The St Andrews Golf Festival features a range of unique attractions including an impressive schedule of events, exhibitions, tours, lectures, films and skills competitions for the public. Some of golf’s most distinguished champions will be showcased at the St Andrews Golf Hotel and the Best Western Scores Hotel and will include tributes to Old Tom Morris, Bobby Jones, Seve Ballesteros, the History of Golf in St. Andrews, Keepers of the Green, the Ryder Cup, Women’s Golf and much, much more.

The view from the 18th tee on the St Andrews Old Course.

There will also be art exhibitions by noted golf artists such as Graeme Baxter, Richard Chorley, Harold Riley, Joe Austen, Hugh Dodd and David Joy. Golf films will also be played at venues across St Andrews plus an exclusive viewing of unseen footage from the outtakes of the BBC film on Seve Ballesteros, introduced by the producer and director of the programme, Jo McCusker.

There’ll also be lots of daily activities, including a golf tour around St Andrews, charity putting competitions on the Links Trust putting green, hickory golf events, guided walks around the historic sites of St Andrews by a Blue Badge tourist guide as well as golf simulators and charity fundraising for the Seve Ballesteros Foundation.

The Castle Course at St Andrews is one of the finest new golfing creations in the UK.

On Saturday evening, the St. Andrews Golf Festival Awards will be held in St. Andrews University’s historic Younger Hall, where Bobby Jones, Seve Ballesteros, Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player and other icons of the game received honorary degrees from the ancient university.

All exhibitions, exclusive talks, book signings and gala night events are free for all who turn up. The Festival lineup is constantly growing and further ideas include “Street Golf” in the historic lanes of St. Andrews to re-enact the game of Sillybodkins that was played during Old Tom’s day with sticks and old corks.

Kingsbarns is a must play course for anyone making the golfing pilgrimage to Scotland.

If you want to book your place in St Andrews for this wonderful celebration of the game, you can choose from a great range of unbeatable packages from in and around St Andrews to coincide with the Festival. Why not combine this celebration of golf with golf on the St Andrews Old Course itself; or indeed on one of the many other world class golf courses in and around ‘The Auld Grey Toon’ including the other famous St Andrews links courses, as well as modern gems such as the mighty Kingsbarns, the Torrance and Kittocks courses at the Fairmont St Andrews and the challenging Duke’s Course at the Old Course Hotel.

There has never been a better time to book your golfing pilgrimage to ‘The Home of Golf’ so be sure to peruse your options before settling on your dream St Andrews Golf Break.

For further information on Scottish Golf Breaks, St Andrews Links and St Andrews Golf Tours simply visit www.yourgolftravel.com or call free on 0800 043 6644.

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Moscow, Russia

I served as the Director of Golf and consulted with the Russian Golf Federation in Moscow in 2001. I can always remember the departing Director of Golf, South African Nigel Roscoe showing me around the facility and hotel grounds that blanketed The Moscow Country Club. Nigel was very gracious and took the time to give me a tour of this superb Trent Jones Sr. set up located forty five minutes north of the city. Walking out of the hotel we made our way over to the ‘recreational area’ in which there was a park like set up with benches and seats waiting for anybody wanting to picnic outside. Just beyond the park was the ‘fake beach’ with its a-joining ‘fake sea’ ready to capture that eclipse of a summer that Moscow briefly enjoys every year. No question, I was impressed at the length the local government had gone to in creating this feat of modern engineering.

I hadn’t meant to ask an awkward question but it was prompted by the imbecilic email my brother had sent me on the evening of my arrival. The title read: ‘Well done Bond, now you have reached enemy lines in Mother Russia it is your mission to extract the required information and make your way safely back to HQ….Love Bro x’. Spies, information and HQ’s………why wouldn’t I ask Nigel a question about the Mafia? It was the obvious thing to do!

I picked a moment in which I thought the question might be received in a relaxed fashion; we were walking down a long windowless corridor en route to the Olympic sized gymnasium when I softly enquired…..

