Should The Alfred Dunhill Links Championship Move Dates? The Clear Arguments For And Against

The Alfred Dunhill Links Championship remains one of the DP World Tour's most high-profile events and is eagerly anticipated by so many golf fans, particularly in the British Isles.

It mixes world-class professional golfers with star celebrity names and throws them on to three of the most famous links golf courses in Scotland. What's not to love?

Despite not being a Major or a Rolex Series event, fans turn up in their droves and the event continues to be extremely well-supported by sponsors, despite the weather having forced 18 holes to be lost in two of the past three runnings.

In 2023, heavy rain in Scotland forced the third round to be abandoned before Matt Fitzpatrick went on to claim an historic double with his mother, Sue on the Sunday.

Then, last weekend's Championship also saw round three cancelled - but this time due to strong winds - prior to Robert MacIntyre's dominant success.

Another shortened event led to a discussion point among the Golf Monthly team - would the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship be better off moving to earlier in the year in order to reduce the likelihood of bad weather affecting play?

A few minutes later and we decided that there were a handful of obvious arguments for and against, so here they are...

In the comments below, please let us know whether you think the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship should change its time slot.

WHY THE ALFRED DUNHILL LINKS CHAMPIONSHIP SHOULD MOVE

The most obvious reason for a change in timing would be to avoid the declining good weather in Scotland. During October, fall conditions are in full swing, with strong winds, heavy patches of rain and a considerable drop in temperatures affecting the quality of play.

As I've mentioned previously, two of the past three editions have been shortened due to rain and wind, and that is probably to be expected when a tournament takes place in Scotland during October.

If the event was moved to either the spring or summer months, once the European portion of the DP World Tour's calendar comes to the fore, then the chance of more sunshine and fewer interruptions would hopefully increase.

It is still links golf on the eastern coast of Scotland, so the wind and unfavorable weather is very likely to remain in play to some extent - just not strong enough to cancel play.

Plus, better weather should see more fans turn out. The Dunhill is always well supported anyway, but warmer/brighter conditions - ideally during the school holidays - should lead to more families watching on, therefore inspiring the next generation of players and fans.

Another argument in favor of switching the tournament's place in the season involves matching it up with the links golf events which already exist. OK, so this is perhaps a little idealistic, but how good would it be to have the lead-up to The Open Championship start with the Alfred Dunhill Links?

Either the Alfred Dunhill Links could kick off the run and the Irish Open follows on, or the pro-am event slots into second before the Genesis Scottish Open prior to the year's final men's Major.

It seems as though the slightly more relaxed nature of the Dunhill would make it the ideal reintroduction to links golf for the players who wish to deepen their Open preparation.

This would arguably depend on whether the Irish Open takes place on a links layout or not, with the subject having already been debated by a few Golf Monthly writers recently.

But, imagine the scene - four weeks of baked out fairways and lightning fast greens which required a different style of golf to that witnessed much of the other 12 months.

Either way, having the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship involved in the hypothetical 'Links Swing' would make for excellent preparation for the players as well as increasing the chances of a high-quality full tournament.

WHY THE ALFRED DUNHILL LINKS CHAMPIONSHIP SHOULD STAY PUT

Among the most obvious reasons for leaving the Alfred Dunhill Links where it is in the schedule involves simple logistics. There are only so many weeks in the summer and some events are going to miss out on a prime spot no matter what.

There are also very few tournaments which could swap with the Dunhill that could guarantee decent weather at this time of year, especially in Europe.

Plus, there have been plenty of seasons where the Alfred Dunhill Links has passed without interruption and the conditions are just a part of what makes the event unique.

Very few golf tournaments on any tour around the world are played in weather conditions quite like the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship, and that's why winning it remains such an honor and a skill.

Another logistical issue involves the golf clubs involved in the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship. Are they each going to want to completely close for two weeks and miss out on a significant chunk of income at the busiest time of year? Probably not.

The only way around that problem is if the DP World Tour offered St Andrews, Kingsbarns and Carnoustie a figure they could not turn down. But, in turn, does that make business sense for the European circuit? Only their accountants could tell you.

Looking at another key factor - the field - many of the household names from other tours, which significantly boosts the prestige of the event, are competing on either the PGA Tour or in the LIV Golf League between Majors.

On the PGA Tour, the pattern of Major, Signature Event, Major, Signature Event is unrelenting between April and the end of July.

Add in the FedEx Cup Playoffs through August and the sharp end of LIV's campaign and you're not looking at much free time to travel over to Europe and back again, plus all of the complications that involves, before the start of September.

Consequently, shifting the event a few weeks at most might not make enough of a difference to bother tweaking the rest of the calendar for.

Let us know what you think. Should the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship be moved to a different time of year or should it be left alone? Tell us in the comments.