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| Fairmont St. Andrews (formerly St. Andrews Bay) |
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Fairmont St. Andrews Golf Resort & Spa (Formerly St. Andrews Bay) © 2008, Richard & Mary-Alice Jafolla Special Notice for 2008 fron the management -- The Torrance is closed until July 2009 as it is undergoing substantial changes in the run up to hosting the Open Qualifier 2010. At the moment guests are playing a composite course of the first 4 holes of the Torrance and last 14 holes of Devlin. This composite course is called Fairmont Course until Sep/Oct when it will be renamed Kittocks. In our Afternoon Tee offer, golfers can play this course after 2pm and get a meal afterwards for £55 total. Tandem Treats in 5 Star Comfort St. Andrews Bay is more than two fine golf courses. It is a golf and spa resort that the owners hope will become one of Scotland's premier leisure locations. Perched high above the North Sea, it offers spectacular views of the medieval town of St. Andrews and St. Andrews Bay. The resort itself is 5 stars all the way. The hotel, though not exactly in keeping architecturally with the area's Scottish baronial and medieval buildings, is nevertheless eye-catching. "The Bay" boasts 2 championship golf courses--plus tennis courts for day and night use, an equestrian area, skeet shooting, a large indoor swimming pool (suitable for swimming laps), and a gym that is more complete than most commercial gyms. In addition, there are the usual saunas, steam baths, massage therapists, etc. All in all, it is unique in the area and one of the few such properties in the world. The resort is located on the A917 just a short 10 minute drive south from the town of St. Andrews. When you finally navigate the half-mile journey up the winding drive you are greeted with courteous and efficient service. For the golfer, every whim is catered to and you will be hard-pressed to find any fault with how you are treated. The Pro Shop is stocked with lots of goodies and you will be sorely tempted to spend some money on a "must have." The golfing personnel are also first class. From John Kerr, the head PGA professional, to Douglas Bell, the teaching pro, to Neil Blankenstein, the Assistant PGA pro, each member of the golfing staff and clubhouse personnel seems to have been chosen as much for his or her amiability and cordiality as for professionalism and knowledge of the game. The two links golf ourses are different in layout and play, and the way in which they complement each other makes them a formidable pair. _______________ THE TORRANCE COURSE A Long Walk...Unspoiled
I have to admit I'm a bit conflicted about the Torrance course. I was all prepared not to like it because it is part of a resort that frankly I feel doesn't belong in St. Andrews. To stay exclusively at this resort is to pass up the flavor of golfing in Scotland. It's an American-type resort (owned by an American corporation) that seems completely out of place in the charming, old, traditional town that gave birth to the great game of golf. So when I played it, it was going to have to prove itself worthy of being in this area of superb golf courses. It has...but with a strong caveat. First of all, it's a bit more expensive than some of the other courses in the area that I feel may be just as good and in some cases better. Secondly, it lacks the Old World feeling of typical Scottish courses. If you are going to Scotland to play golf, why not play on a centuries-old, historic Scottish golf course? Yet it is a good layout kept in perfect shape with great views.
The course is visually stunning (you'll read the word "stunning" a lot in this review) with rolling fairways that were once rich farmland and spectacular views of the North Sea from virtually every hole. The 14th, 15th, and 17th are especially grand--among the most beautiful in the area. These holes are set high on the cliff with the sea just off the fairway and about 100 feet below you. (The "Out of Bounds" sign posted on the edge of the cliff just off the fairway is a classic example of British understatement. You'd need a Sherpa guide even to retrieve your ball!) The course is a magnificent walk. Not too many hills to wear you out but enough to keep the course interesting. You can hire a caddie at £30 (plus tip!) or for £3.50 you can pull a trolley. Of course you can always carry your own bag. I pulled a trolley and wished I had just lugged my bag. It would have been a bit easier to carry the bag over the greens rather than continually having to walk around them.
This golf course has a dual personality. The first 6 holes could pretty much be anywhere. Plant some palm trees and it could be a Florida golf course. Put in some cactus and you'd think you're in Arizona. Pop in some pine trees and it could be a golf course in New England. That's not to say the holes are boring or easy, it's just that they have no personality. However, when you cross the road and start on #7, you know you are in for some links-type golf (albeit without links-type grass or greens!). The Signature Hole. The signature 17th is worth mentioning. It is the #1 rated hole-and for good reason. A 444 yard par four, it has an out of bounds (over the cliff!) on the entire right side welcoming any slice or, if the wind is howling, any ball not struck well.
