The Independent - London, July 18th, 1997
When Willie Park, the first winner of the Open Championship, took a look at Royal Troon's eighth hole he was aghast. It has "a pitching surface," he said, "skimmed down to the size of a postage stamp". The name stuck, although it is unlikely whether Mark Calcavecchia delivered his abuse yesterday in such charming and eloquent terms.
The last time the American played this course he would have gladly taken it back to Florida with him. He may still want the bulk of it as a reminder of the three closing 68s that landed him the Open in 1989, but there are 126 yards of it that he would gladly leave...
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