New campaign launched to save public golf courses

It likely won't have escaped your knowledge that public, municipal golf courses have been consistently under threat in recent years as councils search for ways to save money, and, inevitably, recreation facilities are the first to go.

However, a new campaign in Scotland is seeking to combat this trend, but while the focus here is north of the border, the message is undeniably a universal one. 

bunkered magazine has launched its Public Golf Counts drive by releasing a timely video, Lost Golfers, which shows players searching around the streets of Glasgow and Dundee for somewhere accessible to play.

Earlier this year, Caird Park in Dundee shut down, following the closure of Camperdown in 2020, which brought to an end municipal golf in the city nearest the spiritual home of golf, St Andrews.

Glasgow is the largest metropolis in Scotland and the number of public courses there has declined markedly. Ruchill, Linn Park and Alexandra Park have all closed since 2020, with just Knightswood and Littlehill remaining open.

Showcasing the stark nature of this shrinkage, bunkered reports that public courses have been reduced by around 10% since the beginning of the decade, with only 51 in the country still available to play.

We recently commented on the remarkable success story of the North Inch Golf Course in Perth, which has transformed its standing in recent times, emphasising just how powerful municipals can be, but that hasn't stopped others facing great anxiety, with both Dalmuir and Hollandbush having fought for their futures.

Those two layouts were saved by community transfer agreements, which sees ownership of the venue given to the community by the council, but that process can be extremely complicated.

(Hollandbush Golf Course)

bunkered's Head of Content, Michael McEwan, said: "Golf courses run by councils and local authorities are never going to host The Open or the Ryder Cup, nor are they likely to feature on many people’s ‘bucket lists’.

"But that is not their purpose. They exist to provide opportunities to participate for people who want to learn to play the game in a more relaxed, informal environment, or who perhaps cannot afford the fees required by private members’ clubs.

"If you take them away, you risk making golf something that so many people are trying so very hard to prevent it from becoming: the exclusive preserve of those who can afford to play.

"Not only is that unacceptable, it will unquestionably shrink the game - an unthinkable prospect, particularly here in Scotland, the birthplace of the sport."

The campaign includes a 10-point pledge that will see it promote and help to sustain the future of public golf, including putting together a team of experts to create a blueprint for councils managing courses, using those venues for equipment reviews and tournaments, demanding political and governing body support to protect public golf, and sponsoring a special accolade for Public / Community-Owned Golf Course of the Year at the 2026 Scottish Golf Tourism Awards.

If you want to know more about the campaign, please visit https://www.bunkered.co.uk/publicgolfcounts/.