Age of Links of history of course architecture

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The game of golf, and consequently the architecture of golf courses, has undergone continuous evolution over the past two centuries. The history of the game is defined by major changes in equipment, technique and course maintenance. Architects have had to adapt and respond to these changes to make their journeys ever more compelling.

The history of golf course architecture is divided into 4 major periods: the Links era, the Golden Age, the great boom after World War II and the Renaissance.

Links, story

The name Links derives from the fact that these sandy lands, not suitable for agriculture, were located between farmland and the sea. In these lands where the grass grows spontaneously and was kept low by sheep and rabbits, some Scottish shepherds invented the game of golf.

What made this game compelling from the start was the endless undulations of the terrain created over time by tides and winds. Shepherds began to define tees and greens, without realizing it they became the first golf course architects.

Over time the rules of the game and the elements of the field were defined, and with technological advances the quality of the grass became better and better. In some of these greens, bunkers and tees have never been built, the grass has only been cut.

In the second half of the 19th century some pioneers, among which Old Tom Morris stands out, began to build the first real golf courses in the United Kingdom and Ireland.

It is fascinating to think that many courses "discovered" in this era, albeit with some modifications, are still among the best courses in the world and are played by tens of thousands of golfers every year.

All golf courses built thereafter take inspiration from the original British links.

The Golden Age of Golf Course Architecture At the turn of the 20th and 21st centuries, the first "artificial" golf courses begin to be built, thanks to the possibility of moving land with more advanced machinery and the need to have courses also inland, given that the Links are only found on the coast.

In this period the profession of golf course architect was born, and the great British architects began to build courses in the rest of the world.

The greatest development occurred in the United States, where golf quickly became one of the most popular sports in the country. In this period the profession of golf course architect was born, and to respond to the great demand hundreds of courses were built, almost all by Scottish and English architects or by their American students.

The debate on how a good golf course should be built, and the rivalry between the various architects, allowed the creation of many of the best courses in the world and the publication of countless texts on the subject, still valid today. Most of the great golf course architects lived during this period, including Harry Colt, Donald Ross, Alister MacKenzie, A.W. Tillinghast and Seth Raynor.

To understand the quality of the courses built in these two periods, just think of the fact that, with few exceptions, all the majors are still played on courses built before 1930.

This fantastic period that shaped the history of golf course architecture came to an abrupt halt in 1929, the year in which first the great economic depression, and then the second world war, halted the expansion of golf.

from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/ZrP3H7U

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