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    Birkdale and beyond: the greatest golf links in the world

    By Rob Hodgetts, CNN

    Updated 0943 GMT (1743 HKT) July 17, 2017

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    The British Open rotates around 10 of the best links golf courses in England, Scotland and Northern Ireland. St. Andrews (pictured) is known as the "Home of Golf" and its Old Course is arguably the game's most hallowed turf.
    Photos: Best Open golf courses
    The British Open rotates around 10 of the best links golf courses in England, Scotland and Northern Ireland. St. Andrews (pictured) is known as the "Home of Golf" and its Old Course is arguably the game's most hallowed turf.
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    <strong>St. Andrews:</strong> Golf has been played over the dunes and linksland of St. Andrews since the 15th Century. The clubhouse of the Royal and Ancient Golf Club stands sentinel over the unique layout which starts and finishes in town.
    Photos: Best Open golf courses
    St. Andrews: Golf has been played over the dunes and linksland of St. Andrews since the 15th Century. The clubhouse of the Royal and Ancient Golf Club stands sentinel over the unique layout which starts and finishes in town.
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    <strong>St. Andrews: </strong>There are six courses squeezed onto St. Andrews' links, with the Old Course at their heart. The Road Hole 17th and 18th form an iconic finishing stretch.
    Photos: Best Open golf courses
    St. Andrews: There are six courses squeezed onto St. Andrews' links, with the Old Course at their heart. The Road Hole 17th and 18th form an iconic finishing stretch.
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    <strong>St. Andrews:</strong> The Old Course is known for its blind drives over seas of gorse, vast greens, and swales, humps and hollows which require imagination and the ability to use the ground to your advantage.
    Photos: Best Open golf courses
    St. Andrews: The Old Course is known for its blind drives over seas of gorse, vast greens, and swales, humps and hollows which require imagination and the ability to use the ground to your advantage.
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    <strong>Royal Birkdale:</strong> The 2017 Open Championship will take place at Royal Birkdale in Lancashire, northwest England. It has been in existence since 1897 and is easily recognized by its 1930s art-deco clubhouse.
    Photos: Best Open golf courses
    Royal Birkdale: The 2017 Open Championship will take place at Royal Birkdale in Lancashire, northwest England. It has been in existence since 1897 and is easily recognized by its 1930s art-deco clubhouse.
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    <strong>Royal Birkdale:</strong> This powerhouse of a links features flat fairways and fair greens with holes framed by towering dunes.
    Photos: Best Open golf courses
    Royal Birkdale: This powerhouse of a links features flat fairways and fair greens with holes framed by towering dunes.
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