‘Erm Nigel’, I nervously opened up with ‘Obviously in the West we hear all these Mafia stories with cloak and dagger antics but does any of that really go on here?’ With a look that indicated I had violated some sort of life insurance policy he ushered in close and aggressively whispered between gritted teeth: ‘Jesus man, these walls have ears, EARS I tell you…. never, never, never ask these questions again do you hear me!’ Stunned by his anxious tone I immediately scanned the area for anything that looked like a microphone….I saw nothing. And so I learnt pretty quickly not ask questions that were based on stereotypical beliefs since they turn out to be, in this case, astonishingly true.

One day myself and Jeff Combs (the lowest handicapper at the club) were asked to play against Russia’s finest amateurs; I was playing a bit of golf in those days and could rely on myself for at worst a level par outing. And so we turned up to the first hole at MCC which was a modest par 4 of about 400yrds. As we waited for the group ahead to hit their approach shots the Russian pair turned up and made their way onto the tee box flanked by a small following of fans. After a brief quick and firm handshake the biggest Russian player (I’m only 5ft 7in) started to make practice swings so close to my ankles he almost had the hem of my trousers caught in the vacuum of his club head. As I glanced up to give him my best ‘what do you think you are doing?’ look he was already simultaneously staring at me with eyes bigger than dinner plates grunting like some sort of bull viciously sizing up a matador. It wasn’t the customary ‘play well guys’ and move on – it was a re-enactment of two boxers nose to nose before the bell goes off. This guy was about to play golf like an ice hockey player playing chess and I was the pawn!

When the fact was later explained to me that since I was a professional the Russians would view this as a litmus test for their own golf development (and apparently testosterone) I suddenly grasped their aggressive, overly competitive tee box ritual as something quite innocent.

Needless to say these guys blew the ball out of the park with both of them having more hits than The Beatles in the first five holes; where as I was cruising at about two under through six moving like a Mig under a radar whilst moving my demeanor 360 deg in the opposite direction to theirs!  It was a no contest to be honest and I’m happy to report that the match ended with handshakes and smiles all round with no divot fight on the 15^th green.

Mount Juliet, Ireland

My wife and I lived in Ireland for three years whilst I directed David Leadbetters academy at the beautiful Mount Juliet in Kilkenny. I remember taking a phone call in the office one day from a rather excited American who spewed down the phone that he was coming to MJ to take a lesson with us at the then famous David Leadbetter Golf Academy; his flight was booked, his taxi was booked and the hotel was booked and all with the intention of travelling four thousand miles for his instruction. And so, I booked him in a full two months in advance of his arrival.

One week later the phone went in the office, it was the American caller again, we’ll call him Ed. Ed called to ask if everything was ok and if he was still in a holding position for two months time; I told him he was and we were looking forward to seeing him and hoped the weather would hold out, it was Ireland after all….’Great!’ he exclaimed.

Two weeks after this phone call a fax reeled its way out of the machine: ‘Hi its Ed, just reminding you all not to think I’m not coming….I am! Looking forward to this so much, told all my friends, can’t wait!’ This had now become a bit of a standing joke in the office, when, where and how would Ed pop up next?? A week later Jill from marketing came into the academy and asked if we had heard of an American called ‘Ed’ – coincidently we had. ‘He mentioned that he was coming and you weren’t to forget his appointment ok’. Well, I think you get the picture now. Ed plagued us right up to the day he actually arrived at Mount Juliet.

8:50 AM……. Ed walked into our office, we were waiting for him. Myself and Todd Pyle (the Academy Director) buggied Ed down to the range who at this point had uncontrollable verbiage about his journey and quest to be here at this time, with us and about to take his lesson on the hallowed turf of Mount Juliet. We all dismounted the cart and I took care of Ed’ s bag making sure it was placed onto the bag stand perfectly; I glanced up to see Ed enthusiastically swinging his arms around his body like a whirlybird whilst squatting up and down elevator style; evidently he was warming up. Todd spoke ‘Ed, when you have finished your erm, whatever if you could hit a few wedges for us, sevens and the fives that would be great – we can then film you up’. ‘Sure thing’ replied Ed as he pulled his wedge from his bag and with one last glance, Ed announced that he was in heaven and couldn’t wait to get going. He gave a glinted smile, addressed his first shot and then aimed down the range.

