A cannon blast heralded the arrival of the new captain of the R&A this week.
Alistair Low began his year in office as captain of the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews with the driving-in ceremony on the first tee of the Old Course on Thursday.
Watched by a large crowd, Mr Low somewhat modestly described the hugely symbolic shot as “all right.”
As is traditional, caddies fought to be the first to retrieve the ball. First there was Oliver Horovitz who, on returning it to Mr Low, was rewarded with a gold sovereign.
A member of the Royal & Ancient since 1968, Mr Low teed off at precisely 8am under a cloudless sky. His drive down the first fairway drew cheers from the crowd.
As captain, Mr Low will represent the club and the game around the globe. He said it was an “enormous honour” to take up the role.
“I will be an ambassador for the club, flying all over the world, and I will be in attendance at all of the major championships run by the R&A,” he said. “I’ve always enjoyed coming here so I am particularly looking forward to spending more time in St Andrews.”
Mr Low chaired the championship committee from 1985 to 1988. He was chairman of the general committee between 1991 and 1994 and was also chairman of the Scottish Golf Union from 2002 to 2008.
He won the British youths championship in 1963 and was a Scottish amateur championship semi-finalist in 1964, 1968 and 1970.
A retired actuary and graduate of St Andrews University, he lives in Gullane, east Lothian, and is a member of both Gullane and the Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers, where he is the immediate past captain.