The New Course in St. Andrews is not even close to being a new addition, having first opened for play in 1895. The design and layout of the New Course are very much Old Tom Morris, though he was ably assisted by Edinburgh civil engineer B. Hall Blyth who was appointed by the R&A, and his assistant, David Honeyman in the construction.
The New Course is a straightforward out and back eighteen with the 1st tee sitting alongside the 18th green. Much of the New Course runs closer to the sea than its more illustrious neighbor The Old Course, which at times gives it somewhat more of a links feel. The turf of the New Course is indistinguishable from that of the Old such is the attention to detail of the Links Trust in maintaining the original fescue. The topography of the New Course is very similar to the Old Course, with rolling, wide fairways giving way seamlessly to much narrower and challenging holes where wild gorse defines the boundaries of the holes. The subtle complexities of the Old Course are also replicated in the greens of the New, where a double green even exists shared between the 3rd and the 15th.
The New Course has four solid par three holes that would not be out of place on any links golf course. In particular, the 225yard 9th and the 229yard 17th are very testing. The former has out of bounds down the left side, and its green sits in a depression with a ridge just short of the putting surface that deflects all but the best-struck shots. There are no bunkers to worry about on the 9th, but trouble is not hard to find. The 17th has all the appearance of a straightforward par three but is a very deceptive hole. The central fairway bunker, though not in play, is a useful marker line, with a shot sent over its left edge a decent line of attack. A particularly treacherous steep-faced bunker lies just to the right of the green and will catch any slightly wayward shots. Depending on the strength of the wind, this can play anything from a mid-iron to a driver!
