St Andrews Old Course as a single golfer:
how to boost your chances of play
Last Updated: April 11, 2023
IN covid-free times, SINGLE GOLFERS WITHOUT AN ADVANCE TEE TIME HAVE THE CHANCE TO PLAY THE OLD COURSE BY WAITING IN LINE ON THE DAY, IN THE HOPE OF BEING OFFERED ONE OF THE UNFILLED SLOTS ON THE DRAW SHEET. I CALL THIS THE ‘WALK UP’ OPTION.
I am often asked what are the chances of playing St Andrews as a single golfer on the day? Or, more specifically:
– How many single tee time slots are available each day?
– What is the best month to travel to St Andrews as single golfer?
– What is the best day of the week to walk up / queue to get a single golfer time?
FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER, HERE ARE THE ANSWERS BASED ON REAL DATA, NOT GUESSWORK
BONUS: I also reveal how recent changes in St Andrews Links Trust policy have increased the potential number of single slots available
SINGLE GOLFERS AT THE OLD COURSE – DATA
ANALYSIS OF AVAILABILITY OF TEE TIMES IN 2019 and 2018 (normal, Covid-free years)
By Chris Toll, Ginger Beer Golf Travel
Playing St Andrews Old Course as a single golfer using the walk up option – an overview
Why is the walk up option so popular for the single golfer?
Even though it’s a method that’s available to groups as well, the walk up option is especially popular for the single golfer.
This is simply because it’s more difficult to get an Old Course tee time in advance as a single golfer than in a group.
How come?
Simply put then, as a single golfer if you haven’t been lucky enough to get an advance guaranteed Old Course tee time your options are:
The walk up option offers the realistic opportunity of getting to play the Old Course since…
So, it’s no surprise then that it’s such a popular option for the single golfer.
Take a look at my unique Ballot Buddy service:
SIngle golfers
Improve your chances of play on the Old Course
Use Ballot Buddy to find a date match with another single golfer and submit a joint ballot application
What is the Old Course walk up option?
What does this mean?
An early alarm call for a start, to join the orderly queue at the Old Pavilion by the Old Course first tee on the day of play. Staff will do their best to offer you a walk up slot (in other words to buddy you up with a two or three-ball group).
It’s first-come, first-served, and only you can decide how early in the morning to arrive, but it is common for golfers to queue overnight to be near the front of the line.
Early birds – you will be pleased to hear the Old Pavilion also provides overhead heaters!
The Old Pavilion staff arrive to open up at 06:00hrs in the Summer months (May through August) when you can get access to some hot drinks, toilets, wi-fi etc.
In other months, staff will arrive around 30 minutes prior to the first tee time. First tee time in April is around 07:00hrs during the first half of the month, then 06:40 in the second half. It’s then 06:30 May through the latter part of August, then 07:00 in September and 08:00 in October.
Make sure to check the daily ballot draw sheet for the first tee time on the actual date you wish to play.
When staff arrive they will offer open slots on the draw sheet (with the exception of those in ‘Dark times’) to the first golfers waiting in line. The remaining golfers’ position in the line is then noted. Local ticket holders can arrive and claim slots on Dark times up to 09:00. So at 09:00 all remaining unallocated slots within Dark times get offered to the remaining golfers who were waiting in line. If there are still golfers remaining but no tee time slots left unallocated, those golfers have to rely on ‘no-shows’ on the day for new slots to appear.
TOP TIPS:
#1. As a single golfer, assuming a Covid-free scenario, you can’t advance book a time on another St Andrews Links Trust course, so walk round to the starter of either the New or Jubilee Course and ask to fill a slot on a tee time.
#2. Use my date match service Ballot Buddy to find an Old Course ballot partner. If you get a match you and the second golfer are eligible to enter the ballot.
