SEE: The Swilican Bridge at St. Andrews gets makeover as iconic Old Course structure adds patio
A recently remodeled 700-year-old bridge in St. Andrews. A courtyard-like structure was built in front of the Swilican Bridge at the Old Courtyard in St. Andrews, which has been golfing for centuries. Feedback, as you can imagine, is not receptive.
The premise is that because a lot of golfers — almost everyone who’s played on the Old Course, I suppose — stop to take pictures at the foot of the Swilican Bridge. This bridge connects the first part of hole 18 to the fairway and beyond, and it is trampled by tourists and professionals alike day in and day out.
To preserve this area, the stones are arranged in a circle leading to the foot of the bridge. This works properly, but the aesthetic of a bridge from the 1300s gets a quick makeover and seems hastily arranged, uh, not a great thing. Here is a look.
A lot of famous moments happened at this bridge. The most recent of these was at the 150th Open Championship last year when Tiger Woods stepped over the bridge, took off his hat and continued up the 18th fairway like he missed his eye.
While the importance of this bridge and its place in the game is perhaps a bit exaggerated (how could it not be?), it’s still a pretty bold change to one of the landmarks the most important history in the entire sport.
The Andrews Links Trust won’t be affected by a few Twitter scammers screaming about how bad the update looks, but it released a statement along with a photo on Sunday.
We would like to address some of the concerns that have been raised regarding the work currently underway on the Swilcan Bridge access area. For the avoidance of doubt, we can state unequivocally that no work has been done on the bridge.
Work in progress is focused solely on the grass access area to the bridge, which is frequently falling into disrepair due to significant traffic by tens of thousands of golfers and countless other visitors wanting to Take pictures at the place.
To avoid having to close the bridge to pedestrians at certain times of the year, several solutions have been taken in the past. These measures include the installation of hybrid and synthetic artificial turf as well as regular replacement, replanting and support of natural grass, but none have been proven successful in adequately protecting the site. area from significant wear and tear.
Historically, the bridge had previously had a stone path leading up to it and the current constructions were designed to see if we could replicate this while remaining fit for traffic. whether it has to endure or not. The shape of the current installation covers the most vehicular ground cover as the area where the majority of photographs are taken of people on the bridge. It should be noted that works are yet to be completed and ongoing efforts are being made to ensure every final installation, including dimensions, shape and materials, is appropriate for its surroundings. before the growing season in Scotland.
We recognize that as an iconic landmark in golf, the Swilcan Bridge still holds a special place in the hearts of many golfers and can therefore be an emotional subject. We are confident that we will find the best solution available today to preserve the iconic nature of the Swilcan Bridge and the surrounding area while ensuring that as many people as possible continue to visit the site. This spot is year round.
It will be interesting to hear what players from the Dunhill Links event on the DP World Tour later this year have to say about it, how it is being felt around the world as thousands of people come to the mecca of golf next year. 2023 and what amendments were made by St. Andrews Links Trust in the future.
