St. Andrews is known all over the world as the home of golf and attracts golfers of every nationality to visit Scotland. Golf in Scotland dates back to the 15th century and the country has more courses per head of population than any other country in the world. The sport is seen as being elitist in many countries but not here where every town and village has at least one course, some of them being council operated and run on a "pay and play" basis.

The nature of the game means that it is a challenge for everyone - for some the challenge is to break 70 and for others it is to break 100. If you don't let the sporting challenge get to you too much then you can concentrate on seeing some of the most picturesque parts of the country from the fairway of the local golf club.

The game is changing in the way that people choose to play it. In my father's day when leisure time was at a premium and golf courses were closed on Sundays, people would join a club where they would have a locker to keep their clubs in and play one round each week. Often they would never play another course except perhaps for an annual golf outing or on holiday. This meant that golf clubs were set up to cater for these loyal members. It is more likely now that your golf clubs are in the boot of the car, ready to play anywhere when the opportunity presents itself.

I've slipped a couple of New Zealand courses in because I spend some time there each year. There are 390 golf clubs in New Zealand which places the country second in the world to Scotland (with 543 courses) for courses per capita.