I knew I had heard something but to be honest I was so focused on Ed with all the previous two months build up I didn’t even bother to look around. Ed drew back the club and reached the top of his backswing when BANG!!! Ed was now on the ground like a sack of potatoes after being hit straight in the head, on the fly by a ball carved in from the 8^th fairway – for a moment, and I mean JUST for a moment, Todd and I looked at each other in both amusement and complete disbelief. Ed hadn’t even started his downswing and yet before we all knew it here he was on the deck, completely unconscious not knowing whether it was New York or New Year. The irony was ludicrous. Without further hesitation Todd had his T Shirt off and was clamping it onto the poor man’s skull in an effort to plug the gushing wound which was at least four inches in length. Poor Ed, he never did get his lesson with us at Mount Juliet.

When you book your next golf break with Your Golf Travel just remember that the game remains constant yet the people that play it are……colourful to say the least!!

Happy Golfing and until next time,

Nick Bradley

Click here to join the Nick Bradley Insiders

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Greg Norman – 1996 Masters – Augusta National

Norman’s place in golf history could have and should have been as one of the greatest to ever play the game but thanks to his failings in majors coming down the stretch he was left with just the two Open Championships to his name. Two Opens is not to be sniffed at but unfortunately Norman will be better remembered for the ones he let slip away, most notably at the Masters and in particular in 1996.

The Shark had already fired a record equalling 63 on his way to opening up a mammoth six shot lead going into the final round of the 1996 Masters with Nick Faldo as his closest challenger. However the Australian’s penchant for snatching defeat from the jaws of victory came to the fore again on Masters Sunday. Firing an ugly 78 in the final round, Norman was not only caught by Faldo – who shot an impressive 67 – but was passed and ended up losing by five shots.

Jean Van de Velde – 1999 Open Championship – Carnoustie

The pros arrived at Carnoustie in 1999 knowing that no matter what the weather was like they would be in for a tough test. Carnoustie is notoriously difficult thanks to rolling terrain, savage rough and hundreds of devilish pot bunkers but when the weather takes a turn for the worst it can really get nasty! Unfortunately for those involved in 1999 the weather was brutal and arriving on the 18^th in the final round, the Frenchman had displayed remarkable mental toughness and skill to hold a three shot lead. A double bogey would have been good enough to write his name into the history books so surely an iron off the tee was the order of the day?

Well the Frenchman had other ideas and pulled the driver to the sound of thousands of shocked gasps from the crowd. After visiting the knee length rough, the grandstand and the treacherous Barry Burn, Van de Velde had to hole a 6 footer just to get into a playoff…which he would lose. Unfortunately for him, the image of Van de Velde sans socks and shoes in the Barry Burn will be forever etched into the memories of golf fans across the globe.

Rory McIlroy – 2011 Masters – Augusta National

Many have labelled McIlroy as the man to take the reins from Tiger Woods and following three days of spectacular iron play and monstrous driving many thought the 2011 Masters was the official changing of the guard. Trying to become the second youngest player to win the Masters, McIlroy’s four-shot lead at the start of the day quickly vanished, but he still went into the back nine tied for the lead.

At the 10^th tee however his meltdown officially started. Rory snap hooked his tee shot into a group of condos, so far off the course many didn’t know of their existence before this shot, and went on to make a triple bogey. This clearly rattled the young man from Northern Ireland and following a four putt from no distance at all on the par 3 12^th and a ball in Rae’s Creek on 13 his bid to win his first major was well and truly over. Thankfully, unlike other meltdown victims such as Van de Velde, Rory didn’t suffer a hangover from this collapse and went on to win his first major at his very next attempt.

Dustin Johnson – 2010 US Open – Pebble Beach

When Dustin Johnson gets it right there are few players in the world who can live with the big hitting American. Pebble Beach had been kind to ‘DJ’ before the 2010 US Open. He had won the AT&T there twice before and after three days of booming drives and sound iron play he had a handsome three shot lead, which many assumed was more than enough to hold off the rest of the field.

