It’s a miracle! Greenkeepers praised after saving Dunhill Links

Play at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship hung in the balance on Sunday night, until greenskeepers performed a miracle.

The DP World Tour event, which takes place across Carnoustie, Kingsbarns and the Old Course at St Andrews, was halted on Saturday due to adverse weather conditions.

As record-breaking rainfall flooded the Home of Golf, the championship aimed to shift Saturday’s round forward and conclude 72 holes of play on Monday.

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But severe flooding put paid to those plans, with the third and final round somehow taking place across the three courses today.

Whether the tournament got back up and running was down to the scenes at Carnoustie which, even until this morning, looked unplayable.

Early this morning, this is how things looked at @carnoustiegolf 👀

The Alfred Dunhill Links Championship's final round got underway thanks to an amazing effort by the greens staff 🙌 pic.twitter.com/7ZonCK7cZy

— HowDidiDo (@HowDidiDo) October 9, 2023

A remarkable effort by the greens staff meant water was shifted in time for the first tee-off, with several contenders set to start their round.

Grant Forrest and Nacho Elvira, who sat one shot behind Matt Fitzpatrick at the top of the leaderboard, are set to compete on the Angus links.

It’s an absurd turnaround from how the course looked over the weekend, as the closing stretch was submerged underwater.

Video footage on X shows what was left of the 2017 Open Championship venue, as the burn burst around the 1st, 17th and 18th holes.

Don’t like the chances of Carnoustie being playable tomorrow… this was taken this afternoon 🥲pic.twitter.com/odhdv1JcJc

— Lewis Fraser (@lewisfras98) October 8, 2023

Unreal effort from all the greenkeepers, and people who work at the Dunhill, to get the courses fit for play. The picture below, from yesterday, you would think it had no chance of going ahead. Incredible.@DPWorldTour @dunhilllinks pic.twitter.com/eNNufyidS2

— Josh Antmann (@JoshAntmann) October 9, 2023

Round three will get underway at 11.30 from a shotgun start.

Further down Scotland, in Fife, conditions remained the same, as Kingsbarns also took a battering.

One X user called for the championship to be cancelled for ‘the safety of everyone’, as roads leading to the course were flooded.

https://twitter.com/J2020Sarah/status/1710944117134344523

Team Europe vice-captain Nicolas Colsaerts isn’t letting conditions dampen his challenge, though, as the Belgian is in contention at Kingsbarns.

Former Ryder Cupper Ross Fisher echoed the safety concerns, warning fans to ‘be careful’, as they should ‘leave the car and bring your boat’.

For those going to and from Kingsbarns, be careful 😲. Leave the 🚗 and bring your ⛵ @dunhilllinks @DPWorldTour pic.twitter.com/hNnE5lJiDh

— Ross Fisher (@RossFisher) October 8, 2023

Play resumed at Kingsbarns at 9.30 this morning, as it did on the Old Course with a two-tee start. It is the only venue that will host spectators today.

Fitzpatrick could give dedicated fans something to cheer about, as he plays his final round at the Old Course.

Billy Horschel, Ryan Fox and Matthew Southgate are also all in the hunt there and could have an advantage given how well the course is now shaping up.

Ready for the final day @dunhilllinks

Well done to everyone involved for making the course playable.

For information, the Old Course is open to the public today and tickets are not required for spectators attending. pic.twitter.com/z3h0RmkQJ5

— St Andrews Links (@TheHomeofGolf) October 9, 2023

John Turnbull A graduate of the University of Stirling, John joined the bunkered team in 2023 as a Content Producer, with a responsibility for covering all breaking news, tour news, grassroots content and much more besides. A keen golfer, he plays the majority of his golf at Falkirk Golf Club. Top of his 'bucket list' is a round of Pebble Beach... ideally in the company of Gareth Bale.