Who’s who at the £55,000 golf club
ALAN MacDERMID
August 08 2006
THE veil has been drawn back from one of Scotland's most exclusive sporting havens – and it confirms you need a bonnie bonnie bank account to join Loch Lomond Golf Club.
Membership of the club, with access to one of the most iconic views in the world, now costs £55,000 up front, and £2200 a year thereafter.
But with a few celebrated exceptions – including Sir Sean Connery and Sir Jackie Stewart – membership has always been shrouded in mystique and rampant jealousy. Many members would not know the identity of their fellow golfers unless they bumped into them on the first tee.
Now a newly-published booklet, an official members' list which is not for public consumption, offers a glimpse of this veritable Who's Who of the sport, where a curry king can rub shoulders with Arnold Palmer and the two brothers whose company delivers Scotland's morning pint can walk the same greens as the international captain, Prince Andrew.
However, Sir Sean and Sir Jackie appear to be in a minority, since only about 5% of the members boast Scottish addresses (although, strictly speaking, that puts Sir Sean and Sir Jackie in the majority). In any event, although the bonnie banks are just 20 miles north of Glasgow, the majority of members appear to hail from places such as Arizona, Dubai and Zurich.
However, the club does find room for Sir Peter Burt, the former governor of the Bank of Scotland and now chairman of ITV. And the son of Rangers chairman David Murray happily forks out his annual subscription.
They can rub shoulders with Jack Irvine, the celebrated Glasgow PR guru, whose name appears next to Hale Irwin, a three-time US Masters winner.
Satty Singh, owner of Mr Singh's curry restaurant in Glasgow, is on the list, alongside advertising doyen Jim Faulds. Tycoons Alan and Robert Wiseman, of Wiseman Dairies, are also there, as are Sky Sports golf presenter David Livingstone and Hibs chairman Malcolm McPherson.
And former Mackay's Stores owner Len McGeoch has enough left over from Scotland's biggest-ever divorce settlement to find his annual fees. Top golfers who are also members include Sandy Lyle, Nick Faldo and Bernard Gallacher.
Loch Lomond Golf Club opened in 1994, the result of intense design work by Tom Weiskopf and Jay Morrish. It had financial troubles under its previous owners and after being taken over and run by the local authority, was considered one of the best value "pay-and-play" municipal courses in the country.
Lyle Anderson, an American property developer, bought the club from the council in 1994.
Its Spike Bar offers a spectacular breakfast, while picnics can be taken on the club boat. Each day, prime cuts of beef are brought in from the Duke of Buccleuch's estate in the Borders for consumption in the elegant dining rooms of Rossdhu House.
Mr Anderson writes in the list: "We want our members to view their memberships as valued passports to a unique retreat, providing special enjoyment in their lives.
"From the outset, I saw Loch Lomond as an association with both a place and a spirit forged by bringing together interesting people from all over the world."
Asked why it had chosen now to circulate a membership list, a spokeswoman for Loch Lomond said: "It is something that has been published solely for members. It is not in the public domain. We are a private club. It is something we have chosen to do but it is not up for discussion. Members have to give their consent to be included."