The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews

The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews is one of the oldest and most prestigious golf clubs in the world (the oldest possibly being The Royal Burgess Golfing Society of Edinburgh at Barnton, Edinburgh, instituted 1735). It is based in St Andrews, Fife, Scotland, and is regarded as the worldwide "Home of Golf". Formerly, it was also one of the governing authorities of the game, but in 2004 this role was handed over to a newly formed group of companies, collectively known as The R&A.