The second shot is the tough one. You must negotiate a 70-foot wide notch in the fairway jutting in front of the green and a mere 66 yards from its front. Considering you may be hitting this shot at least 200 yards, that's quite a feat. If you don't carry this space your ball will take a ride down a deep gorge into the sea. Even if this gap is negotiated a huge sand trap awaits between the notch and the green. If you're out of position on your drive your second shot can be as intimidating as #8 at Pebble Beach. If you're having a good round up to this point, this is the hole that can make you cry.
Save Some Energy for the 18th The 18th is another beauty and a fine finishing hole. A long (553 yards from the medal tees) par 5 with a severe dogleg left about 100 yards from the green. If the wind is favorable, long hitters can go for the green in two but the penalty for coming up short is long fescue that will twist your shaft and make getting on the green doubtful. And if your second shot leaves you out of position, you have to negotiate two greenside bunkers to land on a plateaued green. Be sure you land on the same plateau as the flag or you will be facing a devilish putt.
The greens are fabulous. Typical of so many links courses most of them are not unduly sculpted but rely on subtle breaks to confound the golfer. They are in perfect shape and a pleasure to putt on. And they quite large averaging about 125 feet across. Take your time reading your putt, make a decision on your line and then stick to it.
The course was designed by Ryder Cup Captain Sam Torrance in consultation with Gene Sarazen. One of the problems I initially had with the Torrance Course was that, opened in 2002, it was simply too new. Every course needs time to mature. In days of old a golf course was given a chance to mature before it was subjected to play. No such luck in these days of recovering your investment as soon as you can. Seems to me this course was rushed into play a year or two before it should have been. That said, it is now rounding out to being a much better golf course. It is kept in perfect shape--PERFECT. Every bunker is smooth, every fairway is cut, every green rolls true.
The course challenges the golfer as much by its length as from its design. At 7,037 yards off the championship tees it is one of the longest in Scotland. It's 6,677 off the medal tees. Again, that's long for most players. Most of the Scottish courses rely on skillfully designed holes to challenge the golfer. St. Andrews Old Course is a good example. At 6,566 yards it is relatively short compared to today's monsters yet plenty long enough to challenge the finest golfers in the world. Its difficulty lies in the layout, the design, not the length. (In reality it plays even shorter because the tees are seldom on the far back positions.) The Torrance Course often relies on brute length to test you and I feel is much too long for the average mid-handicap golfer, even playing off the medal (white) tees. How many golfers do you know who can negotiate a 446 yard par 4? How about 443 or 434 yards? That's probably the limit for most mid-handicappers. Keep in mind that this course is right on the North Sea where winds not only blow your ball off course, they can blow you off course! If you are hitting into the wind on any of these long holes you may be clubbing down as much as 3 or 4 clubs. If the wind is howling you could be hitting driver, wood, iron on a par 4 or driver, wood, wood on a par 5. The excessive length of new golf courses seems to be in response to an unwritten "longer is better" challenge among today's golf architects to design courses over 7,000 yards. There are many courses an easy one-half hour drive away that are much shorter and I think as challenging. Consider this-- Leven Links and Lundin Links, both final qualifying courses for the Open Championship are 6,435 yards and 6,394 yards respectively. Both are fine links courses well-respected by golfers of all skill levels. Scotscraig, considered one of Scotland's "golfing gems" and another final qualifying course is 6,550 yards. Ladybank is 6,601 yards at its very longest. St. Andrews Links New Course, (don't let the word "New" fool you, it was laid out in 1895!), a fine test of golf, is 6,604 yards. And how about Muirfield? At "only" 6,673 yards it gave the best golfers in the world all they could handle in the 2002 Open Championship. So why design a course 500 yards longer than the average? I don't get it. Is there some kind of contest going on among golf architects to see who's got the longest? I can't remember the last time I saw a new golf course that wasn't over 7,000 yards long. Longer may be better for some things but not necessarily for golf courses. Okay, so it's not a perfect course but it's still pretty darn good. And beginning on the 7th hole it is a true links layout incorporating the subtle undulations of fairway and green that the typical links course has. The grass, though, is not the typical links turf that makes playing links golf courses so difficult. It is an unusual dwarf rye called Elan Rye. (John Kerr, the head professional, tells me that this is the only golf course in the world that uses it. The reason is that they own the rights to it.) In addition, you have the wind, always