The legacy of the Ryder Cup at Gleneagles next year will be worth much more than the anticipated £100 million boost it brings to the Scottish economy, according to a top golf official.
Hamish Grey, chief executive of the Scottish Golf Union, told The Courier pre-Ryder Cup investment has already brought thousands of new young golfers into the Scottish game.
And the legacy for the future will be capitalising on the excitement of the tournament itself by involving every golf club in the country in an “Olympic legacy”-style celebration of golf which goes on for years.
Mr Grey made the comment following the publication of a report which stated golf in Scotland is now a £1 billion industry.
The Value of Golf to Scotland’s Economy report found the industry generates £1.171bn in revenues. More than 20,000 people are employed in golf in Scotland, creating wage payments of £300m.
Mr Grey said: “This report clearly demonstrates the significant value of golf to Scotland’s economy.
“Comparing it to other industries, we can now see for the first time that, for example, golf’s direct contribution to GDP is 89% that of fishing and fish farming and 83% of air transport.
“Our collective challenge is to work together to build on the evidence from this report and ensure future generations of Scots benefit from this great game.”
Dr Mike Cantlay, chairman of VisitScotland, said: “With a number of major golf events on the horizon in Scotland, it was important to understand the scale of the industry as a whole in order we continue to build and grow the industry in future.”