St Andrews Old Course – the end of the line for the singles queue

By Chris Toll, Ginger Beer Golf Travel

Time and again over the past 25 years I’ve been asked this question, but with so many variables in play I’ve only ever been able to guess at an answer.

The Singles Daily Draw, a new system introduced by St Andrews Links Trust (SALT) for allocating open slots on the Old Course draw sheet, has now made the question redundant; and ensured golfers can finally get a good night’s sleep.

Background

Single golfers visiting St Andrews to play the Old Course don’t seem to get the same rub of the green as everyone else. 

Authorised Providers prefer to sell their advance guaranteed tee time packages in multiples of four golfers, viewing single golfers as ‘fill-in’ opportunities. Understandable, given their allocation is in tee time units of four golfers and it takes a quarter of the time and effort to sell to one group of four golfers as four single golfers. 

The Private Advance Tee Time system offered by SALT does at least offer single golfers the chance to secure an advance guaranteed time during the main golfing season. But, unlike groups of two to eight golfers, singles are not permitted to apply in August, September or October. 

Then lastly there’s the Daily Ballot, which affords visiting golfers the chance to apply for a tee time two days ahead of play. But only if you are a group of two to four golfers. Not singles. At least not until I introduced my Ballot Buddy service in 2019 to group singles together so they could enter the ballot as one group.

So, that left the walk-up queue as the main route for a single golfer to get a cherished time on the Old Course. 

My explanation and in-depth historic analysis of single slots on the Old Course

The Singles Queue: A Tradition Past Its Prime

Photographs by kind permission of Stephen Moore. Read about his night in the singles queue.

The old singles queue required arriving before dawn (or the night before), joining a long line, and hoping to be far enough toward the front to get a tee time when they were assigned.

The system worked ‘ok’ … then COVID happened. A few years of pent-up demand for tee times was unleashed on St Andrews, with no equivalent increase in tee times to retain the status quo. The singles queue grew longer and became an extreme event of sleep deprivation and discomfort becoming increasingly arduous and inequitable:

• Golfers had to camp out overnight to get a spot near the front of the line
• The camaraderie did not compensate for the lack of sleep – especially if ultimately you failed to get a tee time
• The process was physically demanding for seniors or those with medical conditions

Simply put, for all its tradition, the singles queue was no longer fit for purpose so SALT needed to come up with a new approach….

The Singles Daily Draw: A Digital Solution

The St Andrews Links Trust has now modernized the process with the Singles Daily Draw system.

How the New Singles Daily Draw System Works

To modernize the process, the St Andrews Links Trust has created the Singles Daily Draw, a random drawing for available Old Course tee time slots:

1. Registration: Single golfers can register in person at the Old Pavilion or St Andrews Links Clubhouse between 9:00 AM and 5:00 PM on the day before they wish to play.
2. Random draw: At 5:00 PM, a random draw takes place, generating a priority list of entries.
3. Allocation: If there are open slots on the draw sheet for the following day, the first names drawn will be notified and given a guaranteed tee time, which they must accept or decline within a specified time frame.
4. Waitlist: Those who are unsuccessful in securing a tee time initially will receive a waitlist number and may be contacted on the morning of play if additional slots become available due to no-shows or cancellations.

Example

• Say there are 10 guaranteed slots available the following day, the first 10 names drawn at random will be notified that they have got a guaranteed tee time, what time it is and then given a short time to accept it or not.
• Golfers who are unsuccessful in the first instance with securing a tee time will receive a specific number on the waiting list and may be contacted on the morning of the day of play should there be a possibility of a last minute opening.
  How come?
  Some golfers just don’t turn up for the most prized tee time in golf! For example, local ticket holders who play the course regularly may be put off by the weather forecast, or visitors who have been successful in the ballot on more than one occasion may decide they don’t want the early morning tee time they’ve been allocated, or the expense of playing it again. Locals also have the chance to turn up in person to claim any ‘Dark TImes’ that are available later in the day. Any Dark Time slots unclaimed by locals by 09:00 may also get allocated.
• If your name doesn’t get drawn and you’re not contacted you can try again for another day. Register as many days as you like; just one entry per day.

Note: The new Singles Daily Draw has no effect on the Daily Ballot system which remains open only to groups of two to four golfers. However, my Ballot Buddy Service hooks up single golfers looking to play St Andrews Old Course on the same day so they can enter the daily ballot together.

Observations

Key Benefits of the Singles Daily Draw

So clearly the big winners are the singles who are picked first out of the draw to fill in pre-existing slots. They know in advance they have a guaranteed tee time the following day on the Old Course. Jackpot!

The new digital draw system offers some important improvements over the traditional singles queue:

• Fairness: The random draw ensures an equal opportunity for all registered single golfers to be selected, eliminating the need for overnight camping or extended queuing.
• Improved Experience: Golfers can enjoy a good night’s sleep before their round, enhancing their overall playing experience.
• Accessibility: The new system is more inclusive, removing barriers for seniors or those with medical conditions who may have struggled with the physical demands of the queue.
• Certainty: Unsuccessful registrants know definitively that they will not have a tee time for the following day, allowing them to make alternative arrangements.

My Last Minute Tee Time Service shows availability at the best courses in the St Andrews area a day or two prior to play, with booking click throughs. Ideal for last minute planning.

Is everyone a winner then? Well no, not really.

Potential Drawbacks and Suggestion for Future Enhancements

While the new system is a definite step up, there are a couple potential downsides that could potentially be addressed:

• Groups Playing Together
  Unlike the old singles queue where groups could line up together to try for consecutive tee times, the random individual draw makes it very difficult for groups to get tee times together.
  You may be registered sequentially, but the chances of being drawn sequentially to play on the same tee time are, frankly, remote.
  I guess in this respect it does actually favour the true single golfer, and given the relative lack of favouritism elsewhere toward single golfers for access to the Old Course, it’s something that should be loudly applauded.
• In-Person Registration
  Currently, golfers must physically go to the course the day before to register in-person for the draw. An online registration option could make it even more convenient. After all, the ballot is available to enter online or by phone, so why not the singles queue too?
• Dilution of chance due to ease of access
  Having said that, you could argue that now it has gone digital it has become easier to get on the list which may encourage many more registrants than before, which will dilute individual chances.
• Enhancement – provide a reward for perseverance
  Since it’s a straight random draw each day, there’s no added priority given to those who have been unsuccessful on multiple days.
  Through my daily ballot results analysis, I now estimate that owing to increased demand you may need to submit an application on at least six days for the likelihood of being successful at least once in the daily ballot.
  Maybe the time has come to give greater priority in the ballot to applicants who have suffered multiple failed attempts over another group who has maybe only applied just once. 
  Likewise, some sort of preference could be given to reward single golfers who are in town for say a week and are prepared to register in the Singles Daily Draw every day over those travelling through and pinning all their hopes on just one application.

In Conclusion

By moving to the Singles Daily Draw system, St Andrews Links Trust has eliminated many of the challenges surrounding the traditional overnight singles queue for Old Course tee times.

I believe that the singles queue was no longer fit for purpose and so I applaud this new initiative. I can well imagine SALT may have to endure some undeserved criticism of these changes from the ‘traditionalists’ – probably those folk who have never suffered a night sleeping rough only to be told the following morning they haven’t got a tee time on the Old Course!

Whilst I think perhaps they could have gone further, I do believe the Singles Daily Draw is a huge improvement: it gives the single golfer much more clarity as to whether they have an Old Course tee time slot for a lot less effort, and affords them a good night’s sleep in the process.

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Chris Toll

Ginger Beer Golf Travel

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