#3. Up to 48 hours prior to play, check the daily ballot results to identify gaps in the draw sheet which may be filled by a single golfer – THAT’S YOU!
important notes:
The walk up option is NOT restricted to single golfers. Groups of 2 or more golfers may also queue up to get on, although they may well be split up to fill the available slots. All potential players must join the queue. You cannot nominate just one golfer to queue on behalf of your whole group.
You will be assigned a position on the walk up list by staff when they first arrive but your position on the list is only valid whilst you are waiting at the Old Pavilion or thereabouts. If you are the next golfer on the list, but are not present when a slot becomes available you won’t be offered it.
There is no obligation on the existing golfers to make up a four-ball but common practice is that single golfers are warmly welcomed (more on this later).
Make sure you check and avoid Busy Dates when you are planning your travel dates. On ‘restricted ballot’ or ‘no ballot’ days, there will be fewer single slots available, or none at all. If you are a single golfer and want some advice on getting on the Old Course then read my in depth report and analysis:
Walk up slots on the Old Course: What are the chances for a single golfer?
Rather like the daily ballot, your chances of a tee time on the Old Course as a single golfer walk up depend very much on demand and supply on the day you wish to play.
It’s a simple observation that the more people like you who want to queue up for a time on any given day, the greater the competition for the available slots.
BUT, unlike the daily ballot which is a lottery system, the walk up system is first-come, first-served.
Put simply, the earlier you arrive at the Old Pavilion and join the queue the greater your chance of being invited to fill an empty slot. Only you can decide how early in the morning you want to arrive (the Old Pavilion staff arrive at 06:00hrs in the Summer months), but it is common for golfers to queue overnight in order to be near the front of the line.
The St Andrews Links Trust doesn’t publish records of how many people queued in line each day so we have no statistics for demand. But, obviously, the more popular a day is the greater will be the demand, the longer will be the queue and therefore the earlier you should plan on arriving to join the queue.
The main contributors to popularity on any given day are unquestionably the weather and the supply of available slots:
Just got back from the trip a couple hours ago and wanted to let you know that I was able to play the Old Course. I have been fortunate to play some pretty good courses, but playing the Old Course was like a religious experience that I am still smiling ear to ear about.
Greg F: Single golfer – St Andrews Old Course
Disclaimer:
Copyright:
This content is the copyright material of Ginger Beer Golf Travel and permission is not granted to copy it or otherwise make use of it in any way.
– Of course, historic results should not be used as a definitive predictor for future performance. But, as the ballot draw sheet demonstrates similar patterns each year (unless affected by Covid e.g. 2020 & 2021), they may be helpful at the very least to identify some of the trends which may improve the chances of a single golfer scoring a walk up slot.
– I am exceedingly grateful to St Andrews Links Trust for providing the data which has enabled me to provide analysis on the results.
– Even though the daily ballot draw is publicly available, it must be stressed that these are neither ‘official’ statistics nor approved by St Andrews Links Trust as the analysis is based purely on my own interpretation of the draw data.
The Research: results and analysis for 2019 & 2018
Scope of my analysis:
Here’s what I found …
# of available tee times and # single slots
There was a total of 214 days in the period April to October 2019 incl:
Which leaves 154 days when ballot times were available, or 72% of the time:
In 2018, there were 145 days when ballot times were available, or 67.8% of the time:
The greater number of single slots in 2019 than 2018 (4,809 v 3,677) is due in part to the greater number of days when ballot times were available (154 v 145).
Also, ‘Dark times’ were only added onto the ballot sheet in May 2018, so there are no Dark time single slots for April 2018 included in the 2018 total. By way of comparison, there were 472 Dark time single slots in April 2019.
TOP TIPS:
#1. Factors that may improve the number of available slots:
The statistics do not take into account any cancellations that may occur on the day of play.
Players lucky enough to score an Open Ballot tee time only have to pay their green fee to the starter on the day. There is no cancellation fee for a ‘no show’.
So if, for example, they wake up and decide the weather isn’t to their liking they can just scratch their Old Course tee time and not turn up, without penalty. Hence, slots on the draw sheet can appear at the very last minute, especially the early morning ones. (See client personal experience, above.)
