While Kingsbarns Links has produced many low scores for the men during the annual Alfred Dunhill Links Championship the course is ready to bare its teeth for the games best women contesting the Ricoh Women’s British Open in August.
The club was formed in 1793 but with the links ploughed up in 1850 before being refounded in 1922 thanks to legendary Willie Auchterlonie, and with Kingsbarns Links resurrected at the very turn of the 21st century.
A year later in 2001 the club witnessed Scotland’s own Paul Lawrie tackle Kingsbarns Links on route to victory in the inaugural Alfred Dunhill Links Championship.
Stunning view of Kingsbarns Links,
Hosting a Major Championship will be the biggest task in Kingsbarns history but as Alan Hogg, Chief Executive at Kingsbarns Links believes the club is up to the role of welcoming the world’s top female golfers to the course located at the East Neuk of Fife just to east of St. Andrews and neighbour to Crail Golfing Society and golf’s seventh oldest club.”
“Kingsbarns Links has hosted the Alfred Dunhill Links now for 16 years while we also hosted a Final Open qualifier in 2010 when The Open was played at St. Andrews and now we will be host the Ricoh Women’s British Open”, he said.
“The Ricoh Women’s British Open will be the pinnacle for Kingsbarns as it will be our own event and given it is a Major Championship the field will be as good as it gets in women’s golf.
The demanding15th at Kingsbarns Links.
“The Alfred Dunhill Links Championship is still an integral part of Kingsbarns and will still go ahead in October and we will continue to host that up to 2020, but to be hosting Ricoh Women’s British Open is a very exciting new chapter forKinsgbarns.
“And hopefully if all goes well Kingsbarns will join the rota of course to host the women’s major in years to come.”
However, it will be a new test for Kingsbarns and so unlike what the male professionals face each October.
“Given we cannot change the pin positions each day for the men due to the format of the Alfred Dunhill Links, the Women’s Open could be the first time in Kingsbarns history the course will be able to bare its teeth,” said Hogg.
“So, we can slow the greens down, speed them up and also trick up the course as much as we need to or if the wind gets up then we can move the pins about accordingly and there is enough scope to set up the course relative to the wind conditions.”
The world’s best women will get first use of a new enlarged 385 yard long practice range and a short game practice area increased by some 130 yards.
“The great thing also that since the opening of the course there has been very little changes except for the adding of a bunker to the front right side at the 11th about three years ago while we added a bunker on the right-hand side of the par three, 13th “, said Hogg.
“We have also just added a new tee on the par five’s at 3 and 16 and both directly adjacent to the coastline and will be used for the tournament.”
And unlike their male counterparts, the women will start from what is normally the par three second that will be the first hole while the first will be played as the 18th to help accommodate the vast infrastructure that goes with a Major Championship whether it be for the men or women.
The Ricoh Women British Open will be held from 3rd to 6th August, 2017.
