Recently, I got the chance to play this year’s Open Championship venue, Royal St George’s. I’d played the course before a few years back, and despite playing awfully on a perfect day with no wind, this time I was quite happy with the fact that there was a stiff breeze as this would give me a chance to see the course with a bit more teeth and get a better idea of the kind of challenge the pros will be facing in July.

I’m not sure if anyone else is the same, but I’m not a massive fan of having lots of people watch as I tee off, especially on the first with the wind blowing straight back at you. This may be something to do with the fact I’m never 100% sure where the ball is going… Anyway, as we waited to tee off on the first, I wasn’t exactly over the moon to see a large group approach and take their positions behind the first. As it turned out, as part of the preparations for The Open the R&A has invited camera crews from all over the world to visit the course to discuss camera positions etc. Despite the gallery, I was happy to find the fairway along with my playing partners, although slightly less pleased when the group decided to follow us down the first!

With a strong wind and after a couple of weeks without rain, the course was playing hard and fast like a true links. Unlike other links courses, Royal St George’s isn’t a traditional out and back layout, so the wind is constantly changing on each hole which makes club selection tricky. The two par 3’s on the front 9 were a prime example, with the 180 yard 3rd playing straight into the wind and needing a wood to reach, whilst the shorter 6th was downwind and could be reached with a wedge or 9 iron.

  Approach to the 8th green                          Chipping to the 6th green                            The well protected 16th green   

There are some cracking holes here, and finding the fairway is often not enough – you need to find the right part of the fairway to give yourself a shot into the tricky greens, which are full of subtle borrows and were apparently running at about 11 on the stimpmeter. The 8th is a wonderful par 4, with the downhill approach shot to a well protected green one of the most stunning on the course. The 12th is a great short par 4, and then there’s the famous par 5 14th, which borders onto the 6th tee at Princes’. With out of bounds down the right the length of the hole and trouble if you bail out too far left, it’s a really tricky drive.

The highlight for me was the tricky 16th, which has to be one of the best par 3’s I’ve ever played. Surrounded by pot bunkers and with a green full of hollows and humps, it’s a lot harder than the yardage of 150 suggests, and there have been a few Opens lost here. I’m still not sure how I did it, but I managed to thread my tee shot between 2 bunkers and within 10 feet of the pin. The birdie putt didn’t threaten the hole but I was pleased to walk off with a 3, and after my best drive of the day down the last (not sure where it had been for the previous 17 holes) I finished 5 shots better than my previous round, which considering the wind I was more than happy with.

Preparations for The Open are already well under way, with a stand being erected by the first tee as we finished. The Claret Jug is proudly on display in the clubhouse, and whoever is going to get their hands on it in July needs to hit the ball straight and master the huge greens. A big thanks to my playing partners on the day as well, who helped make it a day to remember around a truly world class golf course.                               

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