Search is on for ‘business leader’ to be new chief

Scottish Golf is trying to tempt a “proven business leader” to become its new chief executive officer by offering a six-figure package.

The governing body’s search to find a successor for Blane Dodds, who is heading off to fill the same role at Tennis Scotland, is well underway.

The job has been advertised and interviews are set to start on Monday week, raising the possibility that someone could be appointed before a crucial public meeting in Stirling next month.

According to Scottish Golf, the ideal candidate will be a “proven and highly visible board level business leader who can demonstrate transforming an organisation both culturally and commercially”.

The person being sought will also “possess outstanding communication skills” while another quality being looked for is “entrepreneurial thinking”.

But, according to the job description, the most important factor of all is that the new CEO needs to have a “love for golf in Scotland” and a “genuine passion for the game of golf at grass-roots level, both regionally and nationally”.

The search is being led by Eleanor Cannon, Scottish Golf ’s chair, after she took over reins from Dodds on a temporary basis when he announced his departure after just 16 months at the helm. His successor will be tasked with developing a strategy to fill a funding gap that forced Scottish Golf to take £400,000 from its reserve pot this year.

Meanwhile, one of the leading events on the Scottish Golf fixture list is heading to Gleneagles for the first time next year. The Carrick Neill Scottish Open Stroke Play Championship will be played on the King’s Course at the Perthshire resort on a new date at the end of August.

“The King’s and Queen’s are both 100 years’ old in 2019, so it’s nice to have such a notable amateur event coming back here ahead of that anniversary,” said Gary Silcock, director of golf at Gleneagles.