Tassie makes it snappy

Carnoustie’s annual Craw’s Nest Tassie tournament has sold out in just five minutes, with amateurs snapping up all 333 places after the competition’s online application system had gone live. The tournament, which was first played in 1927, will be played in early September 2015 across the town’s Championship and Buddon courses.

The Craw’s Nest Tassie, or Tassie as it is known by locals and regular competitors, is one of the most popular week-long amateur events in the UK, with this year’s tournament being staged 88 years after the competitions inception. The inaugural tournament was set up by a group of influential local golfers who commissioned a tassie, or solid silver drinking bowl, from local jewellers Messrs Crabbe and McKenzie. To this day, the winner is still presented with the original trophy that was used in 1927.

The Tassie begins with two qualifying rounds, one over the Championship course and the other over the Buddon. The 64 competitors with the best scratch scores are drawn to play over the Championship for the Tassie, while the 64 competitors with the best nett scores compete for the Maulesbank Trophy in a match play event over the Buddon. Consolation events are organised on the following days for players who do not qualify for either.

Colin McLeod, golf services manager at the Carnoustie Golf Links Management Committee commented, “We are extremely proud that the Tassie continues to prove popular among amateurs and this year’s sell-out time reaffirms the tournament’s status as one of the most prestigious amateur golf competitions in the UK. As in years gone by, we have been inundated with applications from across the globe with entries coming in from America, Sweden, Holland and Spain, as well as from across Britain.”