Capacity Field For Highland Golf Pro-Am Sponsored By Blue Group
A prestigious Pro-Am tournament over three of Scotland’s finest links courses has attracted a capacity field.
A total of 76 teams from across the UK, Europe and the US will compete in the Highland Golf Links 54-Hole Pro-Am Sponsored by Blue Group, which is being held for the first time with new headline sponsors from 26-28 September.
Some 304 players have committed to playing in the Tartan Tour event. They will compete on successive days at Castle Stuart Golf Links, home of the 2016 Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open in July; Royal Dornoch Golf Club, which hosted the Northern Open in June; and The Nairn Golf Club, which staged the Fairstone Men’s Home Internationals tournament in August.
Blue Group, who supply world leading material-handling equipment for the quarrying and waste recycling industries, agreed a three-year deal in December with Highland Golf Links (HGL) to support the Pro-Am.
The event, which currently boasts a professional prize fund of more than £50,000, is open to teams of four players from anywhere in the world consisting of three amateurs (ladies or gentlemen) plus a professional of their choice. Teams that do not include a pro are allocated a leading player from the PGA Scotland Order of Merit.
The contest is held over the three renowned courses which are all members of HGL, a partnership that promotes Play and Stay golfing breaks in the Highlands of Scotland.
The Pro-Am is estimated to generate about £200,000 for the Highland economy, with other HGL partners – the Kingsmills Hotel and Culloden House Hotel, Inverness, and the Royal Golf Hotel in Dornoch – all benefiting from late-season bookings.
Fraser Cromarty, chairman of HGL, said: “Since its inception in 2013, the Pro-Am has grown steadily in popularity. This year, the involvement of Blue has helped stimulate new interest in the event and demand for places has been such that we have reached our capacity.
“We are very excited at the rapid growth of the event and hope to see it develop further in coming years with the support of Blue Group.”
Blue Group director Austin Carey said: “We are delighted that the Pro-Am has attracted such strong interest in our debut year as headline sponsor.
“This is a fantastic event, played over three magnificent links courses, and we aim to ensure it continues to be a major draw for both professional and amateur players in the coming years.”