The Scottish Open: More than a tournament

Kind of a big deal: The Scottish Open is a huge opportunity to remind the world how special the game’s home country is

This week’s event at Castle Stuart is as big a deal off the course as on it

The action is hotting up at a balmy Castle Stuart where some of the world’s top golfers are battling it out for the €579,080 winner’s cheque – but, for some people, the Scottish Open is about a whole lot more than just what’s happening on the course.

For the guys at VisitScotland and EventScotland, the tournament is an opportunity to reinforce just how truly special and unique the home of golf is.

Indeed, whilst most golfers worth their salt know that Scotland is where the game began all those centuries ago, it is easy to forget just what that means. It’s not just about the history; it’s about the quality of the product, of which Castle Stuart is a prime example.

“The Scottish Open has been great for us in helping to remind people about what Scotland has to offer as a golf destination,” explaines Alan Grant, the Golf / Ryder Cup 2014 Marketing Manager at EventScotland, has been involved with the Scottish Open since the Scottish Government came on-board as a sponsor of the event in 2011.

“It’s not as though people have forgotten what’s here. It’s just a matter of reminding them about the extent and quality of what’s here. In that respect, the Scottish Open helps us enormously.”

Grant’s colleague David Connor adds: “If you ask 100 people across the world where the home of golf is, 99 of them will probably say Scotland, but that’s not to say that we can’t afford not to reinforce that message.”

The great weather in the Highlands this week has shown Castle Stuart at its finest and many foreign media covering the event in its Inverness home for the first time have been blown away by the beauty of the destination. Stephanie Wei, author of the popular WeiUnderPar.com blog, is no stranger to golf events in Scotland but even she has been left awestruck by what the Scottish Open and Castle Stuart has to offer. Just check her Twitter feed (@StephanieWei) for proof of that.

Grant added: “The Scottish Open being broadcast to American television viewers for the first time this year creates a huge audience for Scotland as a golf destination.

“Since last year’s Ryder Cup at Medinah, we have seen a real increase in interest in Scotland as a golf destination across all realms of tourism, whether that’s media wanting to come and cover it, tour operators wanting to come and experience the product to sell it a bit more, or general spectators or tourists wanting to come and experience it for themselves. That, in itself, is very encouraging and the Scottish Open certainly gives us another platform to increase that promotion, so it’s very important to us.

“It is also important to us that we create an authentic visitor experience at the Scottish Open. We want people to come along to the tournament, enjoy the golf, but also enjoying everything else that happens around about it, such as the tented village, the famous Scottish hospitality, maybe even some of the local courses or other landmarks.

“The Scottish Open is a great vehicle for us to show the watching world everything great that Scotland has to offer, which just so happens to be rather a lot.”

Grant and Connor’s excellent work on the ground at Castle Stuart is being supported by a fantastic, new, golf-specific TV advertising campaign from VisitScotland. The £400,000 project is the first of its kind ever to be purely dedicated to golf and is being shown this weekend during the coverage of the Scottish Open on NBC in the US and Sky Sports in the UK, reaching international audiences of tens of millions.

The advert features some of Scotland’s most beautiful and iconic scenery, with Laura Murray, one of the most successful Scottish amateurs who has turned professional this year, hitting golf balls under the spectre of Glenfinnan Viaduct as the Jacobite steam train passes across.  Private Jamie Notman also plays a golf shot off the ramparts of Edinburgh Castle as Bombardier Ally Jones fires the famous One O’Clock gun.

First Minister Alex Salmond launched the ad at Castle Stuart this week and said: “Scotland is the undisputed Home of Golf.  We have the best courses in the world and these fantastic adverts will cement that reputation to tens of millions of golf fans across the globe.

“During the Scottish Open, we have a captive global audience of golf fans so this is the ideal opportunity to give Scottish golf the biggest ever push. The fact that the golf is being broadcast on American network television, to tens of millions of US viewers, is a fantastic endorsement for Castle Stuart, and the Scottish Open.

“This is a great boost for Scotland, and for Scottish golf, as well as being an incredible opportunity to showcase our outstanding scenery and the golf on offer across the country.

“Millions of visitors each year come to Scotland to play golf and the sport brings millions of pounds to the Scottish economy.  I hope that even more viewers from around the world tuning into the Scottish Open will see what the country has to offer.”

See the advert for yourself, below…