Golf’s iconic names will take on one of the game’s most revered links courses when The Senior Open Championship presented by Rolex returns to Turnberry from July 26-29, and fans can now book their place to see more history in the making on the picturesque Ayrshire coast.

Discounted advance tickets are now on sale for the 26th Senior Open Championship at a historic venue that is universally popular with leading senior players from both sides of the Atlantic.

Scotland’s Sam Torrance, the victorious 2002 European Ryder Cup Captain, will be hoping to lead the home challenge on Turnberry’s Ailsa Course, which he ranks as one of his favourite golfing venues.
“I was at Turnberry a few weeks ago and it looked absolutely magnificent,” enthused Torrance. “I’m really looking forward to The Senior Open there. Aesthetically it is one of the most beautiful looking courses in the world, in one of the most beautiful parts of the world, and it is a great golf course.”
“The Senior Open is always special, no matter where it is played, but it is extra special when it is played in Scotland. I’m from that area – I was born about an-hour-and-a-half from Turnberry – so it will be special.”
Tom Lehman, the leading player on the US Champions Tour in 2011, believes Turnberry would be the perfect venue to add a Senior Open Championship victory to The Open Championship he won at Royal Lytham and St. Annes in 1996.
“Turnberry is an amazing place,” said the 2006 United States Ryder Cup Captain. “It is a tremendous golf course and a beautiful spot in the world. The views from the top of the hill and the hotel looking over Ailsa Craig are exceptional. Winning The Senior Open is on my wish list.”

Carl Mason, the most prolific winner in Senior Tour history, has bitter-sweet memories of Turnberry, having agonisingly let the 2003 Senior Open Championship slip through his grasp.
Mason had a two shot lead playing the final hole on his Senior Open debut, but a closing double bogey allowed Tom Watson to take the Championship into a play-off, which the American won on the second extra hole 26 years after winning The Open Championship at the same venue in the famous ‘Duel in the Sun’ with Jack Nicklaus.

“Turnberry is one of the leading links courses, a set-up that everyone enjoys, and it is very fair,” said Mason. “It is also in a beautiful spot. The Senior Open is an event we all want to try and win and I’m sure we will all look forward to playing Turnberry.”
Barry Lane, winner of the past two Scottish Senior Opens and runner-up in the 2011 Senior Tour Order of Merit, added: “Turnberry is a wonderful venue. For us, as seniors, to play Turnberry is fantastic. We play some great courses anyway but to play a course that is on the Open rota is a real privilege.”
It will be the seventh time that Turnberry’s Ailsa Course has hosted The Senior Open Championship, the most of any venue, surpassing the six editions played at Royal Portrush in Northern Ireland.
Turnberry hosted the inaugural Senior Open in 1987, when Englishman Neil Coles captured the trophy, with Gary Player capturing the title in 1988 and 1990 and Bob Charles lifting the trophy in 1989.
American Loren Roberts took the title on the Senior Open’s last visit to Turnberry in 2006, four years after Watson’s play-off victory over Mason.
Turnberry has also hosted The Open Championship on four occasions, including in 2009, when Watson lost in a play-off to Stewart Cink at the age of 59.
With the US Senior Open moving from its traditional slot in the last week of July to a new date of July 12-15, The Senior Open Championship presented by Rolex will now be the final Senior Major of 2012, as well as the only professional Major Championship in Scotland this year, and fans can now reserve their tickets to be there.
Discounted advance tickets for The Senior Open Championship presented by Rolex can now be purchased online, with season passes now available at £60 and any one day tickets at £18. They can be booked online at www.europeantourtickets.com, where other discounts and offers can also be found.

American Russ Cochran won The 2011 Senior Open Championship at Walton Heath, England, holding off the challenge of former Open Champion Mark Calcavecchia, three-time Senior Open Champion Watson and 2010 United States Ryder Cup Captain Corey Pavin.

Cosses Country House is just 30minutes drive south of Turnberry in a beautiful hidden valley www.cossescountryhouse.com

Contact Susan Crosthwaite staying@cossescountryhouse.com

A very traditional Christmas dinner was celebrated at Cosses yesterday. The free range turkey, chipolata and streaky bacon rolls (all supplied by Dalduff), along with homemade sage and onion stuffing, bread and cranberry sauce was accompanied by crispy Cara roast potatoes, brussel sprouts and parsnips from the garden. The smoked salmon canapés were accompanied by Tapiz Torrontes from Mendoza, the Turkey was accompanied by Chasse Spleen from Bordeaux 1986 and the home- made Christmas Pudding was perfectly accompanied by Margaret River Muscat from Australia. We drank 1986 Dows Port with our Scottish Cheese board and home-made oatcakes. Parlour games and carols helped to work off

all the excesses……..

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We need to awaken the public to these issues before it is too late – we need their active support.

We want to inform the general public that the politicians are not listening to the experts. We are urging the government to think about this policy in light of the recent information by the Institute of Mechanical Engineers who say the target of 100% renewables by 2020 is unachievable.

