Golfers played on at a popular Fife course on Tuesday in the wake of a devastating blaze which wrecked its clubhouse.
The premises at Charleton Golf Club were razed to the ground when a fire tore through them in the early hours of Monday.
An investigation to establish the cause of the fire is underway. However, golfers, who had been eager to return to the game as lockdown restrictions eased, were still hitting the fairways of the Colinsburgh course on Tuesday.
Club secretary and manager Andrew Paterson said he was “absolutely gutted” by the loss of the clubhouse and its contents but insisted play would go on.
Among the treasures that are gone are trophies, hats signed by Tom Watson and Colin Montgomerie and a photograph of the course being opened in 1994 by former US president George Bush Snr.
Andrew said: “We have lost all our trophies, all our history is gone, but we will replace it, we will get it back and we will go on.
“People thought we would be closed yesterday but we are open.
“The course is untouched and it’s in the best condition it’s been in for years.”
Andrew rushed from his nearby home to the clubhouse when a fellow member alerted him shortly after the alarm was raised at 1.50am.
But he said: “By the time I got there it was gone.”
Three appliances were dispatched to the blaze but firefighters were unable to save the building, which was totally destroyed. Firefighters remained at the course all day until after 10pm.
Andrew said the Fife golfing community had pulled together to support the club in the aftermath, including a friend, Austen Cameron, who donated a caravan for staff to use.
A Scottish Fire and Rescue Service spokesperson said: “We were alerted at 1.48am on Monday, June 8 to reports of a building fire in Colinsburgh, Fife.
“Operations control mobilised three appliances to the town’s Charleton Golf Club, where firefighters worked through the night to extinguish the fire.
“Crews remained on the scene for some time as they worked to eliminate any remaining hotspots.
“There were no casualties.”
A joint probe was launched by the service and Police Scotland.
A police spokeswoman said: “Our inquiries are continuing.”