the wind. And keep in mind that the course is visually stunning (there's that word again!). The views really are spectacular--especially seeing the town of St. Andrews in the distance. You won't find many courses with more beauty than this one. Not even Mark Twain would say that this is a good walk spoiled. And speaking of walking, this is strictly a walking course. Golf carts (buggies) are not allowed. Another piece of good news is the yardage book. It is a PRO-GUIDETM yardage book and is one of the best and one of my favorites. It is filled with information that is useful in deciding which club to use. And at only 3" wide, it actually fits in your back pocket! And, unlike the STROKESAVERTM, (my least favorite yardage book) the PRO-GUIDETM will actually save you strokes. Be sure you have one when you tee off. The Reason For The Rating-- I added a "+" to this rating because I feel when the golf course matures a bit it will be an even better play. Plus, if this course were a lot cheaper to play or if it were in just about any area in the States, I would have given it an even better rating. After all, it is a fairly good example of a links-type of layout and the views are (here it comes again!) stunning. But for this area of Scotland where there is a plethora of truly great courses, a charge of £65 to £85 mitigates against my rating it even higher. Heck, for that kind of money you can have two plays at some of the other fine courses in the area like Scotscraig, Lundin Links, and play the twin courses in Crail with breakfast, lunch and high tea included. But let me say this because it's important: As part of a total golfing experience at St. Andrews Bay Golf Resort & Spa I would consider theTorrance Course worth playing--especially if you are more comfortable staying at an American-style resort rather than immersing yourself in the ambiance of Scottish golf at a Scottish B & B or Scottish hotel. First of all as a resident you will be paying £20 less. Secondly your every golfing whim will be catered to. Getting tee times is a breeze, your bag will be ready, your shoes shined--everything! However, if you are not staying at the spa and are thinking of playing it as a stand-alone play, you'll have to decide if the money would be better spent on the other fine courses in the area. I'll be playing this golf course again in 2005 when the course will have matured even more. I'll keep you posted if the rating changes. In the meantime, give the golf course a play and let me know what you think. Golf Nook Scotland rating -- a solid PAR+. Here's something unusual. The Torrance golf course set a world record on June 8, 2003. On that date it entered the Guiness Book of World Records for the most number of rounds played in one day. Starting at 2:04 A.M. in the early morning and ending at 6:30 P.M. the same day, there were 501 rounds played on this course--a foursome teed off every 6 minutes. Quite a feat and all done to raise money for the Children's Hospice Association of Scotland charity. (By the way, before you go thinking the early foresomes had to play with miners' hats when they started; in June, the extreme northern latitude of Scotland allows enough light to begin playing very, very early. In June there are only a few hours of darkness. It's not unusual to see golfers coming back in at 9 PM!) Scorecard: Torrance Course
USGA Course rating: 73 Slope: _______________ THE DEVLIN COURSE A Golf Course With An Attitude -- This course reminds me of a very young Kingsbarns, and you know how much I love that course. And it complements The Torrance in a way that will enhance them both. But whereas The Torrance is a gently rolling links layout, more on the classical lines of a typical links course, The Devlin is a bit meaner and leaner! It's a links feel with a sprinkling of parkland feel...and an attitude! The Torrance offers you generous greens with closely mown grass so that if there is a blowing wind you can putt your way to the hole from far off the green. No such luck on The Devlin. More like an American course, the grass is left a bit longer so that you will generally be pitching or chipping from off the green. And some of the greens could be called downright stingy--small and well-bunkered. With the wind blowing, which it almost always does, they are devilishly difficult. The only help is that they are not as undulating as some other courses in the area. This is an unusual course in that it begins with a par 5 and ends with a par 3. In between you will be treated to a fine test of golf with gorgeous views of the course, the North Sea and the town of St. Andrews. I found the course very fair. The holes reward a well-placed shot and punish any mistake. The rough is fescue that has been allowed to grow various lengths (depending on how far your ball strays from the fairway). I like this so much better than gorse. Gorse is impossible to hit out of. In fact, it's difficult even to find your ball if you've hit into gorse. It's not easy to get your ball back into play from fescue but at least it's possible. Don't try to get too greedy, though, because the long fescue will grab onto the bottom shaft of your club and close the face. Just get the ball back into play and don't make the mistake of turning a bogie into a triple.