The government are allowing a stealth tax on all our energy bills to re-direct money from the poor to wealthy land owners and mostly non-British energy companies through ROCs and a climate levy charge. They are actively pushing people into fuel poverty. They are encouraging the farmers to farm wind instead of crops and livestock which will cause local food shortages and change the face of the countryside for ever.

We want to highlight the negative effects on tourism, the film industry, wildlife, and landscapes which will not be realised by most until it is too late: Why were all these public bodies not allowed to ‘give a view’ at our conference? They were all invited! Is Alex Salmond’s Scotland really a democracy? There is a complete conflict of interest in the position as Minister of Energy and Tourism, as the two are incompatible under the present government policy. Fergus Ewing has yet to respond to our hand delivered invitation!

What are the real negative effects on people's health, mental and physical. Our expert speakers will reveal all. Why are guidelines created if they are just ignored. While the misery and loss of amenity suffered by people living near wind turbines is a major consideration for opposing them, we all have a stake in our landscape wherever we live.

We are questioning the inconsistencies in planning, the flouted guidelines, the  ignoring of preferred areas of search in council plans, changing the status of Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) - those areas of land and water  that Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) considers to best represent our natural heritage. They are the essential building blocks of Scotland's protected areas for nature conservation. 

We are questioning a ‘Pre Determination Regulation’ (only in Scotland) which says that anyone on a planning decision panel must be impartial.  Therefore anyone against wind farms must declare their interest. Surely this is the most ridiculous regulation ever, as it means that you ‘cannot have a view on anything’. Surely all those agreeing with current Scottish energy policy already ‘have a predetermined view’! They should also ‘declare their interest’!

There is so much 'spin' out there generated by the wind industry and this conference will inform the public of the FACTS behind the wind industry.

Many of our rural communities are being threatened and will become industrialised areas to the detriment of us all.

The First Scottish National Windfarm Conference is about getting closer to the truth about wind farms

To Register; http://www.communitiesagainstturbinesscotland.com/registration/

Susan Crosthwaite

Cosses Country House

Ballantrae, Ayrshire, Scotland, UK. KA26 0LR

E: staying@cossescountryhouse.com

www.cossescountryhouse.com

T: +44(0) 1465 831363

F: +44(0) 1465 831598

M: + 44(0) 7745568303

in association with Wolsey Lodges  

www.wolseylodges.com

and Holiday Southern Scotland

www.holidaysouthernscotland.co.uk       

www.blogsouthernscotland.com

A personal invitation, was handed to Fergus Ewing by Lyndsay Ward during a private meeting with herself and Stuart Young at the SNP conference last month. This is a very important conference covering issues very much at the forefront of Scotland’s economic future and I am very disappointed not to have had any response from Mr Ewing. With expert speakers –and high media presence, I would have thought that Mr Ewing would at least have liked to have made a statement………

Dear Mr Ewing,                                                         20^th October 2011

I would like to invite you to a conference about the issue of wind farms in Scotland. We have expert speakers (agenda attached) and the whole point of the conference is to answer questions about the effects of wind turbines on the environment and the economy. As a Scottish Government Minister you represent the people of Scotland and we would like you to explain government policy and listen to the concerns of your electorate.

There seems to be no consistency in planning regulations for wind farms; the Scottish Government say it is up to planning but planners say they have been instructed by the Scottish Government to give the go ahead to industrialise ‘green belt’ areas. Following expensive public enquiries, the Scottish Government is rubber stamping larger wind farm applications, no matter what the recommendations.

For every 2 foreign visitors coming into the UK, 5 UK residents leave to visit other countries, therefore we need world class attractions and world class resorts to attract more visitors and create more staycations. It is all very well having the Commonwealth Games, Ryder Cup and Homecoming to bring tourists to Scotland, but will they come back when they see Turbines blotting the landscapes. My guests tell me not – see attached letter (of which I can produce any number from my horrified guests).

The threatened invasion of turbines on the Cairngorm National Park, Loch Lomond and many other ‘wild areas’ of Scotland is of huge concern to Scotland’s visitors and tourism businesses. There seems to be no one in the Scottish Government defending rural tourism, with government policy so overwhelmingly on the side of renewable energy development. There is a complete conflict of interest in your position as Minister of Energy and Tourism, as the two are incompatible under the present government policy.

S.W. Scotland has a new ‘jewel in the crown’ with its Biosphere and Dark Sky Park which hopes to be awarded UNESCO status next spring. This is an unrivalled tourism opportunity for S.W. Scotland

The area was earmarked for wind farm development long before the Biosphere and dark sky status was realised. Further wind turbine development will have a devastating effect on visitor numbers and therefore the tourism economy, particularly in repeat business. While the misery and loss of amenity suffered by people living near wind turbines is a major consideration for opposing them, we all have a stake in our landscape wherever we live and wind farms should be vigorously opposed in any wild area.  The proportion of Scotland's land not visually affected by man-made constructions has fallen from 41% in 2002 to only 28% in 2009.  We must stop this madness before we have no wild land left.

