Loch Lomond to host tour events again?

Don’t be surprised to see a top international event taking place at Loch Lomond Golf Club in the near future.

That’s the message from the West of Scotland club’s general manager, Bill Donald.

The prestigious venue staged the Scottish Open, in one capacity or another, from 1996 to 2010 before the decision was made to re-locate the event to some of the country’s top links courses.

That was followed in 2011 by a members’ buy-out of Loch Lomond, a move which has transformed the club. Its membership has almost doubled, growing from 300 to 550 since the takeover, and Donald has described the mood around the place as being one of ‘buoyancy’.

“Positive strokes change attitudes and minds,” he revealed. “There’s a certain amount of positivity around the club.

“We had a membership that had been with the club for quite a while throughout all the trials and tribulations of what had gone on but now you’ve got this whole new membership – up from around 300 to 550 since the buy-out – and that has changed the culture of the club.

“It is a members’ club with a very strong board. There’s been great reinvestment, as well, in the facilities and there’s a strategic plan in place to invest even further, which the members are backing.”

It’s no exaggeration to say that few tears were shed by Loch Lomond members when the Scottish Open left their prized course on the ‘Bonnie Banks’. With playing opportunities already limited, some members were reported to be annoyed at having to turn over their course to the European Tour for several weeks each summer.

Forty-five per cent of Loch Lomond’s membership is overseas, representing 35 different countries.

That attitude, though, appears to be changing. Not enough to encourage the return of the Scottish Open, of course, but enough to embrace the potential of staging another tournament there somewhere down the line.

The possibility of a World Golf Championship at Loch Lomond has long been talked about and, whilst Donald said that’s not going to happen any time soon, he stressed it ought to be something the club aspired to host.

“The team on-site would probably have an aspiration for that and that’s the sort of thing that we should be driving towards,” he said. “With the skills there are at Loch Lomond, through dealing with the Scottish Open, I think the board and the members are mindful that the staff enjoy that pursuit of, shall we say, something that has an international factor.”

As well as satisfying his staff, Donald also recognises the importance of satisfying the club’s large band of international members. Forty-five per cent of Loch Lomond’s membership is overseas, representing 35 different countries. The club hosting a high-profile event is something that they would probably enjoy, too, said Donald.

“It’s important to see your club on TV and to have that badge of honour, if you like. So I think it’s an aspiration that should be there.”

A new event for Loch Lomond? 

What kind of event would you like to see Loch Lomond GC host in the future? And would you go? Leave your thoughts in our ‘Comments’ section below.

Michael McEwan is the Deputy Editor of bunkered and has been part of the team since 2004. In that time, he has interviewed almost every major figure within the sport, from Jack Nicklaus, to Rory McIlroy, to Donald Trump. The host of the multi award-winning bunkered Podcast and a member of Balfron Golfing Society, Michael is the author of three books and is the 2023 PPA Scotland 'Writer of the Year' and 'Columnist of the Year'. Dislikes white belts, yellow balls and iron headcovers. Likes being drawn out of the media ballot to play Augusta National.

Deputy Editor