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The Old Course,
St. Andrews

Play
 

"I could take out of my life everything except my experiences at St. Andrews and I would still have had a rich, full life".

 

                                        Bobby Jones

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The famous Swilcan bridge on the 18th hole of the Old Course links in St Andrews, Scotland

For any golf enthusiast, The Old Course, St. Andrews is quite simply, the Holy Grail! As one of a select few of golf tour operators who are officially approved by the St. Andrews Links Trust to sell guaranteed tee times on the Old Course, we are allocated a limited amount of tee times each year which generally sell out 15-18 months in advance. We are currently taking requests for the 2026 season.

Alternatively, there are other ways to obtain tee times on The Old Course, details of which are given below.. 

Direct Public Allocation

The St. Andrews Links Trust accepts applications for Old Course tee times on the last week of August and first week of September each year for the following season. The selection process is based on a lottery, and successful applicants are notified in October. We will be happy to help guide you through this process, however, the lead person must personally apply directly to The Links Trust St. Andrews.

The Ballot System

The ballot system works by entering your names, home golf clubs and handicaps to the Links Trust online before 14.00 pm, two days prior to the day you wish to play. (i.e. Apply Tuesday for play on a Thursday). We are happy to manage and guide you through this process and will be able to let you know which days offer a better chance of success as the amount of ballot times can vary from day to day, however please be aware the Old Course is closed every Sunday. The ballot results are then posted at 16.00 pm on the day of the application and if successful you will be notified of your tee time. If unsuccessful, golf within the St Andrews area can be re-scheduled and we can also adjust your itinerary based on The Old Course ballot results.

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As the ballot system does not necessarily guarantee success in obtaining a time on The Old Course, we strongly suggest that you include a minimum of 3/4 days based in St. Andrews or the surrounding region to optimize your chances in the ballot. Golf will be arranged for you within the St Andrews region on these days and if successful in the ballot we will reschedule your tee times to facilitate The Old Course. Within the immediate St. Andrews area there are several top-quality links courses as follows:

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Kingsbarns

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Crail

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Lundin Links

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Leven Links

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Elie

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Dumbarnie

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New Course

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Eden Course

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Jubilee Course

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Castle Course

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Dukes Course

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Torrance

And if all else fails...

The Singles Queue

Any remaining spots on the day's tee sheet are filled by the Starter on the day of play when The Old Pavilion opens at 6.00 am. These are allocated on a first-come, first-served basis. This method requires plenty of patience and a very early wake up call. It's not uncommon for the truly dedicated to camp out overnight to earn their coveted spot. Queues of 40+ are common, particularly in during high season in June, July & August. Success is more likely with this method during the marginally quieter months of April, May & October.

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