One of my favorite events of the year is The Alfred Dunhill Links Championship. Every year, the world’s finest golfers and biggest celebrities hop on planes from all over the globe and meet at the Home of Golf in order to enjoy a week of golf. The tournament is played on The Old Course, Kingsbarns and Carnoustie over the course of 4 days. While it is easily one of the most colorful sporting events on the golfing calendar, I have decided to present the 2025 version entirely in black and white.
The Old Course at St Andrews
Carnoustie Golf Links
Kingsbarns Golf Links
Day One - Carnoustie Golf Links
After sharing a brief bus ride from St Andrews with surfing legend Kelly Slater, it was time to capture the action at Carnoustie. On an overcast and windy day, the tournament got under way. Spirits were high even though the skies and the photographs were different shades of grey.
Bubba Watson Pumps one. Fans watch in awe.
Catherine Zeta Jones tops her drive, tips her cap.
Brooks Koepka puts out the vibe on hole 17.
I love a Marshal that knows how to take his own advice.
The rain hit late in the afternoon and I decided to take cover int the halfway house to get two of my favorite Scottish staples, a sausage roll and an Irn-Bru.
Discussions over a rain soaked 18 at Carnoustie
DJ slaps his way to a round 1 64
Locals come prepared for a week of golf in Scotland
Celebrities may come and go at the Dunhill, but William J Murray manages to show up every single year. You may also know him as Dr Peter Venkman, Carl Spackler, or even Bob Wiley, but make no qualms about it, Bill Murray came here to golf party. Back in 2019, I had the pleasure of playing golf with Bill Murray on the Old Course and I am able to confirm that the man brings life to any golf course that he visits. I was extra excited to see Bill had also paid a visit to Cruit Island Golf Club and even more excited to learn that we now own the same stocking cap.
Murray draws a crowd as he plays the draw
The purple Cruit Island hat is for pros only
Day Two - Kingsbarns Golf Links
Even though Kingsbarns Golf Links has only been around for 25 years, golf has been played on this patch of land since the 18th century. The first mention of a golf course on the site dates back to 1793. The previous Kingsbarn course was abandoned during World War II and the land remained dormant for decades before Kyle Phillips created his modern masterpiece in 2000. The course has quickly become a favorite of those visiting the St Andrews area and earned a spot in the lineup of Dunhill courses.
Kingsbarn in the rain.
Brooks pounds one as the rains pound down.
Patrick Reed protects himself from sideways rain.
Tennis champion Andy Murray is good at golf.
The big news from Day 2 of the Dunhill was undoubtedly the inclement weather play of Robert Macintyre. As a general rule, when players start holding their umbrellas sideways, the scores start going upwards. While that was true for most players, Bob Macintyre had other plans. Macintyre grew up in Northern Scotland in a coastal town named Oban and the sideways rain was not an issue for this hometown hero. Bob played a fearless and nearly perfect round of golf in front of a large crowd of adoring fans. A second consecutive round of 66 sent Macintyre to the top of the leaderboard.
Bobby Mac en route to a second round 66 at Kingsbarns.
Day Three - The Old Course
Anyone who has visited St Andrews will tell you, the winds of the British Isles are something special. On Saturday of The Dunhill Links, Scotland sent some of their finest to St Andrews. The rule of thumb at St Andrews is that when the winds reach a sustained velocity of 30mph, the golf balls have a hard time staying still on the greens. With gusts up to 50mph, it only took about 10 minutes of play before a conclusion was reached. The third round was cancelled and the tournament was shortened to 54 holes. My cab driver put it eloquently.
“It is Fu#%*ing windy out there.”
Fortunately, the wind only stops the professionals. The wind is incapable of preventing me from playing golf. Since I was staying down the street at the Fairmont St Andrews. I found a tee time and explored the two golf courses in my back yard. Both the Torrance and the Kittocks courses offer some spectacular views of the Saint Andrews bay and provide a great alternative for golf outside of the usual suspects. If you only have time for 18 holes, go with the Kittocks course. With the Dunhill on pause, the color came flooding back.
Final Round - The Old Course
Wayne Gretzky walks the Old Course on the final round of the Dunhill LInks.
You can’t confidently call a DP World Tour event without a custom cowboy broadcasting fedora. Early on, Robert Macintyre broke out to a size-able lead. Hatton gave chase but as the tournament headed down the stretch, it was never really that close.
Macintyre steps on the gas during the front nine of the final round.
Hatton sends his drive on 16.
Kelly Slater lines up a putt on the Road Hole.
Slater signs for the kiddos.
The Dunhill does a great job of combining professional golf with the fun and amateur aspects of the game. One minute the fans were watching Macintyre head down the stretch trying to win a golf tournament and the next minute Bill Murray is throwing bananas into the crowd and sleeping in the fescue. The Dunhill Links is something special.
Bill owns the crowd
Nap time on 12.
Murray misses dead right.
Macintyre adds his score up on the 17th hole and realizes that he has a 5 shot lead with just two holes to play.
Just two holes later, Macintyre was in the clubhouse with a 3rd consecutive 66 and a 4 shot victory at the 2025 Alfred Dunhill Links. The drama wasn’t as high as I would have liked, but you could not have selected a finer champion. This was Macintyre’s fourth DP World Tour event win and came exactly seven days after joining the European Ryder Cup team in victory over the United States at Bethpage Black.
“It’s brilliant, a special win, and as a Scotsman there is no other place I’d want to win more than St Andrews.”
Like every other year at the Dunhill, the media gets a chance to play the Old Course on the day after competition. Was I able to match Macintyre’s smooth 66? Not even close.