IT’S BUGGY BRILLIANT
Lasting legacy at golf club
Big- hearted golfers from St Fillans are raising funds to buy a golf buggy in honour of their popular club captain who has been diagnosed with a lifethreatening illness.
Keen golfer Malcolm Baillie ( 69) asked members to donate money towards a buggy instead of buying wedding presents for him and his new wife Jill (74), who were married during a small family ceremony at Crieff Registry Office on Wednesday this week.
Malcolm, who lives in Comrie, was diagnosed with cancer earlier this year and has only been able to continue playing golf by using one of the club’s golf carts to get about.
He told the Herald: “I get very tired now because of the treatment and medication but I’m still playing golf and have been using a buggy to go round the course.
“The ones we’ve got at the club are pretty old though now so when people asked what we wanted for wedding gifts,
I thought it would be a good idea to raise money for a new one which would be more reliable.
“Jill and I have been living happily together for 24 years and we’ve already got everything we need.
“A golf buggy will be something useful that I can leave to the club and I’m pleased to be able to do that.”
A new buggy will cost several thousand pounds and golf members have been generously handing in donations over the past few weeks.
On Friday this week, they’ll celebrate with Malcolm and Jill – also a club member and a former ladies’ captain – at a party to mark their wedding at the golf club.
Malcolm says: “We’re having a get-together with club members and everyone who’s contributed towards the buggy and will find out how much has been raised then.”
Malcolm was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in March and has been undergoing chemotherapy.
Meanwhile, St Fillans Golf Club manager Gordon Hibbert said he was delighted with the “fantastic response” from members to the buggy appeal.
He said: “Malcolm and Jill have been and are popular and dedicated members of St Fillans Golf Club, giving many voluntary hours to the club over many years.
“They can both turn their hands to almost every task required for the continual smooth running of our club.”
He said that when asked about wedding presents, the selfless couple thought only of the club, adding: “We appreciate the continual generosity of Malcolm and Jill, to be thinking of others while dealing with their own personal health issue.”
Anyone who wants to contribute to the collection can hand money into Gordon at the club or post their donation into the honesty box marking the envelope ‘Malcolm & Jill’.