The Elon University men's and women's golf teams are in Scotland as a part of the Elon Commitment to its students achieving a global experience. Check in to elonphoenix.com to view the daily updates of the program from its athletes on the overall experience! Be sure to also check out posts and updates on the team's social media accounts on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
 
Elon golf's freshmen group ((Michaela Cox, Isabella Abdullah, William Frodigh, Graham Hutchinson, Quade Lukes, Haley Bookholdt, Audrey Kennett, and Adel Vadkerti) write about their thoughts, experiences and observations from the global experience trip. Click below for the Adobe Spark version of the story.




   In the five days that we've been here, we've experienced so much of Scotland and its culture.  Obviously, some of the coolest experiences have come on the golf course, but it's also been interesting to interact with the people.  Coming in, we thought there would be no issue understanding the people here, but we were wrong. We've had to listen really closely whenever we've talked to native Scotsmen. Their accents are so thick, sometimes we only catch part of what they say, or we have to ask them to repeat what they said. In fact, one particular time, we was in the pro shop at Dundonald Links, asking the employee for a yardage book.  He handed us the book, and gave us the total.  His accent was so thick, we couldn't understand what he said, so Michaela just grinned and asked, "Do you take Visa?"  We wondered if they have as much trouble understanding us as we do them. 

   Additionally, being given the opportunity to play Dundonald Links, Carnoustie, and the Old Course at St. Andrews has been absolutely amazing.  We've walked each round literally thinking, "Whoa, this is so cool."  To walk where the best players in the world have walked and to hit shots where they hit shots is an experience like no other.  It's also cool to learn from the shots they hit or the mistakes they made with huge tournaments on the line.  Knowing the players that walked each fairway before us fills us with gratitude to be in Scotland exploring all its history.  Even in the rain and cold, there's nothing that we would rather be doing this week. 
 
   On our trip so far, locals keep telling us we have been incredibly lucky with weather! This has confused me a bit because the weather has been cold and rainy and always damp. It wasn't until we played Carnoustie with a caddy who had been working there for 47 years that realized how lucky we actually were. He taught us that they experience up to 90 mph wind gusts on the golf course. As I walked the course with no wind, we began to feel less accomplished for our rounds so far. People had always spoken about how Carnoustie is one of the hardest, if not the hardest, course in the world.

   We knew it was tough, but we then realized the reason it's ranked so high in difficulty is because of the conditions it is typically played in. It was incredible to think about playing golf in conditions like that. Not only would it be impossible but potentially dangerous. This is what we learned is the key difference between golf in the U.S. and in Scotland. In the United States, people mostly play golf because it is a pampered sport. Between the nice country clubs, five star service, beautiful clubhouses, high-class status, and perfectly manicured golf courses, people enjoy the entire experience. In Scotland, the game is played in its most simple form. People here play to embrace the challenge and enjoy the pure purpose of the game. By playing in Scotland, we've learned what it is to have grit.