Edinburgh golf club could sell three of its holes due to financial woes

A James Braid-designed golf course in Edinburgh could see three of its holes turned into a luxury retirement complex to cover the financial problems it has been suffering.

According to Edinburgh Evening News, Prestonfield Golf Club, which celebrates its centenary this year, has been facing difficulties over a loan and ongoing losses.

Inspired Villages Group, which owns seven retirement villages in the UK, has tabled an offer for a ‘prime chunk of land’.

The offer involves the first, second and 18th holes, as well as the clubhouse, a separate cottage house and the club’s car park.

According to the paper, some members ‘walked out in anger’ when they were informed of the proposal at the club’s recent annual general meeting.

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It is understood the club has £300,000 of a £1 million pound loan to pay off, with another option on the table being to sell just the cottage house. That apparently would pay off the remainder off the loan and leave £100,000 in the pot.

Neal Dale, development director at Inspired Villages, said: “Inspired Villages is focused on creating communities that allow people to live healthy, independent lives for longer. We have had very preliminary discussions with Prestonfield Golf Club about the principle of working together on a project that will assist the sustainability of the golf club operation for the long-term, as well as allow us to create homes that will help address the severe shortage of age-appropriate housing in the area.

“Due to the very early stage of discussions we do not have any indicative designs to share as these would ultimately be developed with input from Prestonfield Golf Club and its members.”

“It would have left the club in a very strong position financially,” said one member of the proposal by Inspired Villages, a London-based company which was launched in 2017 and plans to have 50 schemes in the UK in the next 10 years.

Club secretary Gareth Pugh told the paper that committees are looking into alternative options that will be presented to members at an EGM this month.