The prize fund was an impressive £17,500, which in turn generated much enthusiasm for the event including entry by overseas hickory champions from The USA and from Sweden.

Up to 300 yards with Hickory Clubs

It is true to say that the prospect of competing with hickory-shafted clubs proved to be the magnet for professionals and amateurs alike. Players were supplied with a bag of five certificated pre-1935 clubs from spoon to niblick and putter. PGA rules permit nine types of soft ball. Many of the pros and indeed some of the amateurs were driving the ball close to 300 yards and enabling them to reach some of the par fives in two.

Top Players

Former Ryder Cup Captain, Bernard Gallacher,OBE; Lloyd Saltman, winner of the silver medal in the 2005 Open at St Andrews; three winners of the Scottish Open; two Northern Open champions and many professionals from the Tartan Tour order of merit took part.

World Hickory Open Championship
hole no. 1 layout

2007 Dates

With support already agreed by the PGA for the World Hickory Open 2007, it has been decided that next year’s Open will take place again at Craigielaw Golf Club on 26th, 27th and 28th September.

The Perfect Links Layout

Craigielaw Golf Course proved an ideal location for the venue as hickory enthusiasts found the 6,000 yard shortened course to their liking.

Sponsorship and Press Coverage

Sponsorship in 2006 came from a variety of sectors : from Peter Hambro Mining Plc, one of the most successful gold mining companies in the world. The balance of sponsorship monies coming, in the main part from Scottish companies. Further support came from East Lothian Council. A similar spread of sponsorship will be available in 2007, when it is likely that TV, radio, plus newspaper and magazine coverage will be substantially greater.

Participation in 2007

The publicity value of the World Hickory Open in 2007 will be markedly greater than in 2006, although both TV and radio reportage was attracted in year one. Potential sponsors and players should waste no time in contacting Open Director Lionel Freedman on 0044 (0) 131 665 4861 or whoinfo@breathe.com.

Only one headline sponsor will be able to acquire the naming rights to The World Hickory Open 2007.

The Venue

Unique Stretch of Golfing Country

Craigielaw Golf Course was designed by Donald Steel in 1997 for a group of investors. It runs alongside Kilspindie, another of East Lothian’s gems and is amongst a group of ten links courses including Luffness, Gullane, Muirfield, Archerfield and North Berwick along a quite unique four mile stretch of coastline.
As well as hosting the World Hickory Open 2007, Craigielaw is hosting qualifying rounds for the British Seniors’ Open Championship (played at Muirfield).

The golf course is part of the Wemyss and March Estates, which runs the club in an organised and energetic fashion assisted by an enthusiastic Membership Liaison Committee and, unlike so many golf clubs, offers its superb club house facilities to the general public. Those Clubhouse facilities proved to be ideal for the Gala Dinner held on the Thursday after the Pro-am. The speakers at the Dinner were Donald Steel, President of the English Golf Union and Professor David Purdie.

Magnificent Backdrop

As a golf course, it is scenically located on the shores of the Firth of Forth with the hills of Fife framing this magnificent backdrop. The course represents a challenge in equal measure for short and long handicap players. In true links style, many of the bunkers are revetted and the layout is such that the wind is nearly always part of the course’s natural defence.

Perfectly suited to Hickory Golf

At 6,700-yards, but reduced to around 6,000 yards for the Tournament, the course, though not the longest, still had four par fives and these are unquestionably a challenge when playing with hickory-shafted clubs. At the 2006 Open, the consensus among both pros and amateurs was that the organisers had picked a course almost perfectly suited to hickory golf.

Spawning Champions of the Future

Craigielaw is one of a new generation of golf clubs and as such has attracted arguably the best group of junior players in Scotland. For example, two young golfers from Craigielaw took first and second places in the 2006 Scottish Boys’ Stroke-play Championships. A further two came first and third in the Lothian Boys’ order of merit.
The Craigielaw Captain, David Hillson, in his annual Captain’s report states:-

“The year’s playing highlight has been the magnificent performance of Craigielaw’s Junior team, winning the East Lothian Junior League: the County Cup and the Scottish National Team Championship, for which they will represent Scotland in the UK Championship in La Manga, Spain, early in the new year.”

Zack Saltman, a Craigielaw junior team member, has proved to be a worthy winner of the World Hickory Open Championship with a magnificent score of 67.