Great British Courses

With the Open returning to the Lancashire coast for the first time since 2008 when Royal Birkdale hosted the championship, Alex Jenkins and Mark Alexander highlight the best of the island's other golfing regions.

Leven Links in Fife

Fife

It is no co-incidence that the Home of Golf is located in the Kingdom of Fife . Golf in this part of Scotland has been played for over four centuries and stretches back to the very origins of the game. St Andrews is the epicentre where the famous Old Course and Swilcan Bridge are surrounded by six other courses run by the St Andrews Links Trust. All of them are expertly maintained and beautifully presented. The feeling of playing on the hallowed turf of St Andrews simply can’t be replicated anywhere else.

There are others courses nearby such as Kingsbarns which was opened 12 years ago but feels like it has been around for centuries. Spectacularly beautiful, it is well worth a visit. Further down the coast is Crail, the seventh oldest golf club in the world, and further still is Leven Links, venue of the world’s oldest open amateur stroke play championship. All exemplify the very finest traditions of links golf.

If you fancy something different, look no further than Ladybank Golf Club – a beautiful parkland track originally laid out by Old Tom Morris and one of a number of secluded Fife courses that find shelter from coastal breezes.
 

With a long coastline, Fife is also well endowed with a plentiful supply of seafood, which is great news for the region's restaurants. To indulge yourself in some local produce, try out the Seafood Restaurant, The Peat Inn or Ostlers Close. All provide interesting and varied menus that delight and gratify.

Contacts
St Andrews Links Trust www.standrews.org.uk
Kingsbarns Golf Links www.kingsbarns.com
Crail Golfing Society www.crailgolfingsociety.co.uk
Leven Links Golf Course www.leven-links.com
Ladybank Golf Club www.ladybankgolf.co.uk

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