LGU'S MAJOR BREAKS NEW GROUND IN FIFE

KINGSBARNS TO HOST 2017 RICOH

WOMEN'S BRITISH OPEN

 

NEWS RELEASE

Kingsbarns Golf Links is delighted to announce its selection to host the Ricoh Women’s British Open in 2017. Located near St Andrews , the highly rated links course has been a part of the men’s European Tour annually for 13 years earning a reputation as one of the most admired venues on the circuit.

This will, however, be the first time Kingsbarns will host a Major Championship.

“We are honoured to host the Ricoh Women’s British Open in 2017,” said Alan Hogg, chief executive at Kingsbarns. “We have welcomed tour events to Kingsbarns for many years but this will be on a different scale. The prestige of the Women’s Open is growing every year. More importantly, seeing the very best lady golfers competing over the Kingsbarns links should be very exciting. We are extremely proud to have been selected to host such a quality event.”

Consistently ranked as one of the top golf courses in the world, Kingsbarns has co-hosted the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship for over a decade. During this time the course has won praise from touring pros and celebrities alike who admire the traditional Scottish links design with views of the North Sea from every hole. 

“What I like is the risk and reward,” said Paul Casey, during the 2012 Alfred Dunhill Links Championship. “It is a very enjoyable golf course to play because you can make birdies, you can make eagles but there is a lot of danger out there as well. You’ve got a mix of the fun stuff and the tough stuff wrapped in a package which is beautiful.”

As Hogg explained, however, the Ricoh Women’s British Open will provide an entirely new test for the world’s best players when the Open arrives in Fife in 2017. 

“Because of the round-robin format of the Dunhill, the course has to be set up identically over the three days, which includes weather-tolerant pin placements,” he said. 

“During the Ricoh Women’s British Open, the full range of hole locations can be utilised on Kingsbarns’ large and undulating greens.”

The Ricoh Women’s British Open will also offer television viewers a first look at a closing stretch that includes some of Kingsbarns’ most picturesque holes. The challenging par 5 12^th along 550 yards of rugged East Neuk coastline, the stunning par 3 15^th, requiring a tee shot across an expanse of the North Sea, or the challenge of the 17^th have not been featured before on television. “The closing holes will provide the perfect setting for an exciting Sunday finish,” said Hogg. “We can’t wait!”

Kingsbarns is regarded as one of the world’s best courses, holding the top spot in GolfWeek’s Top 100 modern courses in the UK and ranked 18^th in Golf Digest’s Top 100 Best Courses Outside the US.