I UNDERTOOK a pilgrimage to my favourite St Andrews boozer, the Whey Pat tavern in Bridge Street, and was fortunate enough to encounter a very pleasant couple visiting from Aberdeen. Julie and Connon Craig are glamping at the R&A’s official campsite and their accommodation is first rate, judging by the pictures they showed me of proper beds and various other facilities.
They didn’t seem to mind paying £200 a night for the privilege although that seems a bit steep to me - as I recall it was 7/6 (37.5p) for the week under canvas at my Boys’ Brigade camp. What they did object to - understandably, in my view - was forking out 16 quid for a fish supper and £7 for a pint in the tented village. Not exactly give- away prices, are they?
THE shadow of LIV golf hangs over the game at the moment. But not all golfers are money-grabbers.
Some like the charming Tommy Fleetwood, below, are more than happy to give of their time to assist worthy causes. The veteran-led relay challenge “On Course To the Open” finished its journey at the Old Course with the English Ryder Cup star joining the participants on the final leg of a two-week marathon.
The On Course Foundation team carried a golf pin flag from Kent to St Andrews on a journey of 1,500km and Fleetwood joined the final walk down the 17th and 18th. Cash raised will support the recovery of sick service personnel through golf and careers in the golf industry.
THERE’S a new game in town. It’s called dodging the nutters! Basically it involves avoiding being mown down by the not-so-young boy and girl racers in their fancy top-of-the-range 4x4s accelerating at high speed the moment they spot the slightest opening. What is wrong with these people? I may be a little old and infirm, but beware the wrath of Black if you dare to send me ambling for my life.
THERE’S at least one commemorative plaque highlighting the contribution made by a Polish alley during the Second World War. A signals officer by the name of Jozef Kosacki apparently invented a device for detecting mines.
Now there’s another Pole desperate to see his name commemorated in the Auld Grey Toon. Adrian Meronk made history when he registered the first-ever victory by an Eastern European on the DP World Tour. Meronk’s Irish Open triumph earned him a passport into The Open where he has the chance to write his name into the record books for a second time.
WHERE would be without them? I refer to the Open media team and the terrific job they do catering to every whim of several hundred pampered journos. Almost nothing is too much trouble for the charming ladies and gents who supply a host of media services in the magnificent press centre.
It’s just a pity that the contractor responsible for the air condition system is incapable of matching the splendid efforts of the R&A’s finely honed team. It’s bloody freezing at times, to the extent that you’re forced outside for a heat.
