150th Open Championship - St. Andrews

The Road Hole!

The modifications to the Road Hole for this years Open Championship at St. Andrews look set to sort the men out from the boys. For what was perhaps the most difficult approach shot in championship golf, the 17th will this year arguablycombine the tee shot right up there amongst the most difficult and intimidating in championship golf making this hole nothing short of lethal.
With the tee pushed back 25 yards across the viaduct and lengthening the carry across the hotel and it's stone walled boundry fence to around 265 yards one might think this a breeze for the modern pro to find position A on the right side of the fairway. But today I visited the links on a busy practice day to find the wind in the east at 7-10mph...ahead and from the left (out of bounds right) and already I swear I heard rumblings from the R&A that should the easterley winds prevail throughout the tournament the new tee might prove to be a "major" issue of discontent.
With the fairway narrowed to not much more than 20 yards in places and the rough left and right notably green at the root a brave shot across the oldm railway sheds will be a daunting prospect.
The wind is forecast to move steadily from the east to the south and then west throughout the tournament with the west and west/southwest winds assisting the drive and with the additional length it still looks like being driver and 5-6 iron to the green with right side of the fairway the only option for approaching and holding the narrow green (just 14 paces from the road hole bunker) and the drop off to the road. Anything from the left side of the fairway limits realistic options to a shot played short and right of the green and then taking the chance of an up and down for par.
Whatever the conditions, my sense is that the Road Hole this year will play it's part like never before. For my money, this par 4 at 495 yards has already got an average of 5.1 or better written all over it for the first two days of the tournament. At this early juncture however, I love what the R & A have done here. It's awesome and it's going to provide 4 days of real spewctator excitement.

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AN HISTORIC WEEK IN SCOTTISH GOLF!

Today marks the beginning of a much anticipated and historic week in Scottish golf with two great events.
Firstly, the Open Championship returns to Turnberry for the 4th time only in the championship's history. Much has been said about the recent purchase and extensive refurbishment of the historic former railway hotel and resort facilities, however, our focus as always remains firmly fixed upon that which makes Turnberry truly great, truly inspiring and so completely awesome...THE AILSA COURSE! We encourage you all to enjoy the coverage from this exciting venue and look forward to continuing our valued association with this icon in world golf.
Secondly, the new Castle Stuart course opens it's doors and tee boxes to the public today. Located 6 miles from Inverness and even closer to Nairn this course is set to become to the Scottish highlands what Turnberry Ailsa is to Ayrshire and without question a highly valued asset to our golf tourism industry in Scotland. This is a magnificent development and we congratulate and applaud all those associated with it's development. This is not just marketing hype. The team at On Course Golf, St. Andrews have played Castle Stuart and we love it and feel excited about our customers having yet another exciting venue to enjoy on their next golfing holiday with us. Further information can be obtained from www.castlestuartgolf.com
So this is an exciting week for us here in Scotland and we hope that you all enjoy our showcase as the worldwide golf media centres on Turnberry and Scotland. We hope you enjoy it as much as we will and that it may inspire you to come and share it with us in 2010.


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LATE AVAILABILITY!

OLD COURSE PACKAGE WITH DUNVEGAN HOTEL ACCOMMODATION!

SORRY! THIS PROGRAM HAS BEEN SOLD and IS NO LONGER AVAILABLE!


We have been notified this morning of the cancellation of a special Old Course and Dunvegan Hotel package, so wev'e added a touch on On Course Golf to present the following St. Andrews short break. Details are;

Sunday July 5, 2009 - Arrive Edinburgh airport. Met at airport and transfer to your accommodation at the Dunvegan Hotel, with accommodation and breakfast for four (4) nights.
Afternoon golf on St. Andrews Jubilee course
Monday July 6 - Play St. Andrews New Course
Tuesday July 7 - Play St. Andrews Old Course
Wednesday July 8 - Play Dukes Course
Thursday July 9 - Transfer to airport for your departure

