Royal Dornoch Golf Club has begun the planning process with Highland Council as the club looks to add a third course to its offering.
Last year general manager Neil Hampton revealed that American-based golf course architects King Collins Dormer had been brought on board to create a masterplan which also includes enhancing the existing Struie Course and adding new practice facilities such as a driving range, short game and one-acre putting area and a four-hole Par 3 course.
This followed hard on the heels of the club concluding a deal for 50 acres of adjacent open grassland land to the south of the town just months in advance of unveiling the new clubhouse by the first tee of the Championship Course.
Hampton said a new course and improvements planned for the Struie Course would ease pressure on the Championship Course and add to the lure of Dornoch, and the Highlands, as a golfing destination.
“With the clubhouse up and running and proving immensely popular with our members and visiting golfers, our focus is turning to the project we mapped out last year,” he said. “I must stress we are very much at the early stages of the planning process with Highland Council and there is no specific timetable in mind for the new course and additional facilities.
“We have brought specialists Tetra Tech on board for the extensive Environmental Impact Assessment Scoping Report to Highland Council which forms part of the pre-planning application process and initial discussions have taken place with the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency and NatureScot. This report covers everything from ecology, ornithology and the landscape to traffic and waste management.
He added: “Golf has long been a key economic driver in the area and these proposed, high-quality, eco-friendly championship courses and other facilities will further enhance our reputation as a golfing destination, encouraging visitors from home and abroad to linger longer and extend their stay in the Highlands. Visitor expenditure associated with golf tourism supports a range of local services, including accommodation, hospitality, transport and retail businesses within Dornoch and the surrounding area.
“The provision of a new championship standard course and improvements to the Struie will also help ease pressure building on the Championship Course, which has been chronically oversubscribed in recent years. Post-pandemic, in 2022, our tee sheet was full and strong demand for advance bookings has continued year after year.
“The club is confident that the plans being drawn up in partnership with King Collins Dormer will be another feather in our cap and ensure the Highlands takes another step towards the goal of becoming Scotland’s leading golf destination.”