#2. Factors that may reduce the number of available slots:
The number of single slots left for walk ups includes unallocated slots on ‘Dark times’ which may get filled after the ballot draw sheet is published. (More of this, below.)
What type of tee time provides the most number of single golfer slots?
For 2019, you can see that Dark Times contributed the most potential single slots open for walk ups with over 40% of single slots.
Open Ballot times contributed just under 30%. Local Ballot times and Advance times equally contributed to the final 30% of single slots.
The type of tee time that contributes the single slot is very important in gauging the opportunity for a single golfer to be invited to join the group. See the TOP TIP: directly below.
In 2018, Open Ballot times and Dark times contributed the most single slots open for walk ups. Each type of tee time contributing approximately one-third of single slots. Dark times were only introduced on the ballot sheet in May 2018 so there fewer in 2018 than in 2019.
Local Ballot times and Advance times equally contributed to the final one-third of single slots.TOP TIP: Does a 2 or 3-ball have to accept single golfers to make up a 4-ball?
Generally speaking there is no obligation on existing golfers to make up a 4-ball. But common practice is that single golfers are warmly welcomed.
In more detail:
– Local ticket holders (who may be playing in Local Ballot and Dark times) have the right to refuse to take single golfers with them, especially if they are playing a club tie.
– From 2017, those who are fortunate to secure an Open Ballot tee time (as a 2 or 3-ball) are automatically paired up with single golfers.Those who have a Private Advance Tee Time are expected to take single golfers with them although it is not mandatory.
– Commercial Advance Tee Times are sold in 4-balls. In the event that there are less than 4 golfers in the tee time, there is no expectation that the group take single golfers with them.
– Reserved Tee Times where local golf clubs have made the reservation are generally medals, matches against other clubs or match play ties. Singles would not be paired with any of these tee times. So, in my analysis, Reserved Tee Times have not contributed any single slots.
Which days had the most and least single golfer slots?
| 2019 | total # slots | # slots allocated to players | # single slots | single slots as % of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tue Apr 16th 2019 | 256 | 178 | 78 | 30.5% |
| Thu Apr 18th 2018 | 256 | 180 | 76 | 29.7% |
| Sat Jul 13th 2019 | 292 | 219 | 73 | 25.0% |
| Sat Oct 19th 2019 | 156 | 148 | 8 | 5.1% |
| Wed Oct 16th 2019 | 156 | 148 | 8 | 5.1% |
| Fri Oct 18th 2019 | 156 | 148 | 8 | 5.1% |
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| 2018 | total # slots | # slots allocated to players | # single slots | single slots as % of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sat July 7th 2018 | 292 | 219 | 73 | 25.0% |
| Sat May 19th 2018 | 288 | 226 | 62 | 21.5% |
| Thu July 5th 2018 | 292 | 233 | 59 | 20.2% |
| Fri Oct 19th 2018 | 156 | 149 | 7 | 4.5% |
| Wed Sept 26th 2018 | 184 | 177 | 7 | 3.8% |
| Mon Oct 15th 2018 | 156 | 151 | 5 | 3.2% |
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These tables demonstrate the wide disparity of available single slots over the period. Although we have seen the daily average number of single slots in 2019 was around 31, some days there have been as many as 78, some days as few as 8.
2018 follows a very similar pattern to 2019.
The data sheds some light on the reasons for this huge discrepancy:
If we look now at the availability of single slots on a month by month basis we can better to understand the wide disparity of daily single slots as well as the special impact of the recently introduced ‘Dark times’ category.