The course begins with a long par 5 that is surprisingly reachable in two when the wind is behind you--which it often is. Number 3 is also a par 5 and is a beautiful hole with water on the right reachable from all of the tees and with a small stream gobbling up any rolling ball about 60 yards in front of the green--just to keep the long hitters honest. Number 6 is also a good one. A long--467 yards--par four, it plays a bit shorter than its yardage because the tee is elevated. However, your first shot needs to be long enough so that you can easily carry the deep, one hundred yard wide gorge that separates the fairway from the green on your next shot. Quite a hole. But #7 is even better and starts your intimate romance with the sea. This severe dogleg dandy requires two accurate shots to put you into position for a tricky approach to a well-bunkered, "upside-down saucer" green and gorgeous views of the Firth of Forth. Beginning at this point, you are treated to great scenery and even better golf.
A Worthy Signature Hole - There are many memorable holes on the Devlin Course, but the star of the show is the signature hole, #17, and it's a flat-out beauty. A slight dogleg right, the tee shot is slightly uphill with the flag nowhere in sight.
The tee shot must make it to at least the top of the hill for you to have any shot at the pin. If you carry the hill with any kind of momentum you will get quite a good roll down the other side and will have set yourself up for a much easier second shot. The second shot is the special one--and scary because you are firing down at a green perched precariously on the edge of a cliff with nothing but water and rocks on three sides. When the wind is blowing, which is pretty much always, club selection is critical. Not only do you have to judge distance, you have to judge how far downhill the green is and what the wind is going to do to your ball. It's one of the loveliest holes on the golf course and one of the best golf holes in Scotland.
Good news / bad news. The good news is that after you have navigated this monster, you are faced with a short par 3. The bad news is that the entire right side of this hole is the side of the same cliff you thought you left behind on the last hole! Add to this the 6 (count 'em) bunkers and you have quite a hole. This is one of those short par 3s that can yield a birdie or a double bogie. When I heard that the course ended on a par 3 I was not impressed. After seeing the hole, I am very impressed. Because of the rough terrain and the long distance between some holes, you may want to get a caddie, especially if you have any knee problems or any problems walking. I'll be playing this golf course again next year and I suspect it will have matured into an even better golf course. Golf Nook Scotland rating -- BIRDIE Scorecard - The Devlin
_______________ MISCELLANEOUS OBSERVATIONS - John Kerr, the head professional, is one of the greatest assets St. Andrews Bay Resort has. He told me last year over lunch that he is absolutely committed to making the golfing experience the best it can be. From the time you drive up and drop off your bag to the time you get back into your car to leave, he doesn't want you to be concerned about anything other than having a great game of golf. Speaking with him again in the summer of 2004, I found him even more committed to maintaining this uncomprimising level of service. It's such a pleasure chat with him and catch his enthusiasm for his golf courses. Clubhouse - Perched on a high plateau overlooking the finishing holes of both courses. There is also a fine view of the town of St. Andrews, a very friendly staff and reasonably priced, good tasting food. Club rental - Titleist DCI steel shafts = £25 Titleist DCI graphite shafts = £35 Driving range - Superb. One of the best in the area. You hit from grass, there are no mats. And there are lots of targets to shoot at plus a terrific short game area with realistic sand traps. Cost is £3.50 for 50 balls COST - Green fees - Resident / Non-resident ... Torrance £75 / £95 ... Devlin £75 / £95 Head PGA professional: John Kerr Teaching Professional: Dougie Bell Pro Shop: (0)1334 837053 Fairmont St Andrews St Andrews, Fife, KY16 8PN Tel : 00 44 (0) 1334 837081 Fax : 00 44 (0) 1334 471115 www.fairmont.com/ NEWS from Fairmont - Fairmont St Andrews is delighted to announce the launch of its new stylish signature Spa. Indulge in a haven of relaxation in elegant and luxurious surroundings with the perfect spa experience. Make the Spa at Fairmont St Andrews your personal paradise by taking advantage of our exclusive Spa membership and Spa packages. For Spa reservations and further information, please contact our Spa team on 01334 837045 or visit www.fairmont.com/standrews Fairmont St Andrews was voted by Condé Nast Traveler Magazine readers' poll as 18th in the World's Top 100 Golf Resorts. ***Note from Mary-Alice -- As this course is very close to St. Andrews, the non-golfer might opt to remain in town for the day. (Unless, of course, you decide to book into the resort here--in which case you may be missing out on much of the flavour of Scotland, since the resort is owned by an American company and reflects the American market. For my own taste, I prefer to immerse myself in the ambience and customs of the locale--a big part of being in Scotland or any other country. Not to do so deprives you of an enriching experience that goes way beyond the golf courses.) Please refer to my page on the St. Andrews area |
