Have your golf clubs not made it out of the airport? This is why

If you regularly travel with your golf clubs, you’ll probably be resigned to the fact your bag will go missing at some point.

Recent months have seen tensions develop between golfers and the aviation industry as luggage continues to fail to reach its destination on time – or at all.

The problem peaked the day after the Open last month, when footage was shared online of bags piled high in the check-in area at Edinburgh Airport.

It begs the question: why is it happening?

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“This isn’t isolated to Scotland – it’s happening all over Europe – and the main issue is the lack of staff,” said Chris Greenwood, a senior research fellow at Glasgow Caledonian University’s Moffat Centre which specialises in international tourism.

“Furlough and redundancies took place during the pandemic, and a lot of those people went away and re-trained and have found other jobs with more sociable hours and better pay. The airlines, who are responsible for ground crews, haven’t been able to recruit fast enough.

“Brexit had an effect too because it led to labour shortages. Ryanair, in particular, has been quite vocal about the need to allow EU workers to come in and provide services.

“It’s also likely there was an underestimation of just how much demand there would be for foreign holidays so soon after the pandemic. When that happens, and we saw it the week after the Open, you get a massive influx of baggage and the staff available simply can’t handle it.”

Tour pro Bradley Neil knows the sinking feeling of realising your clubs haven’t made it only too well.

At the top level, players can just head to the tour truck and get another set built but on the Challenge Tour, where Neil currently plies his trade, players’ livelihoods are on the line.

In the last month, the former Amateur champion’s bag has failed to make to events in Germany and Finland.

As a result, he has played competitive rounds using clubs borrowed from fellow pros and even amateurs.

“You’ve just got no preparation at all because you’re running about trying to pull together some sort of set you can potentially use,” he explained.

“Some guys will travel with a spare driver, 3-wood or putter but obviously you can’t take an entire spare set with you.

“In Germany a few weeks ago, in the first round, I played with a set of irons which belonged to one of the tournament promoters’ team and had been cut down an inch.

“It’s such a shambles.”

It’s not just professionals. For amateurs, it’s a problem too – and there can be a knock-on effect.

“Golf tourism is worth £286million to the Scottish economy and creates 4,700 jobs,” Greenwood added.

“The US accounts for 30% of golf tourism. The majority is domestic but 19% comes from Europe, mainly Scandinavia and Germany.

“It’s not a once-in-a-lifetime experience, either. About half of those people come to Scotland quite regularly. Something like disruption at airports can have a lasting effect. If you have an unpleasant experience while travelling, it can tarnish your opinion of a destination.

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“US visitors play 7.8 rounds on average while they are here, while Europeans play about five. Because they’re playing a lot of golf, having their own clubs is extremely important, especially if you’re playing one of the trophy courses.”

Fortunately, if you’re concerned about travelling, you have options.

“Nowadays there are companies which will courier your clubs for you, and it probably works out slightly cheaper,” Greenwood adds.

“You can use normal courier firms, too.

“A lot of people are also using Apple AirTags now, which allows them to track their own bags and see exactly where they are.

“If you want greater reassurance, that kind of service is a good route to go down.”