Availability of single slots on a month by month basis
An analysis of the data on a month by month basis across the whole shoulder and high season period offers up some interesting comparisons:
| 2019 Daily Averages by Month | Apr 2019 | May 2019 | Jun 2019 | Jul 2019 | Aug 2019 | Sep 2019 | Oct 2019 | Period Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # Ballot days | 26 | 22 | 21 | 26 | 26 | 7 | 26 | 22.0 |
| # Tee Times | 62.9 | 71.2 | 73.0 | 71.7 | 63.5 | 55.6 | 38.6 | 62.6 |
| # Slots available | 251.7 | 284.7 | 292.0 | 286.6 | 254.0 | 222.3 | 154.5 | 250.4 |
| # Slots allocated to players | 210.7 | 251.8 | 259.7 | 251.8 | 226.1 | 196.7 | 134.1 | 219.2 |
| # Single slots ex Dark times | 22.8 | 20.6 | 24.7 | 20.5 | 14.0 | 12.1 | 9.3 | 18.1 |
| # Dark time single slots | 18.2 | 12.4 | 7.6 | 14.3 | 13.9 | 13.4 | 11.0 | 13.1 |
| Total # single slots | 41.0 | 33.0 | 32.3 | 34.8 | 27.9 | 25.6 | 20.4 | 31.2 |
| # Single slots as % of total # slots available | 16.3% | 11.6% | 11.1% | 12.1% | 11.0% | 11.5% | 13.2% | 12.5% |
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| 2018 Daily Averages by Month | Apr 2018 | May 2018 | Jun 2018 | Jul 2018 | Aug 2018 | Sep 2018 | Oct 2018 | Period Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # Ballot days | 25 | 22 | 22 | 20 | 25 | 13 | 18 | 20.7 |
| # Tee Times | 56.4 | 70.5 | 73.0 | 71.8 | 63.6 | 51.2 | 36.9 | 61.5 |
| # Slots available | 225.8 | 281.8 | 292.0 | 287.0 | 254.6 | 204.6 | 147.8 | 246.2 |
| # Slots allocated to players | 207.1 | 250.5 | 263.8 | 251.5 | 228.9 | 183.9 | 132.3 | 220.8 |
| # Single slots ex Dark times | 18.7 | 18.9 | 20.1 | 20.5 | 11.7 | 9.8 | 8.4 | 15.9 |
| # Dark time single slots | 0.0 | 12.5 | 8.1 | 15.1 | 14.0 | 10.9 | 7.1 | 9.5 |
| Total # single slots | 18.7 | 31.4 | 28.2 | 35.6 | 25.6 | 20.7 | 15.5 | 25.4 |
| # Single slots as % of total # slots available | 8.3% | 11.1% | 9.7% | 12.4% | 10.1% | 10.1% | 10.5% | 10.3% |
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Observations
# Ballot days
Obviously a major factor in deciding when to visit St Andrews to queue for a single slot is the number of days when the ballot is available, as the greater the number of ballot-available days, the more slots available for single golfers, all else being equal.
In both 2019 and 2018, September was the worst month for ballot-available days – just 7 and 13 for the whole month. This is due to the R&A who had their Autumn Meeting in September which made the Old Course unavailable on 11 and 12 days for visitors hoping to get a ballot time. Compounding the problem, Alfred Dunhill Links Championship was held in the last week of September in 2019, which blacked out another 7 days. It is normally held in the first week in October each year.
Furthermore, on those 7 ballot-available days in September 2019, there were on average around 28 tee times each day which were Reserved or Advance times yielding almost no singles slots. Likewise for the 13 days in September 2018, there were around 25 tee times each day which yielded almost no single slots.
TOP TIP: The R&A Autumn Meeting is a regular occurrence and unlikely to change in the near future so try to avoid visiting in September or at least avoid dates when there are no or restricted ballot times. Check the list of Busy Dates provided by the St Andrews Links Trust.
# Tee times
The next consideration is how many ballot tee times there are on those days when the ballot is available. In both 2019 and 2018, October stands out as being particularly poor relative to other months.
The average total number of times starts to drop off in September with a big drop in October. This is due to the days getting shorter, exacerbated by the clocks moving back one hour in the middle of the month.