Package Inclusions;
* Four nights accommodation, twin share, bed & breakfast daily at the Dunvegan Hotel (Auchterlonie Suite)
* Green fees and guaranteed start times for four (4) rounds of golf as above
* All transfers as specified with tour manager assistance

Note: Proof of handicap required for the Old Course - Men maximum 24 and ladies maximum 36

Conditions;
* Available to four (4) golfers only travelling and accommodating together
* Available for the dates specified only
* Payment in full is required with your reservation....normal cancellation conditions apply

Price: £1199 GBP per person each of 4 (this is a genuinely discounted package)

Enquiries: ocgstandrews@gmail.com

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US DOLLAR - BIG, BIG SAVINGS ON SCOTLAND GOLF!

US Dollar is back!

Did I really see and understand when I noted this morning that the US dollar is now trading at $1.35 against the £1 British Pound Sterling?
WOW! An 8 day tour program that we sold in 2008 for £2400GBP cost our US customers around $4800 USD.
THAT SAME TOUR WOULD NOW COST JUST $324O USD and represent in effect a 32.5% cost reduction.
With some recession busting offers being extended to us from a number of the golf clubs here in Scotland right now, especially the two rounds for the price of one offers from big clubs like Kingsbarns and the new Castle Stuart courses 2009 we are now seeing exceptional value for customers and arguably "THE YEAR" to visit us here in Scotland and live the dream.
We would be pleased to put together a full proposal that reflects these great offers with our usual unique brand of service delivery. Contact us if we can be of assistance to you. It's a great year to travel!




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CASTLE STUART Golf Course

www.castlestuartgolf.com

In October 2008 the staff of On Course Golf, St. Andrews were invited to play the new Castle Stuart course located near Inverness. Despite a rather bleak day with driving rain for the first 9 holes this was one of our most memorable days on a course that we found difficult to describe in any other way than totally inspirational.
The course opens to the public for visitor play the second week of July 2009 and IS sure to create a landslide of media attention and praise for it's sensational design, it's spectacular location on the shores of the Moray Firth and it's playability for golfers of all handicaps.
This month we see the launching of Castle Stuart's website www.castlestuartgolf.com and we encourage everyone to take the course tour that provides a magnificent photographic representation of every hole and what one expects to see from the tee, and from the fairway landing zones to the greens.
We hope you will be as excited about this development as we are. Be sure to ask us to include Castle Stuart on your next visit to Scotland with On Course Golf, St. Andrews.
Happy New Year to all
Bernie


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Seasons Greetings!

December 12, 2008 Festive Cheers!

The 2008 winter to-date here in St. Andrews has been the coldest on recent record with some snow and ice prevailing on mainly calm crisp days. So drawing closer to the festive season it's appropriate to wrap up, start the fire and enjoy a few good Aussie wines.
To all our customers, suppliers and friends and their respective families we extend our very best wishes for a happy and joyous Christmas. For the New Year we wish everyone the strength and determination to meet the challenges ahead and know that none of us are alone and that our friends are always nearby.
Bernie




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On Course Golf, St. Andrews Website Redesign

Friday, 17 October 2008

Welcome to our refreshed website. Again we thank our loyal customers who have made contributions to our site, especially in respect to overall communicatios about what we do, and in respect of our capacity to feed customers information.

New to the Home Page is our Customer Services login area where those who have requested a proposal from On Course Golf, St. Andrews, and those that have current tour bookings with us, can view their itineraries, read special announcements about their tour, pay invoices etc; and obtain a wealth of information relevant to their tour. Also new to the Home Page is our News section and we hope our customers will make contributions to this section.

Under Things to Know we have expanded the content and indexed useful information about currency, use of electrical appliances and other important information that travellers to Scotland need to know.

If you would like to place an inquiry, please click on the "request a quote" link on the left and tell us your requirements for your golf vacation of a lifetime. Should you have general feedback please simply use the Contact Us button. If you simply wish to say hello, we are always pleased to hear from our friends.




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