A Golden Sunday on the Old Course, there really isn't another tournament like this

Chelsea and Manchester City met in the 145th FA Cup Final at Wembley Stadium on Saturday, the culmination of a competition which footballers across England and the world dream of playing in and reaching the final. Inevitably though it is the footballers of the greatest teams and biggest clubs who get to enjoy that big 'day out at Wembley'. The Home of English Football stages many finals at every level of the Professional and Semi-Professional game, and there is even the FA Sunday Cup which concludes on the Hallowed Turf in North London.

465 miles North of Wembley is another historic, world-renowned sporting cathedral, the Old Course in St Andrews. Golfers from across the world dream of playing there, and the difference from Wembley is that anyone who has the money can pay to play on the world's most famous golf course, at the home of golf. Very few however, can play in a competitive tournament on the Old Course.

The course hosts The Open once every five years, and is part of the rotation for the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship each October. The Old Course also welcomes the world's best amateur golfers each June for the St Rule Trophy and the St Andrews Links Trophy, and each June many of the top Student golfers congregate in St Andrews for the Boyd Quaich. But this Sunday sees the latest staging of arguably the most unique of all the elite competitions which take place in St Andrews, the R&A Local Clubs' Gold Medal.

St Andrews is unique in so many ways. One of the unique elements are that there are not any members of the actual golf courses, you have the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews, the St Andrews Golf Club, the New Golf Club, St Regulus Golf Club, and St Rule Club all have their own clubhouses on the outskirts of the 18th hole of the Old Course, and the University of St Andrews Men's and Women's Golf Clubs have their own facilities on the campus of the University. The membership of each club have access to each of the seven courses, but along with having membership of a club, they have to purchase a Links Ticket from the St Andrews Links Trust.

Another unique element of golf on the Old Course in St Andrews is that aside from four Sundays in the year, golf is not permitted on Sundays on the Old Course. The final days of the St Rule Trophy and St Andrews Links Trophy see many of the world's best female and male amateur golfers competing for prestigious titles and WAGR points, and the final round of the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship sees the leading professionals of the DP World Tour and celebrities competing for a prestigious professional title and OWGR points, as well as millions of dollars in prize money.

The first of the four occasions golf is permitted on the Old Course on a Sunday comes this weekend, as 60 men, 21 women and 12 juniors contend for the title of the Champion Golfers of St Andrews on a spectacular day of club golf at its finest. Pure amateur golf competition on the world's most famous golf course, at the home of golf.

The R&A Local Clubs' Gold Medal was first played in 1890, breaking only for the First and Second World Wars, along with its cancellation in 2020 during the Covid19 Pandemic. This Sunday will be the 124th time it has been contested, with a women's tournament added in 2019, and a Junior Gold Medal made its debut in 2025. 1902 Open Champion Sandy Herd won the first edition of the Local Clubs' Gold Medal, and there a long line of talented amateur golfers who have gone on to be great career amateurs, and solid professionals. John Paterson won the title in 2019 and last year claimed his maiden Professional title on the Tartan Pro Tour.

Oliver Mukherjee won the title in 2022 and is now playing College golf in the USA, having gone on to win the Scottish Amateur Championship in 2023.

Gillian Paton, Fiona Hastie and Megan Ashley are all past winners of the Women's event, with Leo Brady claiming the inaugural Junior title last year.

Playing the Old Course is a lifetime highlight for most, but winning on the Old Course is something that very few of us will ever achieve, 93 golfers will have the chance to do so this weekend, all of them hoping to have a Golden Sunday in St Andrews.

SHANK, by Matt Hooper

Matt Hooper is an Associate Member of the Sports Journalists Association