The owners of Loch Ness Golf Club in Scotland have announced plans to close the venue’s 18-hole course at the end of the month, and focus on improving the quality of its 9-hole layout and driving range.
The Inverness-based club’s membership received a letter last week from Amity Hospitality, an organisation acting on behalf of the owner, Fairways Inverness, that explained that ‘continued losses’ are the main reason behind the closure of the main course, which first opened in 1996.
The letter stated that improvements will be carried out to enhance the current nine-hole course, as well as revealing projects to improve the driving range, including the installation of Toptracer in every bay, and a re-fit of the club’s restaurant.
The news of the changes has been met with angry reaction from current members. Speaking to the Press & Journal Newspaper, Loch Ness club captain Jamie Gordon said: “They [the owners] have not engaged with the people who play the course at all. The first I knew about it was through the letter.
There was a real family and inclusive vibe around the place. Kids were always welcome and had a few senior members and for them, it might have been the only opportunity for them to get out of the home. We might lose that now.”
Gordon added: “We thought they were making improvements to the golf course by cutting down some trees here and there, which tidied the place up and made it more open, but now that seems as if they undertook that work on the premise of improving a golf course when really it will make way for houses and roads. I envisage very few people staying now, and I fear this is now the end for Loch Ness Golf Club.”