St Andrews to cut Old Course fees to £42.50 a round for Scottish golfers
The world's most historic golf course at St Andrews is cutting the cost of playing a round to £42.50 in a bid to make the sport more accessible to Scottish players.Between May and October, 179 tee times will be made available at the reduced price.It means 716 golfers with Scottish postcodes will have the chance to play St Andrews' four courses at an 87.5% reduction on the regular high season green fees.The full price of a round at the Old Course is currently £340.
Rounds on the neighbouring Castle course will cost £22.50 - down from £180 - during the promotional period.Green fees on the Jubilee course will be £18.75 (down from £150) and £9.50 (down from £75) on the Eden course.People who live in St Andrews are already eligible for an annual Links ticket, giving access to seven courses for £386.The Old Course at St Andrews is widely regarded as the home of golf - with the sport having being played their since the 15th Century.It hosts the open championship every five years, with the next staging planned for 2027.The most expensive golf course to play in Scotland is currently Trump Turnberry which, from June, will charge up to £1,000 for a round.Eleven reduced-fee tee times will be made available on the Old Course on the first day of the initiative on 21 May.Players will have to sign up in a two-ball ballot, with successful applicants then being paired up and allocated a tee time.Neil Coulson, chief executive of St Andrews Links Trust, said widening access to golf was a key objective of the organisation."Golf has become increasingly popular in recent years and with this demand for our courses has surged to unprecedented levels," he said."We will continue to ensure that our ticket holders and visitors have the best experience possible, while ensuring that one of the country's most precious golfing assets is available for the public too."Alan Tait, a former European Tour player, said he welcomed the move to make Scotland's most iconic courses accessible to more than wealthy tourists.He told the BBC's Good Morning Scotland programme: "It makes me proud that there is that demand that people from all over the world want to come to our beautiful country and play these amazing golf courses."But we just need to be careful that we don't overstep the mark because we don't want the Americans to stop coming and we certainly don't want it priced were Scottish people can't play their own courses in Scotland."
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