Paul Lawrie Foundation Goes West

NEWS RELEASE

The Paul Lawrie Foundation, established in 2001 following on from Paul’s victory in the 1999 Open Championship, today began a new chapter in its history as it announced an expansion of activities in to the Highland Region of Scotland.

In the 14 years since its inception, the Foundation has assisted children from Paul’s native North-East to experience and enjoy golf through the provision of Flag & Stableford competitions in the Under 10s, 12s & 15s age groups, as well as supporting U18s Junior Opens and offering Professional coaching to a large number of children through the Foundation’s Academy, today based at the Paul Lawrie Golf Centre. 

Over time, and thanks to the support of the Foundation’s existing sponsors, the programme has grown to include a stable of 11 playing professionals and also lends backing to football teams, a rythmic gymnastics club, and talented individuals involved in swimming, tennis & table tennis, amongst other sports.

The four Founding Sponsors of the Paul Lawrie Foundation (Highlands) are Cairngorm Windows, Clubhouse Hotel, Hawco Group and The Nairn Golf Club.  The backing of these local businesses will allow the Foundation to stage a number of events similar to those provided by PLF as part of the North-East programme’s activity and also provide expert coaching, led by PGA Professionals, in a number of locations throughout the Highland Region.

Speaking at The Nairn Golf Club, on the decision to extend the activities of his Foundation in to the Highland Region, Paul said: “It’s an exciting development for the Foundation.  I’m grateful, of course, to the Founding Sponsors of the Highland programme for their backing and understanding of what it is we want to do.

“I sat down with representatives of each of the organisations here at The Nairn Golf Club a few weeks ago to outline our plans, ideas and aspirations.  All of them could see straight away the benefits of what we do and our vision for the Foundation in the Highlands.  They are all locally based companies and organisations who want to see more opportunities for the children in the area.  I am looking forward to working with them to get more kids participating in and enjoying this great game.”

Fraser Cromarty, CEO of The Nairn Golf Club and Chairman of the Highland Golf Links partnership organisation, 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.”