Tom celebrates his 700th golf course
Special milestone for long-time Blairgowrie member
Long-time Blairgowrie Golf Club member - and one-time Gleneagles starter - Tom Watson made for Royal Dornoch to celebrate teeing-up at his 700th golf course.
The retired dairy farmer marked the milestone with a memorable trip north, where the man with the famous golfing name added the Struie Course to the long list of golf courses he has been ticking off methodically since his school days.
The visit was prompted by a Seniors match between Blairgowrie and the victorious hosts, with visiting vice-captain Colin Allison presenting Tom with a crystal decanter in the clubhouse to mark the occasion.
Tom (85), who became a junior member at Blairgowrie in 1948, had feared his bid to reach the landmark would be stymied by the pandemic and a back issue which kept him away from the golf course for seven months.
“I played the Struie Course with Blairgowrie vice-captain Colin Allison and Royal Dornoch duo Struan Robertson and Alistair Fleming, who used to be a member at Blair before he headed north.
“I often played with Alistair when he lived in Alyth so it was lovely to find he was joining us.
“I have been keeping track of the courses I have played since I was a youngster, when I played a public course in Glasgow called Linn Park in April 1948, getting on a tram car from my grandparents’ home.
“That pre-dated playing Blairgowrie, where I have been a member since I cycled from Ballathie with the clubs over the shoulder on May 16 that same year. An
uncle paid 10 shillings for a two-year junior membership.
“I became a full member at 18 in 1955 when the full entrance fee was four guineas. It was quite a sum back then, even with five shillings off for each year I had been a junior.
“The annual subs were £3 13s 6d. I am still getting in a minimum of three rounds a week at Blair, including all this season’s competitions. Living close to Lansdowne, I like to get out and play seven or eight holes in the afternoon most days if I haven’t played a round.”
Tom, who is also a member at Elie, was thrilled to chalk-up course number 700 in the Highlands.
He continued: “When I was listed in the Seniors team to go to Dornoch I realised the Struie would be ideal to take me to the 700-mark.
“After playing Dumbarnie Links recently, I had tootled around the lovely nine-hole Westwater course at Edzell twice on a buggy to make it 699.
“I have been fortunate enough to play the Championship many times down the years but never the Struie. I was taken aback by just how good it is.
“It has had to live in the shadow of the Championship, one of the world’s great golf courses. But it is definitely a top-notch course in its own right.
“I really couldn’t have chosen a better spot to mark the milestone. It worked out perfectly and everyone at Royal Dornoch made me very welcome.”
Tom admits sharing a name with an eighttime Major winner has provided amusing moments in clubhouses on either side of the Atlantic.
He smiled: “Through the years there have been times when people have done a double take when I have given them my name,” he smiled.
“When Watson was in his heyday, I often had people in pro shops subconsciously lifting their eyes when I gave them my name.
“I did once get a chance to play with Tom at Longniddry.
“But I have always said that’s where the similarity ends, although we both rate Royal Dornoch very highly.”
As to a favourite on his travels, perhaps a clue lies in the name of the home he shares with wife Ena by Blairgowrie’s Lansdowne course.
Tom explained: “It would be wrong to say any course was better than any other so I wouldn’t really want to single any out.
“We did call our home Pinehurst. I have played the famous No. 2 course 12 times and, of course, it is regarded as one of the finest courses designed by Dornoch-born Donald Ross.
“I made many friends in my days as a starter at Gleneagles.
“Many of those contacts opened doors for me and I have been fortunate to have played well over 100 courses in the States, including Augusta National, Cypress Point and Pebble Beach.
“I still mean to carry on golfing so hopefully there will be scope for a few more new courses in Scotland to be added to the list.”