You don’t spit into the wind.  You don’t pull the mask off the old Lone Ranger and you definitely don’t mess around with the Old Course at St. Andrews.

Golf has been played over St. Andrews since the 1400’s and it has seen many changes over all those years.  The St. Andrews Links Trust is responsible for the care and maintenance of the Old Course and they announced that it would be undergoing some modification prior to the 2015 Open Championship.

The Old Course is considered the “Holy Grail” of golf.  It is universally recognized as the home of the game.  It also houses the Royal & Ancient Golf Club and The R&A which is the ruling body for golf worldwide except for the United States and Mexico.

Nine golf courses in Scotland and England make up the rotation for the Open Championship every year.  St. Andrews hosts the Open Championship every five years, however.

The Old Course has quirky humps and bumps.  Large double greens with steep slopes and depressions which make three-putts a common occurrence.

The notoriously difficult No. 17, “Road Hole”, at St. Andrews is a case in point.  It is a 495 yard severe dogleg right hole with a small kidney shaped green.  Three important features make this one of the most unique holes in all of golf.

First, the tee shot must be maneuvered over or around the Old Course Hotel.  Second, the Road Hole Bunker awaits to catch any errant approach shot.  Finally, if an unfortunate soul finds himself over the green he may be stymied on a paved road or against the stone wall.  It is a brute of a hole and many golfers have found double-bogey or worse when they were trying to finish off their round at St. Andrews.

The public outcry concerning the proposed changes to the Old Course has taken on epic proportions.  Tiger Woods, Ian Poulter, and golf architect Tom Doak have all gone on the record opposing any changes to the Old Course.

One thing in life remains constant.  Change is inevitable but people will resist change.

Given today’s longer golf ball and high-tech equipment golf courses become shorter and easier to dominate by the top players in the world.

Maybe its time to update the Old Course a little.