Royal Troon Golf Club (Old)

Royal Troon was founded in 1878 (without the Royal Title) as a five-hole golf course following a meeting in the local pub by a group of golf enthusiasts. It was Charlie Hunter, Keeper of the Green at Prestwick, who laid out the original course and a few of his greens are still in play today.

George Strath, Royal Troon's first professional, later extended the course to twelve holes and then to eighteen by 1884. Willie Fernie improved the eighteen-hole layout continuously until after WW1. It is Willie Fernie we can thank for arguably Royal Troon’s two greatest holes – The Postage Stamp and Railway.

In 1923, Royal Troon Golf Club hosted its first Open Championship and finally moved out of the shadow of its famous neighbour, Prestwick. By 1923, Prestwick had already hosted 23 Open Championships before Royal Troon received its first.

James Braid would toughen the layout by adding length and building formidable bunkers. Of note, James Braid altered the bunkering to the 8th or Postage Stamp – creating one of golf’s greatest short par 3’s of only 123 yards. The hole can also be played from a forward tee that tops out at just 99 yards.

"The course at Troon is perhaps a little overshadowed by its more famous neighbour," wrote Bernard Darwin in his 1910 book, The Golf Courses of the British Isles, "but it is a very fine course nevertheless, especially since it has been lengthened of late years. It has, moreover, one of the finest short holes to be found anywhere."

Surprisingly, it wasn’t golf’s greatest writer who named the hole but rather it was Willie Park Jr, quoted in Golf Illustrated, who said the putting green was ‘skimmed down to the size of a postage stamp.’

The Postage Stamp has played a role in many of the Opens. Hermann Tissies carded a 15 in 1950 and Tiger Woods triple bogeyed the hole in 1997 which derailed his chances to lift the Claret Jug. Perhaps less known are Gene Sarazen and Ernie Els hole-in-one’s in 1973 and 2004 respectively.

Recent Changes

Mackenzie & Ebert made minor adjustments to every hole for the 145th Open in 2016, along with more major changes to the 9th, 10th and 15th holes. A backdrop of trees behind the 9th green was replaced with dunes, the former bunker in the carry of the 10th was restored, and both tees and the early portion of the 15th fairway were moved to the left of the 14th hole, reinstating the old line of the hole.

There are only three new bunkers for the 152nd Open Championship, two of which are on the 6th hole with the other added to the 1st fairway. Martin Ebert wasn’t done with the 6th hole. He also added 22 yards to it, stretching the back tees to 623 yards. This makes it the longest hole in tournament history.

There are new tees on nine of the hole but the new tee on the 10th hole introduces a completely blind shot to the Open venue. Never popular with Tour Pros, it may be exactly what is needed to unnerve the world’s best. Time will tell but a subtle change might just prove that the cerebral side of golf championed by Tom Simpson in the past still has a place in the modern game. The Open Championship tees add an astonishing 77 yards to the golf club’s medal tees.

The 10th is also the only hole on an Open Venue where Dr Alister Mackenzie is thought to have provided advice. He reportedly did so when advising the club on its second 18-hole golf course, the Portland, after its reconstruction following WW1.

Current Layout of Royal Troon

Royal Troon is a traditional out-and-back links course. The opening few holes are relatively gentle, with a series of short par fours running along the Firth of Clyde. It’s from these early holes that you get the chance to soak up the views. On a clear day, you can see the distant Ailsa Craig in the south, and to the west, the majestic mountains on the Isle of Arran.

The par 71 golf course measures 7,385 yards from the championship tee but the line is more important than the distance from the tee. Bunkers are everywhere, the majority of which are not visible from the tees. There’s plenty of deep rough and a smattering of gorse and broom to punish the wayward shot.

Make your score on the outward nine holes; the inward holes are severe, often playing into the prevailing north-westerly wind. The stretch of holes from the 7th to the 13th provides an interesting and varied challenge. Some would consider it one of the best stretches of golf to be found anywhere.

The 6th is the longest par five in Open Championship golf measuring 623 yards and the 8th, known better as the “Postage Stamp”, is the shortest par three on the Open rota that can play from as little as 99 to 123 yards.

The 11th is a brutal 490-yard par four for the pros and was rated the most difficult hole of the 1997 Open Championship – out-of-bounds and the railway line runs along the right-hand side. It is one of the simplest strategic golf holes in the world.

The 152nd Open Championship

The Open Championship returns to Royal Troon in 2024, just over 100 years since Arthur Havers lifted the Claret Jug at Troon for the first time.

Ten times an Open Championship venue, Royal Troon Golf Club was the fifth Scottish course after Prestwick, St Andrews, Musselburgh and Muirfield to host The Open.

Americans have fared very well with six of the former Champion Golfers of the Year being from the USA. Only one British man has so far been crowned, Arthur Havers in 1923.

Royal Ascent

In 1978, during Royal Troon’s centenary year, royal patronage was bestowed. Royal Troon Golf Club remains the first and last golf club in Great Britain to have been granted Royal status under the long reign of Queen Elizabeth II. King Charles has become the Patron of the R&A so it may not be long before another joins the ranks.