Residents have hit out after the closure of a public right of way on to the Championship golf course at Carnoustie.
A gate at the Burnside car park, popular with dog owners and walkers, has been padlocked, preventing easy access across the 18th hole towards the beach.
Course bosses have claimed the closure is to prevent damage to the green caused by dogs, but residents and right-to-roam groups have criticised the move, citing the fact the course is on publicly-owned land.
Resident Gordon Reid said: “It’s public land it belongs to the people.
“It is a load of rubbish they’re completely out of order and have no right to close the course like this.
“If they are worried about damage to the course they could have put up signage telling people to keep their dogs on a lead.
“They shouldn’t be able to close it. This is a public right of way.
“They say it takes 25 years to get into the club. I don’t want this just to be for the rich few who live in America and play two games on the course a year.
“It’s public it should be for everyone.”
Helen Todd, campaign and policy manager for Scottish Ramblers, said: “This is a cart-before-the-horse policy. There ought to have been a consultation to see what could be done if it’s true that dogs were damaging the greens.
“It is reasonable to expect that dogs are under control but there are many remedies within the legislation that could have been utilised before a closure was warranted.
“A consultation with locals, or signage or just discussion with the problem dog owners could have remedied the situation.
“Of course golf course members were one of the big groups that were keen to prevent access when the legislation was being discussed, and it was decided they were responsible for managing access, not outright banning it.”
Graham Duncan, general manager at Carnoustie Golf Links, said: “The path has always been open and there are numerous routes on to the course still open.
“We have closed this gate to try to prevent dog walkers going into the 18th green their dogs chase balls around and can damage the green at the 18th hole of the Championship course.
“These are early days, so we shall see if this dissuades dog walkers from going on to the course or if it spreads this damage across the whole course in a more manageable way.
“We take a relaxed approach to this. When the access code actually says that dogs ought to be kept on short leads while on golf courses, we are very generous with the access we give to dog walkers.”