Golf courses in England reopened last Wednesday. Golf courses in Wales and the Republic of Ireland will open today. But, as of this morning there was still no sign of when golf could resume in Scotland and Northern Ireland. That all changed at the Scottish government's daily briefing this afternoon.
Scotland's first minister, Nicola Sturgeon has made no apologies for taking a cautious approach to the coronavirus crisis, but the resumption of golf in both England and Wales has put pressure on the Scottish government to allow the game to return in Scotland.
Last week Sturgeon gave the first glimmer of hope for golf. On Friday, she confirmed that this week she would unveil plans for navigating the exit from lockdown. She also indicated that restrictions on outdoor activities would be among the first to be relaxed.
Today she confirmed that the Scottish government will publish a "route map" for easing the lockdown in Scotland this Thursday. She also confirmed that:
"Assuming that we see progress in suppressing the virus, the first phase will start start from the next formal review date of Thursday 28 May."
"Within a few days of that we will aim to allow, for example, more outdoor activity such as: being able to sit in the park; meet up outdoors with someone from another household, as long as you stay socially distanced; some limited outdoor sporting activities like golf and fishing; the opening of garden centres and recycling facilities and the resumption of some out-door work."
For struggling golf clubs in Scotland the announcement of a re-start could not come soon enough. The good news from golf clubs south of the border is that along with the huge surge in bookings there has also been a huge surge in membership applications.
In the meantime, golf clubs in Scotland are being advised by their software providers to prepare for the reintroduction of tee times, after several clubs in England experienced problems due to the demand.
The Managing Director of Club Systems, Richard Peabody has urged all clubs in Scotland to:
“Prepare for golf, it is happening, courses in Scotland will open and it will be soon, get ready now and avoid the rush. The rush in England caused a massive strain on providers’ web servers as did sending emails at the last minute.”
Assuming the green light for golf is given on Thursday 28 May, some of the pessimists amongst us will be in no doubt that the re-start will see an end to the fair weather we've enjoyed on our daily walks. But, after more than two months of staying at home in lockdown, I'm sure that none of us will care.
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