Scottish Golf chair outs ‘disgraceful’ behaviour of Area/County figures

Scottish Golf chair Eleanor Cannon used the end of the governing body’s AGM to call out ‘disgraceful’ behaviour she has been subjected to from high-profile – but unnamed – members of Areas and Counties.

Speaking after the AGM, which saw Scottish Golf’s proposal to raise the affiliation fee from £11.25 to £15 rejected, Cannon said that outing certain people had made them ’embarrassed’ – and she believes that the targeted abuse is due to the fact she’s a woman.

“I know it’s nothing personal – it’s to do with the fact that the chair of Scottish Golf is female,” she said. “The only way to deal with it is to out it and confront it – and I have done that today and will continue to do it.

“I’m going to sort this out inside the tent. Those that have behaved badly know they have behaved badly. I’ve spoken to them individually about it. At the very end there, I made a plea. 

“My plea is that as officials of the game, can you please respectfully lift the phone when you have an issue and don’t go into legal speak, don’t go into writing and certainly don’t let yourself down by going onto social media. What is said on social media is disgraceful.”

Outgoing Scottish Golf board member, Malcolm Robertson, added that he was ‘ashamed’ by the actions of some of the representatives.

He said: “We talk about the etiquette that is demanded of golfers on the golf course – and that should apply in the governance of the game too. But it doesn’t in many instances.

“Some of the behaviour, directed in particular towards the chair, has been disgraceful. You don’t see it playing out at these meetings due to a lack of courage – but I’ve been ashamed of the behaviour of some men.

“That culture has to change. It’s a generational thing and I think some of this behaviour has to be spoken about – it has to be outed and exposed. I think some of the conversations that take place should be in front of people like you [the media].”

Cannon also revealed that the AGM was the subject of a legal challenge last Friday night, which resulted in her and Corporate Services Director, Karin Sharp, having to go to Dalmahoy last Sunday anyway – when the AGM was due to take place – and wait for the Area in question to turn up.

“I was forced to come here – as was Karin – in the snow to start the AGM and to adjourn the AGM, to sit and wait for an Area who had told me, on social media, that I was breaking the law and compromising the organisation in the full knowledge that I had behaved utterly honourably and legally,” she explained.

“I had to come and sit here for six hours, waiting to see who turned up. It cost the company £10,000 – well done you. Did they turn up? No. Did they reply to the letter I sent them? No. How many affiliation fees did that cost? It isn’t hard to do the math.”