The start of the Staysure PGA Seniors Championship at Trump International Golf Links is only a week away.
A plethora of major champions are heading to the Aberdeenshire venue for the Legends Tour’s flagship event which runs from July 31 to August 4.
Jose Maria Olazabal, Jeev Milkha Singh and Patrik Sjoland all played in last year’s event and shared their insight into what the competitors can expect next week and pick their favourite hole on the Dr Martin Hawtree-designed course.
Jose Maria Olazabal (1994 and 1999 Masters, 2012 European Ryder Cup captain)
The whole course at Trump International Golf Links is so incredibly challenging but hole 14 stands out in my memory from last year.
The tee is elevated and the views from there are breathtaking.
I haven’t yet worked out how to succeed on the 14th hole! It is so difficult, the dunes are very high and the fairway is just a thin strip.
If it is windy then it requires a three-quarter shot or even a low shot off the tee – in the hope of hitting the fairway. Any shot into the heart of the green is good.
The tee shot is key, you must hit the fairway, anywhere on the fairway is good. It is so easy to lose your golf ball on that hole.
Trump International Golf Links is such a challenge. If you miss a shot, you pay dearly for it. There is trouble on every hole, not only if your ball ends up in the long grass – but even the shorter grass can “eat” the ball and the greens are all very well protected by bunkers.
I would rank Trump International Golf Links as a very challenging course and that is without playing off the back tees! It demands great ball striking and a very good short game too.
Jeev Milkha Singh (Four-time winner on European Tour, 2012 Scottish Open champion)
My favourite hole is the par-5 10th hole because it gives you an opportunity of being aggressive. If you hit a great drive from where we play from, you can go for it with the second shot, otherwise you just lay up and hit that third shot onto the green because it’s got three tiers on that green.
It’s a risk and reward thing and that’s what I like about it.
I’ve always been a very aggressive player and I believe the brave take the chances.
If you want to play safe, that’s fine – it’s up to you. If you have no chance to go for it, then you better lay-up.
If you’re smart aggressive, you go for it.
However, you can’t be aggressive if you’ve got 280 yards for your second shot. You’ve got no chance, you can’t make it to the green – so that’s not smart, you have to lay up. But, if you’ve got 250 yards for the second shot and you’ve got the confidence of hitting it on the green in two and it’s downwind, you might as well go for it.
A lot of players seem to lay up because they feel they need to take par there and move on to the next hole.
I’m a guy who will take my chances, even if I hate it in the rough.
I think if you played Trump International Golf Links from the back tees, it would be the toughest links golf course anywhere in the world.
The way it is kept, everything from the driving range to the chipping area to the way it’s manicured, is world class, and it is always a treat to play on a golf course like that.
What a fantastic layout.
They should have a senior major there. It is a great test of golf. I know there’s a lot of history with different links courses, but it would be a great venue for a Senior Open.
Patrik Sjoland (Two-time winner on European Tour, 2023 European Senior Tour rookie of the year)
I think my favourite is the par-4 14th where you stand on top of a big sand dune and can see miles of ocean and coastline, big dunes and hit it downhill to a very tight fairway.
To succeed you need to hit a good drive and then you’re left with anywhere from a 5-iron to a wedge depending on the direction of the wind, to a green that’s slightly raised with a deep bunker in front.
If you don’t find the fairway, you just need to reload.
I think it’s one of the best links I have played because it’s so demanding off the tee, if you don’t find the fairways it’s impossible to make a good score.
The course is in the top three on the links courses that I have played after St Andrews and Carnoustie.
Tickets for the Staysure PGA Seniors Championship at Trump International Links are on sale at www.legendstour.com/tickets