As it turned out, ‘DJ’ didn’t have to worry about the field catching him as he would blow his own chances within the space of three holes. A triple bogey on the 2^nd followed by a double bogey on the 3^rd was the start of an uninspiring 82 which saw Johnson finish in a tie for 8^th.  He has since gone on to lose out in two more majors in agonising circumstances. Firstly by inadvertently grounding his club in a bunker in the 2010 PGA Championship which saw him miss out on a playoff and at the 2011 Open Championship where he fired his approach into the par 5 14^th out of bounds to lose touch with Darren Clarke. However with his talent and time on his side one feels that the big hitting American will one day pop his major cherry…maybe even this year at Kiawah Island.

Thomas Bjorn – 2003 Open Championship – Royal St Georges

Royal St Georges was playing hard and fast when the Open came to town in 2003 and Thomas Bjorn was the man who coped best with the tricky conditions during the three days leading up to the final round. There were other big names at the top of the leader board including Vijay Singh, Davis Love and Tiger Woods but it was the unknown Ben Curtis who would end up profiting from the Dane’s meltdown on the 16^th.

Arriving at one of the easier holes on the course, the par 3 16^th, Bjorn had a two shot lead and one hand on the Claret Jug. With his challengers dropping shots around him Bjorn looked in control. He hit his tee shot at 16 into a greenside bunker…no problem for a top pro eh? Well as I said the course was playing extremely hard and fast and Bjorn tried to be greedy with his first attempt to escape the bunker. The ball eventually came to rest back at his feet and then it happened again. Bjorn would go on to double bogey the hole and miss out on his first major to a man who had been in the clubhouse for some time before the result was decided. In 10 years time, people won’t be talking about Singh’s bogies on the eighth, 10th and 15th, or Tiger’s dropped shots on the 15th and 17^th; but rather the sight of Thomas Bjorn, two shots clear with three to play, drowning in the sand of the 16th.

Ironically the man based in Dubai had come to grief in a small patch of sand in southern England.

For information on 2012 US Masters packages, Open Championship golf breaks and USA golf holidays please visit www.yourgolftravel.com or call 0800 043 6644.

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The Open Championship rota exclusively includes some of these top links courses and you don’t have to travel far from the Major venues to find a cluster of other lesser known, but top class nonetheless, seaside venues.

Although none of us will ever get the chance to play these top links courses in the Open Championship there is nothing stopping us from entering Open Competitions for the mere mortals! These tournaments are open to golfers of all shapes and sizes and may well be the closest thing to the Open Championship as we, as players, will ever see! Fortunately tournaments at links courses are plentiful, and due to the fast draining nature of the links turf, competitive golf is playable all year round.

Links golf holds a truly special place in the game of golf. It throws up challenges, excitement and drama that inland courses simply cannot provide yet it remains untested by many who have not ventured to the coast and experienced the purest form of the game.

We at Your Golf Travel have teamed up with Golf Empire – the open competition experts – to bring you five of the top Links Opens that you can play in in the UK in 2012. Although marquee names have been left out you will find the below golf courses provide fabulous value whilst not losing any of the charm of classic links golf.

1. Royal North Devon

Royal North Devon is England’s oldest golf course. Founded in 1864 it can rightly claim to be the cradle of English Golf and is regarded as the St Andrews of England – not a bad accolade when it comes to links golf!

This historic club hosts over 20 open events during the season and with prices starting from as little as £10 per person they offer a splendid opportunity to experience this magnificent course in all its glory and at the same time make a substantial saving off the normal green-fee rate of £60!

Royal North Devon

With so many to choose from it’s difficult to single out one event but the Team Open on Saturday 21^st April catches the eye. It’s open to men and ladies in any combination and has a cost of £100 per team of four, a fantastic price for weekend golf!

Why not combine your competition at Royal North Devon with a few more rounds in the Devon area? Our Devon Golf Tours will see you visiting some of the finest links courses in the UK & Ireland. Saunton, Trevose and Burnham & Berrow are all worth a visit and are within driving distance of Royal North Devon.