Indeed, by the end of the month there were just 31 tee times in total for the day, with the last tee time around 13:00. As you can imagine, you are taking a chance on the weather if you plan on visiting in October, especially towards the end of the month.
So, generally speaking with more ballot days and more tee times per day, April through August should yield a far higher number of single slots than September and October.
# Single slots and Dark times
For 2019, April through July all show above average total number of single slots, with April showing the most at an average of around 41 slots per day.
For 2018 however, April is a clear anomaly compared with 2019. If you were to base availability of single slots on the number of tee times you would expect April to return a higher number than it does, and more in line with May through August.
It lags behind these other months (a total of 18.7 single slots on average each day in April 2018 versus 25.6 to 35.6 in the other months). This can be explained completely by the absence of any Dark time single slots in April . How come? It’s because Dark times were only introduced on the ballot sheet from May 2018.
What are ‘Dark times’?
I am grateful to St Andrews Links Trust for this explanation:
What effect has this change in policy had?
The obvious change of including Dark times on the ballot sheet is to increase the number of published available tee times each day, and with it the number of single golfer slots available.
As many as 8 additional tee times each day were available from May 2018. That’s potentially 32 extra slots to be filled firstly by locals, and then by singles.
My analysis is based on the daily published ballot draw sheet. It takes account of local ticket holders who entered the ballot and have been allocated a slot on a Dark time. They show up on the draw sheet. So, the figure for available single slots in Dark times therefore contains only unallocated slots on the draw sheet.
But, as it’s been explained, a local ticket holder could also claim a Dark time slot by approaching the starter before 09:00 on the day of play, thus reducing the actual number of Dark time single slots available.
So, to be more accurate, the # dark time single slots each month reflect the maximum # dark time single slots available. Because we don’t have information from the St Andrews Links Trust on how many locals approached the Starter prior to 09:00, we don’t know exactly how many Dark time single slots there actually were available on any given day.
Owing to this unknown we have to be careful making sweeping observations. But I think it is clear that the introduction of Dark times onto the ballot sheet has had a very positive impact on single golfer slots both in terms of the number and as a %age of total slots available.
Indeed, in August and September of both years, the daily average number of Dark time single slots contributed to a more than doubling of the total daily average number of single slots available. This is so significant, given these are two of the most popular months of the year to visit.
TOP TIP: Now that 2019 data is available, it’s possible to get a true month by month comparison as we have data that includes Dark time single slots data for a whole year.The R&A Autumn Meeting is a regular occurrence and unlikely to change in the near future so try to avoid visiting in September or at least avoid dates when there are no or restricted ballot times. Check the list of Busy Dates provided by the St Andrews Links Trust.
As we can see when Dark times are taken into account, April is just as favourable a month for single slots as other months, if not more so, with an average of 18 or so additional single slots each day – the most of any month.
Indeed, just as with your chances of scoring an open ballot time, April is a great month to visit because there tend to be fewer golfers in town than in later months. Especially the second half of April when days are getting longer and more tee times are available in the day.
