Scotland to invest £2 million in golf

The Scottish government is to copy the Ryder Cup model set by the Welsh Assembly, by investing £2 million in golf clubs. 

The Welsh government set up its own £2 million Ryder Cup Wales Legacy Fund, which supported 41 projects – mainly community golf clubs that were trying to attract beginners to the game – to enhance the legacy left by the Ryder Cup, which was played at Celtic Manor last year. Borth and Ynyslas Golf Club, for instance, received £35,000 to build a six-hole course, while Welshpool Golf Club received £13,000 for a new practice area and junior tees.

Gleneagles Hotel will be staging the Ryder Cup in 2014, only the second time that the major event has been held in Scotland, the first being Muirfield in 1973.

First Minister Alex Salmond (pictured) said £500,000 would be ploughed into the game every year for four years from 2014, in a bid to attract more children to play golf.

“Scotland is the undisputed worldwide home of golf. Encouraging the next generation of golfers is crucial,” he said.

Mr Salmond added that the 2014 Ryder Cup would generate an estimated £100 million for the Scottish economy, while golf tourism was worth an estimated £220 million to Scotland every year.

In announcing the funding package, the first minister also welcomed a donation of £19,500 from Gleneagles to the Scottish junior golf development programme, clubgolf.

“Clubgolf gives thousands of children in Scotland the chance to play golf, putting a club in the hands of every nine-year-old in the country and creating the possibility of golfing success at the highest levels,” he stated.

“This continued investment by the Scottish government will ensure a lasting legacy from the 2014 Ryder Cup.”