Peter Dawson Explains His Changes To The Old Course

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Glad we got one thing cleared up before the start of The Open Championship: it was a Peter Dawson operation all along!

While Martin Hawtree was the architect of record for altering the Old Course to offset regulatory hesitancy, R&A Chief Inspector Peter Dawson lays out for Scotland on Sunday's John Huggan the details behind his changes to what is apparently his course.

No one needs to rehash the Friday news dump approach to the project or the matter of tinkering with greens and bunkers after over fifty years of no architectural tinkering on golf's most sacred grounds. Instead, just take in the totality of the remarks, which do not include a "we" reference that might indicate contributions from architect Hawtree or the manager's of the Old Course, the Links Trust. I, I, I, I...oh and many were envisioned while out walking the dog!  Take that, Old Tom!

There was also this curious remark...

“All of the changes are the result of much observation at the Open and the Dunhill Links Championship – and a few hundred Sunday morning dog walks of course. And yes, shortening the ball would be the equivalent of lengthening the course. But we, unfortunately, don’t have the luxury of being a single-issue organisation.”

Even if it's the single biggest issue binding all of the other vital issues the organization is trying to address with sustainability, growth and the future?

Tiger Shocked To Find Old Course Soft And Slow

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Bob Harig of ESPN.com on Tiger's first practice round at the 2015 Open Championship, his first appearance there since 2010.

From Harig's story:

"I was shocked," Woods said. "I had seen photos of it a month ago. It was bone dry. It looked like it was going to be one of those dust bowls again; hard, fast, like the years I've played St. Andrews. It's changed. They got big rain and a lot of sun. It's totally changed.

"I'm going to have to do a little bit of feel around the greens, my putting. I wasn't expecting the firmness to be that soft. We made ball marks on the greens. I don't ever remember making ball marks around this place."

Video: Old Course Eleventh And Twelfth Hole Flyovers

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One of the most emulated par-3s in the way of greenside bunkering schemes has otherwise not been very well replicated by architect who have been inspired by the Eden. (Unlike the Redan, which has been improved on and which this golfer posted a nice five on today.)

The 11th features a softened green to make a portion over the sand more pinnable during The Open. Next week we'll find out if the effort succeeded.

The flyover:



Outside of the finishing holes, this stretch

The short 12th is one of the lesser known influences on the modern driveable par-4 movement and probably continues to live in a form of architectural anonymity due to its location in the round and the lack of spectating options during The Open. Nonetheless, it's a fascinating hole and one when, played with a helping wind, may be best approach from over the green.

The flyover:

Architecting A Plan For The Old Course In A Day And A Half

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I wasn't surprised to read Jordan Spieth making an eloquent case for playing the John Deere Classic over getting to Scotland sooner to prepare for The Open. (Though a "good feels" reference was jarring to see in this Ryan Lavner piece. Then again, feels travel according to the feels maestro his ownself.)

More interesting was coach Cameron McCormick's assertion that a plan for attacking the most complicated course on the planet should be "architected" by Tuesday afternoon. Considering the number of players over time who have said they could never fully know grasp all there is to know about the Old Course and its changing winds, surprise bunkers and intricate contouring, dare I say this sounds a bit presumptuous?

From John Strege's report for The Loop:

“The other side of that is developing a game plan and acclimating to both time and weather conditions. Jordan’s always been a quick study — developing tactical intelligence, where the right places to be on the course — and with [caddie] Michael [Greller] amplifying that, I see no reason why he can’t have the right plan architected by Tuesday afternoon.”

Video: Old Course Flyover, Third and Fourth Holes

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After the start it's easy to get careless on these two deceptive holes.

Cartgate (Out) is so named for the Cartgate bunker guarding the green shared with the fifteenth hole. The hole is really the boilerplate of all good strategic holes: flirt with the hazards and boundary down the right, improve the angle to the green. Bail out left toward the fifteenth fairway and the approach becomes more difficult.

The flyover:



Ginger Beer was named for Daw Anderson (who oversaw the Old Course and had a shop next to Old Tom). He operated a ginger beer cart on the 4th for approximately 20 years. Daw also sold balls and food and clubs.

You can read about Daw here a bit and see a stellar photo of his stand. Take that, cart girls!

The 419-yard hole features a lay-up for today's players and mercifully, no changes to the mound short of the green which was under assault during the recent planned changes to the Old Course.

The flyover: