There are no pixies at Muirfield

It's probably safe to say the goodwill golfers bear towards links golf will never fade.

It's where our game came in and the whole idea of God as architect, random undulation laden with rough justice and the raw, unsanitised caprice of it all strikes chords in anyone jaded by a cluttered world.

Sometimes, you'd think there really is no other stage that befits the sport but I think such a view is too narrow.

The above photo or something very similar is currently doing the rounds, accompanying double-page ads for Palmetto Bluff. Depicting the 14th at Jack Nicklaus' May River Golf Club, it is a reminder that the hand of man has added its own charms to golf's landscape.

I love secluded par 3s like these, particularly once the shadows lengthen. Grotto golf, I call it: detached havens cocooned from the rest of the course. You tiptoe in, play your shots and tiptoe out again, leaving them to birdsong and the pixies.

Links golf, occasionally, can wait. Give thanks for trees, leafy glades and grottoes. The game would be poorer without them.

You'll find a fine summary of the course as a whole at GolfClubAtlas.
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Golfing in Scandinavia? Excellent animated flyovers of a number of courses (also one in Estonia) can be found at LiveCaddie.