Forget what Bobby Jones said about playing against “Old Man Par.” Jones also faced flesh-and-blood opponents, often in match play, the most intense format of the game, especially in team competition.
Ask anyone who has participated in the Ryder Cup, the Presidents Cup, the Walker Cup or the Solheim Cup. The stakes feel bigger when you’re playing for something other than yourself.
This pressure will be in full display starting from Monday to Trump Turnberry in Scotland, host of the 2026 Bridges Cupan elite event pitting the top US mid-amateurs against an international team in partner and singles matches. In a format that leaves nothing to hide, the result will go to the list that is the best at the moment.
The scene will also be important. Trump Turnberry’s revered Ailsa Course, with its towering bluffs, shifting winds and punishing bunkers, rewards nerve as much as skill. On a layout without a weak link, these three holes will play a particularly pivotal role.
No. 9 – par 3, 175 yards
On a link that seems to have been around forever, the spectacular 9th hole is relatively new. It was completed in 2016 when Martin Ebert carried out an ambitious renovation of the Corso Aisla. As part of the job, Ebert converted a par 4 into this dramatic one-shotter, which plays alongside the Turnberry Lighthouse across an inlet, with nothing but misery to the left, where big bunkers – and an even bigger ocean – await.
The smart play starts the ball left of center – a risky line – and allows the wind to send it back to the right. A short approach, run-up is also an option to take the problem out of the game. However, it is a nervous finish on the front nine. The player who beats first here has the chance to put the screws to his opponent by applying a hold.
No. 10 – par 5, 510 yards
At Trump Turnberry, the turn again asks. Depending on the wind, the 10th green is accessible in two, but going means taking the donut bunker that guards the layup area, with a cliff drop to the left. Find the sand leaves a third rock, about 85 yards to the surface to put. Everything from eagle to triple bogey is in play here. Being aggressive can lead to glory. It can also result in a lot of pain. This is risk-reward golf at its exhilarating best.
No. 18 – par 4, 465 yards
It is impossible to play 18 without feeling the weight of history. It was there that the “Duel in the Sun” concluded in 1977, with Tom Watson responding to an improbable birdie by Jack Nicklaus to beat the Golden Bear by a single shot.
The hole is named after that famous duel, but birdies are not easy to come by. The tee shot requires both power and precision, avoiding the bunkers on the left without straying into the touches on the right. A bunker-guarded green, dotted with wrinkles and rings from run-offs, makes for a white-knuckle approach. The measure of soil firmness is crucial here. Just ask Watson. In 2009, at the improbable age of 59, he needed a par on the 18th to claim his sixth Claret Jug, only to see his approach dead-eye bound past the pin, leading to a bogey that left him in a playoff with eventual winner Stewart Cink.
