Golf Monthly UK – August 2019

Theletterofthemonthwinnerreceivesayear’ssupply(sixdozen)ofthebestTitleistgolfballforhisorhergame

O U R

VIEW

Why linksgolfbeats

all otherforms

Links courses dominateourTop

100 Courses rankings,even

though links golfactuallymakes

up a small percentageofwhat’s

on offer in the UK.Butwhy?

If you’re not afanofyourgame

being exposedtostrong

breezes, fast-runningturfanda

very different setofchallenges,

that’s fine. Lovinglinksgolfisnot

obligatory. Buythelinksare

where the gameoriginated,with

many of our greatestcourses

laid out by the seaingolf’s

earliest days, andagaininthe

course-buildingboomofthelate

19th century. TheOpenhas

never been playedanywhere

else,forTheR&Aisnotonly

My wife had a pencil bag with a few
clubs and I had a normal carry bag with
a half-set, so it was quite a sight to see
two large caddies carrying our clubs.
The outstanding memory wasofthe
expanse of gorse that coveredthe
course and the blue Pacifi c Ocean.
We were made most welcomeand
stayed in one of the lodges fortwo
nights. Thanks for the memories.
Iain Beaton,viaemail

Time to mix things up
I read with interest the commentsin
the April issue regarding TheMasters
at Augusta and the Solheim Cupat

Gleneagles – one for men only, one for

women only. I have played and

coached different sports over many

years – do you not think it’s time golf

embracedcompetitionatthehighest

levelbetweenthesexes?Whynot

includeamixeddoublescompetitionin

theprofessionalgamewheremenand

womencompeteonequalterms,asin

tennisdoubles,tabletennisdoubles

andbowls,tonameafew?

ThecurrentRulesofGolfwouldapply,

pluseventrulesforconsideration:1)

Twoplayersperteam–onemaleand

onefemale;2)Teamdecideswhodrives

offfirst,thereafteralternating;3)All

playersplayoffthesame

tee;4)Aggregatescores

dividedbytwoeachhole

andrecordedonacard;5)

Winnersaretheteamwith

thelowestnetscore.

Theeventmeansmen

andwomenplaytheirfull

partinthecontest,on

equalterms.Ifpromoted

well,itshouldencourage

moreplayerstoplaygolf

andjointheirlocalclubs.

GerardCosens,

Pickering

seekingoutthebestplayer,but

alsothemostresilient.

Butmostofusdon’tplayby

theseaside,ratheratoneofthe

manyheathlandorparkland

coursesofwhichwealsohave

noendofsuperbexamples.

Thereis,ofcourse,norightor

wrong.Butwhenitcomestoour

rankings, linkscourses

dominate becausetheyformed

the cradle of thegame,and

because they enticegolfers

from all over theplanettocome

and savour whatweareblessed

to have in greaterabundance

than anywhereelse.Theyare

the USP of UKandIrishgolf.

Win!

LETTERS

Photography:

Getty Images

Would mixed

doubles spark more

interest in the game?

Which type of course

do you prefer?

The Pacific Dunes course

at Bandon Dunes

Heathland

15%

Links

55%

Parkland

30%