The Ailsa Course is regarded by many as the most scenic Open Championship Course. Located beside the Irish Sea with craggy rocks and spectacular views across to the Mull of Kintyre and the Isle of Arran it is an unusual links course as there are no dunes protecting the holes that run alongside the ocean. Essentially an out and back layout the Ailsa Course possibly contains the finest stretch of coastal holes in the British Isles. Long regarded as one of the finest courses in the world, the Ailsa Course came to international prominence with the famous Duel in the Sun between Jack Nicklaus and Tom Watson during the 1977 Open. Lying on a spectacular curve of rockbound coast in the southern reaches of Ayrshire, the Ailsa Course will host the 2009 British Open.