Coastal erosion is accelerating at an alarming rate and rising sea levels and increased frequency of storms could cause the loss of this historic link. “We lost a meter in the 1970s and 1980s,” says former president John Adams.
“Today what we are seeing is a decline of two or three meters per year.”
Climate change, golf
It is the 5th oldest golf course in the world. It dates from 1562. We played it in 2019 and already the effects of climate change were being felt on the Aberdeenshire coast north of Dundee.
Two years earlier, the old start of 3 had been swallowed by the sea and a new one had to be built. The Montrose Golf Links founded in 1562 will disappear by 2040 if nothing is done. ©David J Whyte Linksland ©DR/Golf Planete In a report on STV’s Scotland Tonight Mr Adams said he works closely with Dynamic Coast, a group studying the impact of climate change in Scotland.
“It is the most scrutinized coastline in Scotland but nothing has been done. There was no money spent except for moving the rocks from one point to another. We have to really, really invest”. According to him the Scottish government and the Angus council are not doing enough to solve the problem.
He is terrified that a big storm will sweep away everything in its path and flood the city. According to Climate Central, an organization run by scientists and journalists specializing in climate change, many areas along the Scottish coastline are expected to be under water by 2040.
Scotland has around 21,000 kilometers of coastline, and one in five people live within a kilometer of the coastline. The rules of golf are a set of standard rules and procedures by which the sport of golf should be played.
They are jointly written and operated by the Royal & Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews, the governing body of golf throughout the world, other than the United States and Mexico, which are the responsibility of the United States Golf Association.
A panel of experts made up of members of the R&A and USGA oversees and refines the rules every four years. The latest revision is effective from 1 January 2016. Changes to the rules of golf generally fall into two main categories: those that improve understanding and those that in some cases reduce penalties to ensure balance.
The rule book, titled “Rules of Golf”, is published on a regular basis and also includes rules governing amateur status. In Italy it is up to Federgolf to supervise competitions by enforcing the rules issued by the R & A, checking that these rules are observed by the Clubs, Associations and their members and manages the resulting sports justice, protecting their interests abroad.
