01전통과 현대의 조화, 끊임없이 진화하는 올드 코스
DP월드투어의 대표적인 명문 대회인 알프레드 던힐 링크스 챔피언십이 열리는 세인트 앤드루스 올드 코스가 최신 세팅과 변화를 거쳐 선수들을 맞이한다.
이번 대회에서는 세인트 앤드루스 올드 코스 특유의 고유한 전통과 역사를 보존하면서도, 현대 골프 환경에 발맞추어 더욱 정교해진 코스 진화를 확인할 수 있을 전망이다.
세계 최정상급 선수들과 다양한 셀러브리티들이 참가하는 이번 대회에서 한층 진화한 올드 코스가 선사할 전략적 변수와 새로운 도전 과제에 골프 팬들의 기대가 모아지고 있다.
02Original (English) — DP World Tour
This week’s Alfred Dunhill Links Championship provides many of the world’s best golfers with a first chance to experience the latest evolution of the Old Course at St Andrews.
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Planned with the agreement of St Andrews Links Trust, which manages the Old Course, and The R&A, which is responsible for The Open, the historic course has undergone a subtle makeover with The 155th Open Championship next summer in mind.
Designed primarily to dial up the strategic challenge for the elite player without impeding on the enjoyment of the local and many amateur golfers from around the world, much of the work carried out over last winter are in play at one of the DP World Tour’s marquee events.
One of three co-hosts of the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship, alongside Carnoustie and Kingsbarns, the tournament, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary, will again reach a climax over the Old Course on Sunday.
Here, we go through what changes fans should look out for and speak to two members of the greenkeeping staff at the St Andrews Links Trust who know the venue better than most.
The "programme of enhancements and restoration" - implemented by Mackenzie & Ebert - includes new tees, longer holes and restored bunkers.
Announced publicly in October 2025, R&A Chief Executive Mark Darbon said at the time the approach to the work is “grounded in deep respect for the course’s unparalleled history".
When The Open Championship was last held over the Old Course, Cameron Smith of Australia matched the record low score of 20 under par to lift the Claret Jug.
Since then, Tyrrell Hatton has joined Ross Fisher and Romain Langasque as course record holders, achieving an 11-under-par 61 during the 2024 edition of the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship.
In a reflection of the way the modern game is played, the championship yardage of the course will have increased by 132 yards to 7,445 yards when The Open is staged from July 15-18 2027 compared to 2022.
With new tees on the sixth and seventh in play this week, along with extended tees on holes 11 and 16, the yardage has increased by 57 yards to 7,375. By next summer, the fifth and tenth will also play longer off the tee, while the championship tee on the 12th will reduce by two yards due to a slight realignment "to help ease championship spectator movement in this location".
Aside from yardage, the other biggest changes are the addition or relocation of bunkers. Perhaps most notably, an old route to the left of the Principal’s Nose and Deacon Sime bunkers has been reopened on the 16th, with two new bunkers added. The hole features out-of-bounds running down the entire right side of the fairway and the green.
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In addition, two of the right-side drive-length fairway bunkers at the second have been moved up and to the left to make them more relevant to the line of play, while new bunkers have also been added at elite-level drive length at the sixth and tenth.
The works are the most significant adjustments since the lead-up to The 144th Open in 2015, when bunkers were added and others removed, along with the regrading of the back left portion of the 11th green to create more hole locations.
Jon Wood, appointed 'keeper of the green' at the Old Course, St Andrews in 2023, told the DP World Tour: "I think the Old Course keeps evolving over time. It's evolved in the time I've been here over 20 years. But I think these were quite key, lengthening some of the holes just to make the par fives both a par five depending on wind direction.
"So we've lengthened some tees on the course and we've added four new bunkers including the two behind [at the 16th]. I think it's just to add a bit of strategic play for the golfers, something a little bit different to think about.
"There was a lot of thought put into it, a lot of aerials sort of looking back at how the course would have been. We watched lots of old videos of The Open and probably some of these changes aren't that drastic if you went back 20, 30 years.
"The fairway behind [at the 16th], it was grown in as rough, but then has been put back to fairway. I think these changes are all good."
A source of interest among players, Robert MacIntyre spoke of his eagerness to see the changes and how they may impact his strategy, most notably at the 16th.
Speaking ahead of his practice round on the Old Course on Wednesday, the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship defending champion said: "That's one of the biggest things I'm looking forward to seeing.
"I don't know if it will be easy or hard. I know people will still probably hit it to the left because of the out-of-bounds on the right."
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For Alex Fitzpatrick, who enjoyed a practice round alongside his brother Matt and their parents ahead of their participation in the Pro-Am tournament, the Englishman believes the work carried out has been done in a manner which doesn't detract from what people have come to love.
"I think it didn't play a massive factor on the eye, which is probably a good thing because you [should] try to keep the course as close to the old one as possible," he said.
If anything, as with any links course, Fitzpatrick - a breakthrough winner on both the DP World Tour and PGA Tour this year - argues mother nature continues to provide the biggest unknown and impact.
"I think the 15th was 750 yards yesterday [Tuesday] with the wind [against]," he added.
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Wood joined the St Andrews Links Trust in 2006, so has worked on the preparation of stagings of the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship and three editions of The Open at the Old Course.
Of the latest tranche of enhancements in which he has been involved, the lengthening by 21 yards of the par-three 11th, defended by the Hill and Strath bunkers short of the green, is one to watch out for particularly.
"I think that's going to be a hell of a par three now, playing from there," he said.
"It's my favourite change on the course. I think if you stand there now and look, you can't tell anything that's been done to it. It just sort of blends into the whole character of the land around there.
"The contractors that came did a fantastic job, and then our team have really looked after it through the season and got it to where it is now. I think all the changes have fitted in really well and are maturing."
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At last year's Alfred Dunhill Links Championship, reduced to 54 holes due to weather implications, the 11th played as the second hardest hole over the Old Course.
A source of interest for fans and members of the greenkeeping team,will be the impact on scoring for the leading professionals.
Asked which changes he expects to be the biggest challenges for the players, Wood added: "The bunkers at the 16th, I think. It'll be interesting to see how they play this week, how the golfer tackles this hole.
"There's probably four or five options, so that'll be interesting to see. The bunker on ten, I think that's quite interesting, and will catch a few people out."
For one member of the team at the St Andrews Links Trust, the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship will mark a fond farewell to his long association with the world-renowned venue.
After more than 30 years of service, Gordon McKie is departing after serving as the Course Manager of the Old Course from 2007 to 2023, prior to Wood taking on the role.
In that time, he has overseen the course's preparation for some of golf's most storied competitions, with some cherished memories.
"The weather's probably the thing that stands out, it's a bit up and down the weather, from having fantastic autumnal days to having suspensions," he said.
"I remember one, can't remember the exact year, we were obviously suspended on the Saturday and came in on a Sunday morning to TV towers lying down on the ground to scoreboards basically all over the golf course, but it's a fantastic event, and these are probably the biggest memories I have.
"We have a good relationship over the years with the guys on the DP World Tour and see them more as friends. So it's something that we really look forward to each year and preparing.
"I just was a guy that was at the front, sort of leading the team, but I think every tournament we do is a proud moment for us."
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