In S. Ayrshire the statistic that is quite staggering is the land mass that these developments represent: approximately 51,334 acres, mostly outside the Broad Area of Search utilisation?

In South Ayrshire we appear to be facing the possibility of one of the most densely packed areas of wind turbines in Scotland. Additionally, we are seeing a complete disregard for the planning system - the Broad Areas of Search are virtually being ignored.

Do not lose sight of the fact that this new land use will remain with us for an entire generation - quite possibly longer.

Many applications contravene planning policies as they do have significant visual impact and add to the cumulative impact on the environment.

The publication entitled The Economic Impacts of Wind Farms on Scottish Tourism, available from http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2008/03/07113554/0  is the evidence the Scottish government is basing its policy on, a study that was conducted in February 2005 when there were precisely 25 wind farms in Scotland. At the moment there are 342 wind farms (9806 turbines) with many, many more in various stages of scoping and planning and the Scottish government refuses to recognise the damage it is inflicting on the environment.

More and more evidence is showing that wind turbines and tourism are NOT compatible!

When asking any public funded tourism or environmental body, Visit Scotland, Scotfilm, SNH, RSPB, the Forestry Commission to comment or stand up for tourism we are told that they have to support government policy and they unable to comment (as they are government funded bodies).

Tourism is crucial to Scotland’s cultural and economic well-being. It sustains a great diversity of business, including my own. South Ayrshire now has the highest rated hotel in Scotland – Glenapp Castle – this area must be protected for these high spending visitors. Tourism provides jobs in the private sector and stimulates the regeneration of rural areas.

Scenery and the natural environment are the most important factors for visitors when choosing a holiday location. The character and visual amenity value of South West Scotland’s landscapes is a key driver of our tourism product.

Yours faithfully,

Susan Crosthwaite

Chairman of Holiday Southern Scotland

Vice Chair of Wolsey Lodges

On the Ayrshire and Arran Chamber Tourism Forum

On the Ayrshire Chamber Business Forum

An active member of the Ayrshire Food Network

To reserve your place http://www.communitiesagainstturbinesscotland.com/

£9,453,249-to stand idle- in September- was paid to wind farms in Scotland-contributing to the inflated energy company profits!

September was an exceptionally windy month, but still relatively warm – in fact very warm in some lucky areas!

Energy production from wind was exceeding demand from the consumer. In Scotland, at various times 13 wind farms were asked to shut down as the National Grid could not cope with the surge of wind energy being generated.  Normally, generators of energy have contracts with the Grid and established procedures for  when they need to shut down and the Grid compensates them for loss of earning.

The government says that the Grid must take wind whenever it is generated.  If a wind farm has to close down production because it is asked to by National Grid, it would lose about £55 per MWh. Normally NG would compensate them at this rate But the wind farms are getting greedier and dictating their terms on which they will shut down.  NG has no option. The alternative is that sections of the Grid would have to close down and the ‘Lights Go Out’

Hadyard Hill (SSE) in Ayrshire demanded £149 per megawatt hour and made almost £2 million in September.  Fred Olsen at Crystall Rigg demanded £991 per megawatt hour and made £1.27million over three days.  (Information obtained from the Renewable Energy Foundation.)

Also see this Telegraph article:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/energy/windpower/8770937/Wind-farm-paid-1.2-million-to-produce-no-electricity.html

So, are the wind farms holding the National grid to ransom when they are asked to shut down? Why does this only seems to happen in Scotland?

Is this one reason why our energy bills so high and the energy companies making £125 per year profit from every customer. Iain McLeod and Colin Gibson will be speaking on this topic at our conference.

To find out more join our conference http://www.communitiesagainstturbinesscotland.com/

Been busy all summer with new green- house which will greatly extend the growing season for all our wonderful vegetables at Cosses.

Work in progress! Fiona home for the summer helping Aiden put in the glass.

The solar panels also helped:

Duncan and Aiden on the job. These are new ‘state of the art’ tubular panels, installed by www.Ceiba-Renewables.co.uk Duncan designs these systems which now heat most of the hot water for our guests.

A great treat for all our guests having wild salmon for dinner –with gooseberry sauce and home grown steamed vegetables were a great accompaniment! Other local delicacies’ this week include lobster, Crailoch lamb, local prawns And Marrbury Auld Smoked Salmon.

A great favourite at breakfast is fresh fruit salad:

The raspberries, grapes, plums, pears and blueberries are all from the orchard. Infact Joy brings the grapes from her Mum’s orangery along with quince from her garden and I made grape and quince jelly. It goes so well with the new Barwheys Cheddar, Aiket Bri and Criffel.

As I write this I can hear the Barn Owl outside hooting to its mate!!

I will serve redcurrants  with Crailoch lamb tonight with Madeira Sauce. The lamb is delicious, being partially reared on the shore and partially on the hill.

We hardly met a sole, our guests informed us on return from walking to the top of Benerraird; the views were spectacular today and the sky larks sang above our heads. Hares dashed across our paths and deer appeared from the forests.

For more on walking in Southern Scotland see www.cossescountryhouse.com/walkncycle.htm