Straits , located near Sheboygan , Wisconsin . 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
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