So, what are your plans for April 4-7 of next year?
If you don’t have any plans yet, then it’s highly suggested that you jump on a plane and visit St. Andrews, where the Old Course will be set up to play in reverse.
Following last year’s high demand to experience the course as it was played back in Old Tom Morris’ day, the Links Trust has put together another four-day experience that includes playing the Old Course in reverse.
Playing in reverse is an experience that sits up there with some of the best golf experiences imaginable. Since playing on the Old is magical, playing it in reverse is a bucket list item.
After the Old was reduced from 22 to 18 holes in 1764, Old Tom in 1870 introduced the current first green by splitting it from the 17th to form the standard counterclockwise routing in use today.
For many years thereafter, the course was played over both circuits on alternate weeks. As recently as the 1970s, the course was still played in a reverse routing for one month every winter before the practice ebbed away, and the counterclockwise route became the preferred choice. Once a year, on the Saturday closest to St. Andrews Day (Nov. 30), the reverse routing is still used for a competition limited to a small number of local club members.
Golfers will have multiple ways to request a tee time, including the daily ballot, digital singles list, and an advanced three-round public package for the Old Course, Old Course Reversed, and the Castle Course. Advanced public packages, for April 4-7 — as is tradition, the course is closed on Sunday (April 6) — will be priced at £750 ($950). Applications for packages will open for a limited 48-hour window Dec. 9-10.
For information: https://standrews.com/old-course-reversed