Playing pro hockey down the road from the Old Course sounds close to ideal | This is the Loop

St. Andrews might be the home of golf, but did you know that it’s also home to the oldest professional hockey team in the United Kingdom?

Tucked away in Kirkcaldy, a town just 35-minutes from St. Andrews, are the Fife Flyers. Established in 1938, the Flyers are a part of the Elite Ice Hockey League, a professional hockey league in the UK.

The Flyers are a cornerstone of hockey in Scotland and have become a significant part of the Fife community.

What started as a team for locals to pursue their dream of playing hockey professionally has grown into an organization that draws talent from all over—predominantly the United States, Canada and Sweden.

General manager and head coach for the Fife Flyers, Todd Dutiaume, says that golf has been a valuable recruiting tool over the years.

“I always tell my players to use this opportunity to get out and play as much as they can, especially at legendary courses like The Old Course,” Dutiaume says.

And as a former player for the Flyers, Dutiaume speaks from experience.

“Back when I was playing, we had evening practices, so if the weather was nice, you could easily get in four rounds a week, which was incredible,” Dutiaume says.

Dutiaume still tries to give his players as much time as he can to play from when they arrive in August through the end of their season in May.

“As long as they’re not wearing themselves out, they can play as much as they want,” Dutiaume says.

“On average, we play about a round, maybe two a week,” says Flyers defenseman Jonas Emmerdahl.