Golf and Weather
Weather as Part of the Game
Golf is played outdoors in all conditions, and this distinguishes it from almost every other major sport. Football and tennis suspend play in dangerous conditions; golf contests are completed in rain, wind, and cold that would empty any other stadium. The 2015 Open Championship at St Andrews saw competitors playing in sideways rain and gusts that made the golf virtually unrecognisable from what they had practiced in calm conditions. Tom Watson once described a links in full gale as 'a completely different examination' — not more or less fair than calm conditions, just different.
That philosophy — weather as part of the test, not an intrusion upon it — is fundamental to links golf and to the Open Championship's identity. When wind and rain arrive at an Open, scoring typically rises and the field reshuffles. Players who have been resting their games on pure ball-striking often find themselves overtaken by golfers with stronger fundamentals, wider shot repertoires, and a deeper understanding of how conditions affect ball flight.
Playing in Wind
Wind affects golf shots in two ways: direct displacement of the ball in flight, and the effect on the golfer's balance, timing, and club selection. The direct effect is the obvious one — a 20-mile-per-hour crosswind moves a high-flying iron shot by several yards from the intended line. A 30-mile-per-hour headwind can reduce a player's 7-iron carry by 15 to 20 yards.
Experienced golfers manage wind by adjusting trajectory rather than simply changing clubs. Hitting the ball lower — with a shorter backswing, more shaft lean at address, the ball played slightly further back in the stance — produces a penetrating flight that is less susceptible to wind displacement. The classic links shot is a knock-down with a longer club than the distance would normally require: a 5-iron struck three-quarter speed from 160 yards in a headwind rather than a full 7-iron, producing a lower ball that cuts through the wind rather than floating into it.
Downwind shots require the opposite adjustment. The ball flies further and higher, and the challenge is controlling distance rather than achieving it. Taking less club is necessary; so is understanding that the ball will land softer with less backspin and run out more, or alternatively that a well-struck downwind iron can fly well past the green if the club selection is wrong.
Reading wind direction at the ball, at the flag, and at the apex of the ball's flight is a separate skill. Ground-level wind and treetop wind frequently differ in direction. The branches at the top of surrounding trees are more informative than the grass around your feet when estimating what the wind will do to a high-trajectory iron shot. Watching other players' ball flights earlier in the round gives useful data.
Playing in Rain
Rain creates multiple challenges simultaneously: wet grips, wet grass, reduced visibility, slower greens, and the physical and psychological discomfort of being soaked. Good rain gear solves most of the comfort issues, and quality rain gear — fitted trousers and jacket in modern breathable waterproof fabric — allows full mobility without restricting the swing.
Wet conditions slow ball movement significantly. A tee shot that would normally run 30 yards on landing will stop almost immediately in wet rough or soft fairways. Iron shots stop quickly on wet greens, which sounds advantageous until you realise that pitch marks and plugged lies become more frequent and that reading putts on saturated greens with pockets of standing water requires significant adjustment.
Grip is the most important physical concern. Wet grips slip, and a slipping grip produces inconsistent ball-striking and the occasional genuinely dangerous shot. Gloves — two gloves, one on each hand — and a supply of dry towels are the practical tools. Changing gloves between holes is not excessive on a wet day; professional caddies carry 10 to 15 gloves per round in wet Open Championship conditions.
How Weather Shapes Scoring
The statistical relationship between wind speed and scoring averages at major championships is well documented. At the Open Championship, where the natural environment produces the most extreme scoring variance, the difference between a calm day and a windy one in terms of field scoring averages is substantial — several shots per round in the most severe conditions.
The 2013 Open at Muirfield saw players who had led through the early rounds fall back sharply when gale-force conditions arrived; Phil Mickelson won with a final round 66 that was extraordinary given the conditions. The 1999 Carnoustie Open — the 'Carnasty' edition — produced a field scoring average well over par on the final day, with Jean van de Velde's famous collapse on the 72nd hole becoming one of the most discussed moments in the history of weather-affected championship golf.
Wind also affects scoring by changing the difficulty profile of individual holes. At Augusta National, usually played in mild spring conditions, even modest wind produces significantly higher scores on the par-3 12th — Golden Bell — where the air currents through Amen Corner are famously unpredictable. Tom Weiskopf once made a 13 on that hole; Fred Couples famously made birdie with a ball that should have rolled into Rae's Creek but stopped on the bank.
Temperature and Altitude
Cold temperatures reduce ball compression and therefore distance. A standard golf ball loses roughly 1 to 2 yards of carry per degree Celsius of temperature drop below the ball's optimal operating range. In early spring cold conditions in Scotland or the north of England, a golfer might find their distances reduced by 10 to 15 yards per club compared to summer — a significant factor that requires upward adjustment in club selection throughout the round.
High-altitude conditions have the opposite effect. At Crans-sur-Sierre in Switzerland, which sits above 1,400 metres and hosts the European Masters, players gain significant distance because the thinner air offers less resistance to the ball. Golf courses in the Colorado Rockies, South Africa's highveld, and Mexico City's mile-high location all play shorter than their yardages suggest.
Preparing for Variable Conditions
The golfer who accepts that conditions will vary and prepares accordingly — with appropriate clothing, adjusted expectations for scoring, and a wider shot repertoire — handles weather better than the one who treats it as an inconvenience imposed on an otherwise perfect round. Links golfers, accustomed to playing in whatever arrives off the Atlantic, develop a pragmatic relationship with weather that is one of the sport's most valuable mental skills.
Open the map to explore venues worldwide, from exposed coastal links that will challenge your game in any wind to sheltered parkland courses where the tree cover manages the elements.