Availability of single slots by day of the week
| 2019 Daily Averages by Day of Week | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Period Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # Ballot days | 26 | 27 | 27 | 26 | 26 | 22 | 25.7 |
| # Tee Times | 63.1 | 62.3 | 62.3 | 61.7 | 64.7 | 61.4 | 62.6 |
| # Slots available | 252.3 | 249.2 | 249.0 | 246.9 | 258.9 | 245.6 | 250.4 |
| # Slots allocated to players | 225.8 | 218.5 | 221.2 | 206.8 | 234.9 | 205.9 | 219.2 |
| # Single slots ex dark times | 15.4 | 17.2 | 14.7 | 21.8 | 16.5 | 24.3 | 18.1 |
| # Dark time single slots | 11.0 | 13.5 | 13.2 | 18.3 | 7.5 | 15.5 | 13.1 |
| Total # single slots | 26.5 | 30.7 | 27.9 | 40.1 | 24.0 | 39.7 | 31.2 |
| # Single slots as % of total # slots available | 10.5% | 12.3% | 11.2% | 16.2% | 9.3% | 16.2% | 12.5% |
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| 2018 Daily Averages by Day of Week | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Period Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # Ballot days | 25 | 26 | 26 | 24 | 24 | 20 | 24.2 |
| # Tee Times | 61.6 | 60.5 | 60.8 | 61.5 | 64.3 | 60.5 | 61.5 |
| # Slots available | 246.6 | 242.2 | 243.1 | 246.0 | 257.0 | 242.0 | 246.2 |
| # Slots allocated to players | 224.2 | 216.3 | 221.2 | 215.7 | 236.1 | 209.6 | 220.8 |
| # Single slots ex dark times | 14.4 | 15.2 | 13.5 | 19.0 | 14.3 | 20.0 | 15.9 |
| # Dark time single slots | 7.9 | 10.7 | 8.3 | 11.3 | 6.7 | 12.5 | 9.5 |
| Total # single slots | 22.3 | 25.9 | 21.8 | 30.3 | 20.9 | 32.5 | 25.4 |
| # Single slots as % of total # slots available | 9.1% | 10.7% | 9.0% | 12.3% | 8.1% | 13.4% | 10.3% |
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Observations
# Ballot days
Over the period for both years, there are fewer ballot days on Saturdays than the other days of the week (22 v c26 in 2019; 20 v c25 in 2018). This is due mainly to local golf clubs who are given priority access to the Old Course on Saturdays for their seasonal club competitions.
# Tee times and # Slots available
It comes as no surprise that on average, the # tee times each day (and therefore # slots available) are broadly similar for each day of the week.
# Allocated slots and total # single slots
In both years, Saturday and Thursday stand out as the best days of the week for single slots. They are the days with on average the fewest actual player slots allocated (within advance, reserved and ballot tee times), thus offering the most single golfer slots unallocated and available. In 2019, that’s an average 24.3 single slots (ex Dark time slots) each Saturday, and 21.8 on Thursday. In 2018, it’s an average 20.0 each Saturday, and 19.0 on Thursday.
The reason is that unlike other days, on Saturdays and Thursdays every time after 12 noon is a ballot time, alternating between Open Ballot and Local. The greater the number of ballot times, the more spaces tend to be unallocated and available for single golfers. Especially so on Saturdays when there are no Advance tee times available.
In addition, although there are roughly the same number of Dark times available on Saturday and Thursday as other days of the week, locals take up fewer Dark time slots (because there are more Local ballot slots available for them to fill first) which leaves more Dark time slots available for singles to fill (on average 15.5 on Saturday and 18.3 on Thursday in 2019, and on average 12.5 on Saturday and 11.3 on Thursday in 2018).
With more unallocated slots both during the day and in Dark times, it is no surprise then to see Saturday and Thursday being the 2 best days for single slot availability with an average daily total in 2019 of 40.1 slots on Thursday (30.3 in 2018) and 39.7 per day on Saturday (32.5 in 2018).
TOP TIP: If your time is limited and you are only able to spend a few days in St Andrews, and if your objective is to score a single walk-up slot then, all else being equal, you are more likely to succeed by queuing to play at the end of the week – Thursday through Saturday – than the start – Monday through Wednesday.
Make sure you check Busy Dates first to avoid days when ballot times are unavailable or restricted, as that will negatively impact the number of single slots available.
Be mindful though with pinning your hopes on Saturday. Being the weekend, locals who are not working may wish to approach the starter before 09:00 and claim an unallocated slot on a Dark time.
But, of course, what you have going for you is that it’s only Dark times that can be claimed on the day by locals; and on an average Saturday in 2019 you can see there were more non-Dark time single slots available (24.3) than Dark ones (15.5). In 2018 it’s a similar pattern, with 20.0 non-Dark time single slots available compared with 12.5 Dark ones.
This content is the copyright material of Ginger Beer Golf Travel and permission is not granted to copy it or otherwise make use of it in any way.
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