Promoting Golf

Letter to Editor, The Scotsman, 4 November 2000

Allan Deeson, Managing Director, Century House Hotels, N. Queensferry

Recent reports greatly understate the scale of the problems for tourism in Scotland, and the Scottish Tourist Board is unrealistic in its objectives. As the proprietor of a country house hotel, which markets golf holidays in the UK and Europe, I am amazed at the attitude of golf clubs.

For example, in May, we booked a party of 12 on to the New Course, in St Andrews, and prepaid £900 for a September booking. At the end of July, four of the party withdrew and we cancelled the tee time six weeks before the due date, only to be told the deposit was neither refundable nor transferable. What a bad impression that sort of thing creates.

Every year we ask local clubs for preferential terms so we can package hotel accommodation and golf, and every year we are rebuffed. Considering we are doing the marketing, with an annual budget of around £10,000, complying with European packaging directives, and all associated administration, together with paying in advance for all golf booked, it is uneconomic for us to continue with this strategy. Next year we will not do so any more. I do not know what the solution is, but hopefully your coverage of the situation will bring these sort of problems out into the open and start to change some lackadaisical attitudes of the golf clubs towards the promotion of Scotland as a golfing tourist destination.