Paul Lawrie Foundation extends its reach

 into the Highlands

Left to right: Fraser Cromarty (chief executive of The Nairn Golf Club and chairman of Highland Golf Links); Paul Lawrie, Sandy Scott (winner of the PLF Junior Open at Nairn) and Michael MacDougall, Paul Lawrie Foundation manager.

NEWS RELEASE

Junior golfers in the Highlands will now have the support of a former Open champion with the Paul Lawrie Foundation (PLF) extending its reach into the area.

The foundation was launched in Aberdeen in 2001, two years after Paul won The Open at Carnoustie, and since then has assisted thousands of juniors to start playing golf, improve their skills and compete in tournaments.

Its mission is to get as many young people playing the sport as possible and, ultimately, produce a tour winner or even a Major champion.

Paul is being assisted in bringing the foundation to the Highlands by Fraser Cromarty, chief executive of The Nairn Golf Club and chairman of Highland Golf Links (HGL), a partnership body which promotes golfing trips to the area.

The first tournament arranged in the Highlands under the PLF banner was held on Sunday when The Nairn Golf Club hosted the Paul Lawrie Foundation Junior Open.

The event was won by Sandy Scott, 16, a Nairn member who also won last year’s PLF Junior Open in Cruden Bay and who has been assisted by the foundation previously.

Paul also met a number of potential sponsors based in the Highlands and is encouraged by the response.

He said: “We have been running the foundation in the North-east since 2001 and it seemed an obvious move for us to do something in the Highlands. I have a connection to the area through my attachment to Skibo Castle and we see great potential in working with youngsters here.

“We have known Fraser Cromarty for a long time and he was the first person we called to help us set up in this area. Our meetings with potential sponsors were very positive. They were very enthusiastic about what we are trying to do, they all bought into the idea and are very keen to help the kids.

“I love being involved in the foundation. It’s allowed me to give something back to golf by getting kids involved in the game and taking the cost away from parents.”

Fraser Cromarty said: “The Paul Lawrie Foundation has done a fantastic job promoting and supporting junior golf in the North-east of Scotland and moving into the Highlands is great news for everyone involved in the sport here.

“Junior golf needs all the encouragement it can get and having the support of such an iconic figure and Major champion like Paul Lawrie gives everyone a tremendous lift.  The help from the foundation will go hand in hand with the work that clubs and other bodies are doing to help young players.

“I strongly believe that sport in general, and golf in particular, can teach young people so much, like discipline and etiquette, which will help them for the rest of their lives.

“With the help of professional coaches, our juniors will get the best opportunity to develop their talent, compete at the highest level and, hopefully, one day we can produce a champion from this area.”

Paul Lawrie Foundation

The Foundation exists, primarily, to introduce more youngsters to the game of golf and to help them to enjoy their experiences of the sport even more, but it has expanded over time to encompass other sports in the North-east, including swimming, tennis, table-tennis and gymnastics.

www.paullawriefoundation.co.uk

Highland Golf Links

HGL consists of three leading golf clubs – Nairn, Royal Dornoch and Castle Stuart – as well as four leading hotels; the Kingsmills and Culloden House, Inverness; the Golf View Hotel and Spa in Nairn and the Royal Golf Hotel in Dornoch and promotes Play and Stay packages to promote golf tourism in the area.

www.highlandgolflinks.com