Kingsbarns Golf Links is looking forward to its second decade in operation after a successful 10th anniversary season in 2010.
Having celebrated the anniversary last year by staging qualifying for the Open Championship the highly rated links in the East Neuk of Fife saw more than 27,000 rounds played throughout the season.
Kingsbarns is all set to reopen for play on Friday April 1, 2011 after a series of improvements were made over the winter months.
The main focus of the green keeping team, led by Course Manager Innes Knight, was to continue improvements to all playing surfaces. In 2010, with the help of ‘state of the art’ fairway cutting machinery and the addition of an extra patching team, the maintenance team were able to work ahead of daily play unnoticed. This winter’s maintenance included work to augment the existing fairway drainage system by improving certain areas which have been affected in the past by torrential downpours. Maintenance has also included work such as bunker revetting, tee and walkway alterations and coastal defence improvements.
The green keeping team work closely with the Sports Turf Research Institute, the leading independent turf care body, to monitor the quality of the greens. The STRI uses highly advanced turf quality measuring equipment on the playing surfaces to help Innes and his team consistently achieve traditional links conditions and true running surfaces.
“The course performed very well in 2010,” said Innes. “The Final Qualifying for the Open in June and the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship at the beginning of October were our biggest events of the year and we received very favourable feedback from both tournaments. We have been very busy over the last few months working hard to lay the foundations for a successful start to the 2011 season.”
Improvements have also been made to the facilities for golfers including the upstairs locker room, 1st tee starters hut and to the half-way house. The half-way house has undergone a makeover and will continue to sell a selection of chilled beers, hot or cold drinks and snacks, along with its world famous hotdogs.
The green fee at Kingsbarns for next season is £185 with a 50% discount for golfers playing a second round within seven days.
Kingsbarns Golf Links www.kingsbarns.com