Golf in Scotland was first recorded in the late Middle Ages, with the earliest written record appearing in a 1457 Act of the Scottish Parliament. King James II and the Scottish Parliament banned golf and football on March 6, 1457, because citizens were spending time playing instead of practicing mandatory archery for national defense.  King James IV lifted the ban in 1502 when he became a golfer himself, purchasing the first recorded set of golf clubs in 1503–1504. Early players used bent sticks to hit pebbles or balls across coastal sandy grasslands known as links.

    After sailing into the Scottish port of South Queensferry, Rich and I visited the town of St. Andrews and the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews, one of the oldest golf clubs in the world, a private club with over 2,000 members from all over the world. The Club historically was male-only until 2014, when it voted to admit female members. In 2015, the Club's first female honorary members were announced, including Princess Anne and Annika Sorenstam among others. At that time, the Club also announced that in addition to the honorary members, a number of women had been admitted as members with more set to follow in the coming months.

    The Old Course at St. Andrews has hosted the Open – often referred to by us Yanks as the British Open – 30 times, beginning in 1873 and most recently in 2022.  The next scheduled Open at St. Andrews will take place next year in 2027.

    For those who are lucky enough to get a tee time, a standard round of golf at Saint Andrews depends heavily on which course you play and what time of year you visit. 

The standard high-season greens fee for the iconic Old Course is £355 -- approximately $450–$475 USD.