New Course Tee Time Flexibility

TrueBlue4Lyfe · November 20, 2018

Hello -

I have a trip to Scotland coming up in June and was fortunate enough to get an Old Course advanced tee time. This came with a New Course tee time as well, on the day after at 12:30.

I'd like to play two rounds on the day I play the new course (it sounds like an easy walk), but that tee time makes it difficult. I know generally the New Course is walkup only. That being the case, would the starter at the New Course be flexible in letting us go off earlier or later? Or would he make us stick to our tee time unless we paid a new green fee?

Thank you

Zigzog · November 20, 2018

I don't know the answer, but you will have plenty of light at that time of the year here at both ends of the day - more than 16 hours and even 17 hours depending on when in May

You could easily play both before and after your 12.30 round; just an idea - plenty of courses nearby.

TrueBlue4Lyfe · November 20, 2018

Thank you.

Do you think so even if the other course is Kingsbarns? How long does a New Course round generally take?

scott_Donald · November 20, 2018

How long does a New Course round generally take?

I played the New in September in the very busy R and A period.

I was a guest of a New club member and we got fitted on as when we turned up at 9 the tee was booked till 1. we were lucky to be off at 10, lucky the starter plays golf with my friend.

In May I play golf till 9.30/10 at night. I am heading back from Texas in May to basically spend the month golfing, will play most evenings.

smb4ua · November 20, 2018

I have the same situation on the Jubilee course. I'm at 11:30 on a Monday next July and would like to either move it up or later. I'm going to reach out to them to see if it's something that could be arranged beforehand.

TrueBlue4Lyfe · November 20, 2018

I have the same situation on the Jubilee course. I'm at 11:30 on a Monday next July and would like to either move it up or later. I'm going to reach out to them to see if it's something that could be arranged beforehand.

I tried that, but was told there were no other tee times available that day. But I think the New Course is mostly reserved for walk-ups.

hodograph · November 22, 2018

My experience from June 2018...

Congrats on securing a time on the Old.

Our group was a bunch of cart-riding Floridians; we found all of the courses to be an easy walk, and had no problem walking 36. Most rounds were around 4 hrs.

Sunset isn't until 10 pm or so. You could likely start a round around 6 pm and still get in 18.

The day we played the New, the starter had a fully booked (appeared to be advanced reservations) morning tee sheet and therefore no flexibility. Mid-afternoon might be easier.

Kingsbarns was about a 20 min drive from St Andrews. Playing the New around noon and then rushing down to Kingsbarns for an evening round wouldn't have worked for our group...Kingsbarns was pretty expensive to rush through it (IMO).

Without knowing your itinerary, I'll suggest you inquire with the Links Trust reservations folks to see if you can play a different course, or play the New on a different day to find a start time that would be a better fit. Most of the reservations folks I encountered were eager to help where they could.

Hawkeye77 · November 24, 2018

Hello -

I have a trip to Scotland coming up in June and was fortunate enough to get an Old Course advanced tee time. This came with a New Course tee time as well, on the day after at 12:30.

I'd like to play two rounds on the day I play the new course (it sounds like an easy walk), but that tee time makes it difficult. I know generally the New Course is walkup only. That being the case, would the starter at the New Course be flexible in letting us go off earlier or later? Or would he make us stick to our tee time unless we paid a new green fee?

Thank you

Sorry, I misread this originally. I'd email them and see if you can move your time and let them know the situation, or maybe you can move your New and grab a time on one of the others if you let them know you want to reserve one of those as well. Still, there will be daylight until about 10:30 p.m.!

dcmidnight · November 24, 2018

I tried that, but was told there were no other tee times available that day. But I think the New Course is mostly reserved for walk-ups.

This is true but the availability can still vary drastically. When we waited one night for an OC tee time and didnt get on, we walked over around 7 and got a New Course tee time for around 9. This was the first week in August, so right in the high season. But another morning that week, they had an R&A block booked solid the whole morning. Just depends.

New and Jubilee are both great tracks though, play them both if you can.

TrueBlue4Lyfe · November 24, 2018

I tried that, but was told there were no other tee times available that day. But I think the New Course is mostly reserved for walk-ups.

