Scottish Open: Where have the crowds gone?

Not that anybody expected any different, the announcement that Gullane and Castle Stuart will host the Scottish Open for the next two years delivered confirmation that the tournament will continue to be played on links courses into a sixth year.

In all likelihood, it will remain that way for longer, with its current backers determined to see Scotland’s national open played on those courses for at least the duration of their support.

The question, though, remains: is the Scottish Open any better off since it moved from Loch Lomond in 2010?

There’s no disputing that its former lush, parkland home on the ‘Bonnie Banks’ was enormously popular. One of the most notoriously private clubs in the country, much of Loch Lomond’s appeal lay in its exclusivity. Admittance to that event allowed you got to go somewhere you really weren’t meant to and so it appealed to the naughty schoolboy or schoolgirl in all of us.

Loch Lomond ‘felt’ like a Scottish Open. The whole event oozed ‘X-factor’.

The fact the setting was magnificent and the field was typically first-rate only added to its appeal and, as such, it lured in huge crowds year on year.

However, since leaving Loch Lomond four years ago, those crowds have dwindled – people watching on TV over the weekend have already told me that Royal Aberdeen’s fairways looked ‘dead’ – and, worse still, they’ve taken the buzz with them.

Loch Lomond ‘felt’ like a Scottish Open. The whole event oozed ‘X-factor’. Can we honestly, hand on heart, say the same of the three events at Castle Stuart and this year’s staging at Royal Aberdeen?

That’s no sleight on either course. Both, in my opinion, are superior to Loch Lomond. I’ve always preferred links courses, whether centuries-old or modern interpretations. But professional golf events, high-profile ones televised around the globe, need to be about so much more than the course. They need the fields and they need the footfall.

It’s a total myth that Loch Lomond, above, didn’t attract the best players. Okay, so maybe not Tiger. But the move to links hasn’t encouraged him to take part yet either. As for Phil Mickelson, Rory McIlroy, Justin Rose, Ian Poulter, Luke Donald, Ernie Els, Adam Scott… they all played at Loch Lomond. Just as importantly, they brought in the crowds.

But look at Royal Aberdeen last week. For my money (and others’), it attracted the best field on the European Tour this year, outside of the majors and WGCs. Yet only 65,833 turned up. That’s as compared with 85,921(and a couple dozen yachts) who turned up for the same event at Loch Lomond in 2009. Meanwhile, the total Saturday and Sunday crowd this year was down over 2,500 on the weekend last year.

The Irish Open managed to get 100,000 people through the doors this year and almost 130,000 two years ago. On Sunday alone this year, it attracted close to 30,000 spectators. That’s around 29,998 more than the number of people sitting in the grandstand behind the 18th green on Friday evening to see co-leader Ricardo Gonzalez close out his round. And they were marshalls…

So, why is the Scottish Open struggling so badly with its box office? That’s a question the promoters and organisers will need to address in their debriefs over the next few days. And, if that means owning up to the possibility that their recent venues simply don’t inspire punters the way the previous one did, then so be it.

The Scottish Open :: Your thoughts

Do you think the Scottish Open has been better or worse since leaving Loch Lomond? Did you attend this year? If so, what was your experience like? Leave your thoughts in our ‘Comments’ section.

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