2. Littlestone

Kent is not short of top class links courses and while it may be largely in the shadow of its illustrious neighbours such as Royal St Georges, Royal Cinque Ports and Princes GC, Littlestone is one of the very best. Renowned for its intriguing layout and outstanding greens, Littlestone has previously been chosen to host final qualifying for the Open Championship and its remote location adds to its appeal. One is certain to enjoy their round at this southern gem.

The course provides a really true test and has one of the most challenging closing stretches in the UK. Punch shots, knock downs and bump and runs are all called for here!

Like any classic links course Littlestone features many humps, bumps, dips and hollows and, of course, those devilish pot bunkers!

Amongst the many open events here the Pairs Open on Friday 10^th August is a fairly unique one. The format is Greensomes Stableford. This involves both players driving off and then playing their partners ball for the next shot. One ball must then be chosen and alternate shots played until the hole is completed!

It’s open to men and ladies in any combination and costs £60 per pair. A 2-course meal can also be pre-booked for just £10 per person making this an excellent opportunity for a good value day of golf.

3. Seascale

Seascale has the proud honour of co-hosting the 2012 English Amateur Championship, along with nearby Silloth on Solway. It’s recognition for what is a fine example of links golf in the north-west of England and thus the course promises to be in first class condition this year.

This stretch of coast is arguably the best in the British Isles and Seascale often goes unmentioned, but it shouldn’t! Whilst it isn’t the longest course the wind rolling in from the Irish Sea can certainly make it play that way and the varied terrain places an emphasis on shot selection and imagination.

Royal Birkdale – Just a couple of hours from Seascale

The club provide what I describe as ‘no-nonsense opens’ – simply good value golf on a very good links course, which is well worth making the trip for!

Those that are quick could still grab a tee-time in one of their popular winter team competitions. Texas Scrambles are popular in this part of the world and the ones on Saturday 11^th February and Saturday 10^th March are great examples. Entry is just £50 per team of four into each one and can consist of any combination of gender.

Although Seascale is a rather secluded course the golfing delights of Southport aren’t a million miles away. Royal Birkdale, Royal Lytham & St Annes and Royal Liverpool are all within a stone’s throw of each other and along with hidden gems like Hillside, Formby and Formby Ladies make Southport a fantastic option for a golf tour in the North West.

4. Royal St. David’s

One of the finest courses in Wales can be found at Harlech on the west coast of Wales. Royal St. David’s is true links golf and is claimed by many to have one of the best back-nines in the UK.

Open tournaments are held all year round but places fill up very quickly so golfers wishing to take part need to book early. The club host the annual St. David’s Gold Cross, a prestigious Amateur World Ranking event, and whilst most of us will not qualify for this there are plenty of other opens to choose from.

While Royal St Davids isn’t the most accessible golf course in Wales it is certainly wirth the trip.

The Morfa & Patterson Cups – a men’s individual tournament – will be played on Saturday 30^th June 2012 and has an entry-fee of just £25. It’s a Stableford format and open to men with handicaps up to 28 and offers an enjoyable yet competitive day of golf.

Combining an open competition here with rounds of golf at other stunning courses including Aberdovey and Nefyn & District will certainly be a memorable Wales golf tour.

5. Cruden Bay

A feature on links golf that doesn’t include a course in Scotland would be remiss and while there are plenty of competitions at the most famous of links courses I have gone for one of my favourites; Cruden Bay.

This north-easterly course in Aberdeenshire winds through towering dunes offering a feel of seclusion on each hole as well as protection from the wind! Like many golf courses in Scotland, Cruden Bay hosts several tournaments during the season. Once again you can’t fault the value for money – the Mixed Pairs Open in August costs just £20 per couple!

Cruden Bay

However, our pick of the bunch is the Men’s 4-day Challenge Cup that runs from Tuesday 17^th to Friday 20^th July. The format is strokeplay followed by matchplay for those who qualify.

To make the trip to Scotland worthwhile why not combine your competition at Cruden Bay with rounds at Royal Aberdeen, Inchmarlo or even the brand new Trump International Links? Scottish golf tours are some of the best in the world so be sure to explore the home of golf!

Click here for information on Open Competitions throughout the UK.

For information on UK & Ireland golf breaks please visit www.yourgolftravel.com or call 0800 043 6644.

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