This is true but the availability can still vary drastically. When we waited one night for an OC tee time and didnt get on, we walked over around 7 and got a New Course tee time for around 9. This was the first week in August, so right in the high season. But another morning that week, they had an R&A block booked solid the whole morning. Just depends.

New and Jubilee are both great tracks though, play them both if you can.

Would love to. The problem is that there are too many must plays to play them all in a 7 day trip.

Calliopejuly · November 30, 2018

New course is a great track that suffers only because of its very close and Old neighbor, or they’d play the Open on it. That said you can very often walk right on. Depends, as others have said. I’d be willing to bet that if you wanted to play it or the Jubilee later that day, say 5:30, you could walk right up. And in June you can finish at 10. Magical.

wine_golfer · December 2, 2018

All that matters for your old course tee time is that you pay for a green fee on another course.

If you want to go play Kingsbarns instead don't show and book at Kingsbarns, if you want to play both, move your New course tee time as late in the day as possible and make a tee time at Kingsbarns in the morning.

You posted in another thread about Muirfield that the money in irrelevant, I would suggest either extending your trip or going again. We went last May for 11 days, played most of the rota courses, I don't think you could plan a better trip from a course perspective, everyday we were playing a top 100 course in the world. What you figure out once you are there is the following:

1). You figure out if you like or dislike links golf. It is totally different than playing in the states, and Bandon, is not true links golf.

2). If you do love links golf, you will come home with a list of courses you want to play on future trips. There is so much you haven't heard of, or you new about but didn't realize how good it was until you started talking with locals, caddies, guys in the shop, starters ect.

I didn't particularly care for Kingsbarns, it is a great course, it is scenic, it was in great condition, I played well there. But, it is manufactured. On the fourth hole a buddy asked what a I thought, my response, "its pacific dunes on a hillside in Scotland". This hoe is identical to the 1st a PD." It had the same feel, if I'm in Scotland or the U.K. in general, I personally want a "proper test of golf" not an American course in Scotland. It is great for the camera, and a good enough course I just feel there is much more that is unique to Scotland.

I also realize I am in the minority, the other three guys in our group loved it, and I will play it again when I go with my wife, I would rather play new, jubalie or old many times more before Kingsbarns.

Hawkeye77 · December 2, 2018

We really didn't scratch the surface of golf there in two weeks last year (partly because of repeat plays on different days on Brora and Royal Dornoch - and well worth a second time around on both).

Didn't plan on going back until I got another guaranteed time on the Old, and we didn't, but we changed our minds and I've already indicated we are headed back. We are headed to Troon area to start then North Berwick, but I'll be putting into the 48 hour ballot - I just loved the Old Course and St. Andrews and if I get on I'll forfeit another tee time somewhere else if I have to. I find myself thinking of heading up there for a day anyway and playing the New (which we played last year) or exploring Jubilee, for example. Loved the town and would love to spend a day there, but on the other hand I know I'll want to play North Berwick twice, for example, and really found I valued a second round on courses and enjoyed them and "got them" more the second time and Brora and Royal Dornoch were those kind of courses for me. I just don't remember much about the New. I know I had a great time and it was in some ways a little more challenging than the Old, but that was more about the availability of and the way the "trouble" off the fairways had grown up last spring on each of the courses. We just kept looking over to the Old and spent to much time talking about the holes over there and thinking about our round there the next morning that the New didn't get the attention it deserved, lol.

Was dealing with an elbow issue from early spring on and delayed doing anything about it so as not to interfere with that trip, and then the rest of the summer, lol, so 36 holes in a day just wasn't going to happen this past season, but it is true, in June you can easily play until 10:30 p.m. and the sun is up early (although tee times don't seem to start as early as I'd like or aren't always blocked for visitors), so I still don't see an issue.

Still think you can get a round switched out on another course at another time, but we did that immediately when we got our reservation, I suppose it may have been a little tougher waiting so long to try, but still think it should be no problem.

And if you end up punting the round on another course, I still maintain what is paid for both is easily worth the experience on the Old.