The Alfred Dunhill Links Championship is one of the most eagerly anticipated events of the year, not least because it offers professionals and amateurs the chance to join forces at three of the most renowned courses in the world.
Over the course of four rounds, two competitions will run side by side as players tee it up at the Old Course at St Andrews, the Championship Course at Carnoustie and Kingsbarns Golf Links. Each professional will be paired with an amateur for the duration of the tournament, with players alternating between the three different courses.
The pros will compete in an individual stroke play event as per a regulation week on the European Tour, but will also be part of a Pro-Am competition involving their partner, with the best score on each hole from every pair taken.
After three rounds the field is reduced to 60 pros including ties, plus the leading 20 Pro-Am teams, with the final round being played at the Old Course.
Last year, Tyrrell Hatton won for the second year running to become the first man to successfully defend the title.
Padraig Harrington can lay claim to an enviable record in this tournament, having triumphed in 2002 and 2006. Not only did the three-time Major champion add those titles to his European Tour trophy haul, but he won the pro-am tournament in both years alongside businessman and fellow Irishman JP McManus.
In 2003, Sam Torrance won the team competition in the company of his son, Daniel, who was just 15 years old at the time.
