Bemused’ MacDougall hits back at Coltart criticism

FROM THE HERALDSCOTLAND.COM WEBSITE
By NICK RODGER
Michael MacDougall, the secretary of the Scottish PGA, last night admitted to being “bemused” at some of the claims concerning the PGA made in yesterday’s Herald by the former Ryder Cup player Andrew Coltart.
Coltart, a two-time winner on the European Tour, has added his voice to the ongoing debate on the future of Scottish golf and has criticised the Professional Golfers’ Association for what he sees as outdated, restrictive practices which are stifling emerging talent.
The 40-year-old claimed, as an example, that Callum Macaulay, the Eisen­hower Trophy winner who lost his European Tour card at the end of 2009, is in danger of being cast adrift and has nowhere to play, while he expressed cynicism over the Tartan Tour’s new Sprint to St Andrews, a series launched hard on the heels of the independent Xltec Pro Golf Tour’s Race to Spain, a pay-and-play circuit devised by former SPGA No.1, Alan Tait.
MacDougall, the amiable Glaswegian who has endured an eventful introduction to the secretary’s post at the SPGA since taking over at the turn of the year, has acted swiftly to set some records straight.
“I was left slighty bemused as some of the things said were factually incorrect,” said MacDougall. “Funnily enough before I read the article, Callum Macaulay had just been speaking to me on the phone as he is playing in our Teddy Bear Invitational Pro-Am at Gleneagles this month.
“I put it to him that if he wanted to join the Tartan Tour then he could. He has what we call a ‘tour player 1 category’ and if he wanted to compete here then he could fill in a form and take out membership. Callum said ‘thanks but no thanks’ as there is simply no place in his schedule as he has a full Challenge Tour card.
“The reality for someone like Callum, who has tasted the main tour and wants to get back there, is that the Tartan Tour doesn’t have the same lure, but to say there is not the opportunity for him, or others like him, to play here is wrong.”
On the suggested conflict between the Tartan Tour’s Sprint to St Andrews and the Xltec Tour, MacDougall added: “The Sprint Series is something that was trialed in other PGA regions last year. The Irish and South regions had it and they have it again this year. It is an idea that is being rolled out across the PGA and it was only a matter of time before we took it on board. To suggest that it was done to scupper Alan’s tour is disappointing. We have a very cordial relationship with Alan and there is no problem between us.”