Glasgow golfers suffer yet another blow

The cost of playing municipal courses in Scotland’s biggest city is set to increase in what is yet another blow to Glasgow’s golfers.

Glasgow Life has announced a fee hike for the two racks it operates, the 18-hole Littlehill Golf Course and nine-hole Knightswood.

As early as May 1, annual golf course fees will reportedly jump from £195 to £260 for adults, from £130 to £155 for concessions, and from £100 to £120 for juniors.

The cost of using other sports facilities operated by the local authority will also go up as Glasgow Life looks to make savings of £7.15million.

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A spokesperson told the Glasgow Times: “Glasgow Sport prices have remained unchanged since 2018, but like everyone else we are facing increasing costs.

“Glasgow Life is increasing sports charges as a result of these financial pressures. The changes are benchmarked against a sportscotland review of charges from 2021/22, where comparable prices can be found.”

The news is another disappointment for golfers in the city who are reliant on these facilities.

Since February 2020, they have seen the closure of four municipal courses: Alexandra Park, Linn Park, Ruchill and Lethamhill.

The latter was bought by the R&A and has been transformed into a new community-based golf and entertainment facility called Golf It, which is set to open this summer.

The closure of those tracks was part of council budget savings estimated to be in the region of £50million.

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This comes less than a decade after the city staged the 2014 Commonwealth Games. An official report into the event found it had been worth £740m to the Scottish economy. It also estimated that Glasgow itself gained over £390m.

When it was announced in November 2007 that Glasgow had won the right to stage the 2014 Commonwealth Games, Steven Purcell, the then leader of the city council said: “The hard work starts here. This is not about politicians taking glory, or about the sporting world coming to Glasgow on its own.

“It’s about making sure there is a lasting legacy.”

After yet another blow, Glasgow’s golfers are entitled to ask what evidence there is of that.

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