For many, a round at the Old Course in St Andrews is the culmination of a lifetime’s ambition. To play the course where the game as we know it today originated is a truly special experience.
As an Authorised Provider of guaranteed tee times at the Old Course we are able to organise your trip to St Andrews, safe in the knowledge that you will play where legends have walked.
While this is the only route for guaranteed play, there are three other ways to attempt to play the Old Course through ballot entry – you can see details of those below too.
Wilkinson Golf is an Authorised Provider of Old Course tee times, which means that we are one of the select companies trusted to offer guaranteed access to the Old Course at St Andrews as part of a package.
Authorised status is granted only to a small group of established tour operators who meet strict standards set by the St Andrews Links Trust, including financial security, service quality and a proven track record in organising golf travel to Scotland.
We receive an allocation of tee times each year, which can only be sold as part of a complete package that includes accommodation and additional golf. Once a booking is confirmed, you have the certainty of knowing that your Old Course tee time is secured in advance, without needing to enter ballots or pursue daily waiting lists.
Around September every year, the Links Trust open applications for their ‘Swilcan Package’. You can apply for a round at the Old Course, as well as one other course, for the following year. A lottery is then held for allocation as this package is significantly oversubscribed.
We can put together trips for you, including hotels and all other courses, with some ‘spare days’ should you be successful in this lottery. Many courses will be sold out, or only have limited availability, by the time the results are known at the end of October. But we can work with our partner courses to move things around if possible to make your trip work seamlessly.
The Old Course ballot gives visiting golfers a fair chance to secure a tee time without booking far in advance. The odds can be fairly slim – sometimes it is oversubscribed by 20+ times, but someone has to get the times!
It is drawn two days before play and requires at least two players with verified handicaps. Entries can be made online, by phone, or in person, and must be submitted by 2pm. Results are released after 4.30pm on the same day.
The timing can be a little confusing, so an example helps. If you want to play on Thursday, you must enter by 2pm on Tuesday, when that day’s ballot is drawn. There is no ballot on a Friday as there is no Sunday play.
The Singles Daily Draw gives individual golfers a way to access any available Old Course tee times. Single players enter the draw between 9am and 4pm the day before they hope to play, using the tablet at the Links Clubhouse or Old Pavilion to take an identifying photo. Once entries close, a waiting list is created (you will find out your position on it) and tee times are offered in order.
