Big Golf Tours

After moving to Montrose with his wife and falling in love with St Andrews and the east coast, Barrie is now helping others to do the same and is providing opportunities to learn to play in the ‘home of golf’.

Following a funding boost of £20,000 from BizBritain and the British Business Bank’s Start Up Loans programme, the two-day beginners academy is now open for bookings.

Initially based at Montrose Links and Kintore Golf Courses, the academy includes six hours of master classes each day, aimed to help beginners enhance their practical techniques and understanding of technical terms.

The British Business Bank’s Start Up Loans programme has supported 122 entrepreneurs like Barrie and delivered more than £1 million in loans to new business owners in Angus since it began in 2012.

Barrie aims to create a relaxed, supportive environment by teaching from a learner’s perspective, using relatable techniques, free from jargon.

Participants will be coached by Jason Boyd, who has over 25 years’ experience as a golf professional and is currently the chairman of the Scottish Regions Professional Golfers Association.

Later this year, Big Golf Tours will also start to offer longer holiday experiences, providing stays from five days to two weeks where guests can visit bucket-list courses including the likes of St Andrews Links and Carnoustie Golf Links.

The ambition is to partner with up to 100 different courses to help attract 10,000 new golfers to the sport through the experiences on offer.

While learning, Barrie started his own social media channels and has now gained over 3,000 subscribers on YouTube, with his wife, Rocel supporting behind the scenes to create content and golf course reviews.

Another future plan for the business is to bring this network of followers and online friends together for golfing days at some of the best hidden gem courses around Scotland.