Irvine is a town on the coast of the Firth of Clyde in North Ayrshire, Scotland. The 2011 Census recorded the town's population at 33,698 inhabitants, making it the largest settlement in North Ayrshire.
A golf course is the grounds on which the sport of golf is played. It consists of a series of holes, each consisting of a tee box, a fairway, the rough and other hazards, and a green with a cylindrical hole in the ground, known as a "cup". The cup holds a flagstick, known as a "pin". A standard round of golf consists of 18 holes, and as such most courses contain 18 distinct holes; however, there are many 9-hole courses and some that have holes with shared fairways or greens. There are also courses with a non-standard number of holes, such as 12 or 14.
Bearsden is a town in East Dunbartonshire, Scotland, on the northwestern fringe of Greater Glasgow. Approximately 6 miles (10 km) from Glasgow City Centre, the town is effectively a suburb, and its housing development coincided with the 1863 introduction of a railway line. The town was named after Bearsden railway station, which was named after a nearby cottage.
Prestwick is a town in South Ayrshire on the west coast of Ayrshire in Scotland about 30 miles southwest of Glasgow. It adjoins the larger town of Ayr to the south on the Firth of Clyde coast, the centre of which is about two miles south, and the small village of Monkton to the north. It had a population of 14,901 at the 2011 census.
Royal Troon Golf Club is a links golf course in Scotland, located in Troon, South Ayrshire, southwest of Glasgow.
Turnberry is a golf resort on the Firth of Clyde in Ayrshire, southwest Scotland. It comprises three links golf courses, a golf academy, a five-star James Miller-designed hotel from 1906, along with lodge and cottage accommodations.
Prestwick Golf Club is a golf course in Prestwick, South Ayrshire, Scotland. It is approximately 30 miles (50 km) southwest of Scotland's largest city, Glasgow. Prestwick is a classic links course, built on the rolling sandy land between the beach and the hinterland. The course is near the Prestwick airport, and some holes run along railway tracks on the eastern side of the course.
The 2004 Open Championship was a men's major golf championship and the 133rd Open Championship, held from 15 to 18 July at the Old Course of Royal Troon Golf Club in Troon, Scotland.
The 2009 Open Championship was a men's major golf championship and the 138th Open Championship, held from 16–19 July at the Ailsa Course of the Turnberry Resort, in Ayrshire, Scotland. Stewart Cink won his only major championship after a four-hole playoff with Tom Watson. At age 59, Watson had the chance to win his sixth Open and become the oldest major champion in history during regulation play, but was unable to par the final hole and tied with Cink.
The 1975 Open Championship was the 104th Open Championship, played 9–13 July at Carnoustie Golf Links in Scotland. In his first Open, Tom Watson won an 18-hole playoff by one stroke over Jack Newton to win the first of his eight major titles, which included five Open Championships.
The 1973 Open Championship was the 102nd Open Championship, played 11–14 July at Troon Golf Club in Troon, Scotland. Tom Weiskopf won his only major championship by three strokes over runners-up Neil Coles and Johnny Miller, the winner of the U.S. Open a month earlier. Weiskopf was a wire-to-wire winner and his four-round total of 12-under-par 276 matched the then-existing Open Championship record set by Arnold Palmer on the same course in 1962.
The 1914 Open Championship was the 54th Open Championship, held 18–19 June at Prestwick Golf Club in Prestwick, South Ayrshire, Scotland. Harry Vardon won a record sixth Open Championship title, three strokes ahead of runner-up J.H. Taylor, the defending champion. Entering the championship, Vardon, Taylor, and James Braid had five Open wins each. This was the sixteenth and final Open title for these three, the Great Triumvirate. Due to World War I, it was the last Open for six years; the next was in 1920.
The 1950 Open Championship was the 79th Open Championship, held 5–7 July at Troon Golf Club in Troon, South Ayrshire, Scotland. Defending champion Bobby Locke of South Africa won the second of his four Open titles, two strokes ahead of runner-up Roberto De Vicenzo of Argentina. His total of 279 was a record for the Open Championship, beating the previous best of 283. It was the second Open Championship at Troon, which had previously hosted the Championship in 1923; it became "Royal Troon" in 1978.
The Machrie Golf Course, or "The Machrie Links", is located on Islay, in Scotland. The word "machrie" is a corruption of the Scottish Gaelic machair, which means more or less the same as "links" did on the east coast of Scotland.
The 2007 European Amateur Team Championship took place 3–7 July at Western Gailes Golf Club in Irvine, Scotland, United Kingdom. It was the 25th men's golf European Amateur Team Championship.
The 2008 Senior Open Championship was a senior major golf championship and the 22nd Senior Open Championship, held on 24–27 July at Royal Troon Golf Club in South Ayrshire, Scotland. It was the first Senior Open Championship played at the course and the seventh Senior Open Championship played as a senior major championship.
The 2006 Senior Open Championship, also named the Senior British Open Championship or, for sponsor reasons, Senior British Open Championship presented by Aberdeen Asset Management, was a senior major golf championship and the 20th Senior Open Championship, held on 27–30 July at Turnberry Golf Resort in South Ayrshire, Scotland, United Kingdom. It was the fourth Senior Open Championship played as a senior major championship.
