Getting a tee time on the Old Course

Playing the Old Course at St. Andrews in the penultimate, the icing on the cake for any great golf trip to Scotland. Who doesn’t want to play it?

Well, the tougher question is – how do you get a tee time? There are many options, but in most cases there are no guarantees (we are 7 days from our trip as of today and we have no Old Course tee time).

If you want to play the Old Course at St. Andrews, here is what you are looking at:

- Make an advance reservation – tee times between April and October can be booked in advance, but golfers need to do this at least 12-18 months in advance. For more information on filing an application, visit this page at the St. Andrews Links Trust.

- Daily Ballot – a great deal of St. Andrews Old Course tee times are distributed to golfers via a daily ballot process. So, even if you don’t have an advanced time, you will have an opportunity to try the ballot and get a time.

Around 50 per cent of all starting times over the year are put into the daily ballot (lottery) which is drawn every day for next day’s play. The Saturday draw is for Monday play. View ballot card

Chances vary according to the time of year, how busy the course is and the weather. A minimum two golfers can enter by telephone, 01334 466666, or in person before 2pm on the day before play. Names, home clubs and handicaps are required. The results are shown by 4pm on the web, and at various locations on the Links.

- Try walking on – at different times of year it is possible to hang around and see if there is a time available, this is especially effective if you are a single golfer. Try and arrive as early as possible in the day for best results.

- St. Andrews Tour Package – one way to get on the old course is to book a vacation from a Golf Tour Company who would be happy to book you an entire vacation that will include an Old Course tee time. If you buy a package from a tour operator like PerryGolf, this is a likely way to get on, albeit expensive.

- The Old Course Experience – The Keith Prowse Agency runs a program called the Old Course Experience which sells golfers that would like to play the Old Course an extremely expensive package of a tee time at the course coupled with a hotel package, two dinners and a souvenir video for you and your group. The price may be prohibitive for many, but if you want a guaranteed time, this is one way to do it.