The 49th Walker Cup Has Arrived
A sun-soaked opening ceremony at the Home of Golf kicks off the biennial matches. A final preview as Saturday's matches are set.
Finally something faster than Gordon Sargent’s swing speed turned up in St Andrews: the Walker Cup opening ceremony.
Keep Calm and Carry On Very, Very Quickly. Or something like that.
Not that anyone was complaining about an absence of self-indulgent speeches or excessive pomp. The 49th Walker Cup’s brisk and beautiful opening ceremony allowed the singular setting to deliver most of the necessary magic, brilliance and goose bumps. The 2,000 or so who made the journey were treated to the ideal amount of pageantry.
There were charming speeches from the R&A Captain and USGA President, followed by tight team introductions, a few dry jokes delivered by host Andrew Cotter, and absolutely no overpriced aviators adorning the dapper teams who survived facing the sun for 30 minutes. Take note Ryder Cuppers. There was a standing ovation for amateur great Michael Bonallack, a ghost of Old Tom Morris sighting, a deafening fighter jet, and the necessary bagpipes courtesy of the City of St Andrews Pipe Band.
One hundred years after the Walker Cup began, the Old Course at St Andrews could not be better primed for its ninth playing. The immaculate links is trying to crisp-up after the wet summer and by all accounts, players are in above average form with their affinity for the Old Course growing by round.
In today’s edition we have tee times, matches, caddies, the opening ceremonies, a first-look at the Old, TV times and what the captain’s are saying about tactics. So let’s get to it.
First Day Match Schedule
Saturday’s two sessions consist of four morning foursomes followed by eight afternoon singles matches.
The morning:
The afternoon session:
The Old Course Is Green But Trending Firmer
