
Harry Bannerman
BGC Honorary Member
Ryder Cup Team player: Old Warson Country Club, St Louis, Missouri 1971
Harry was a naturally talented youngster, discovering golf at the age of 14 and playing off scratch by 17. He rose through the amateur ranks quickly and played for the Scottish Boys’ International Team in 1959. After winning the Scottish Alliance Championship in 1965, a group of Aberdeen businessmen offered to sponsor him on the Pro Tour and his life changed. He was Scottish Pro Champion in 1967, and once again in 1972 by a margin of 10 strokes from a very strong field including Bernard Gallacher, Brian Barnes and Sam Torrance

Paul Lawrie, OBE
BGC Honorary Member
Winner: Qatar Masters, Doha Club 1999
Winner: Open Champion, Carnoustie 1999
Ryder Cup Team player: The Country Club, Brookline Massachusetts 1999 and Medinah Country Club, Medinah, Illinois 2012
Paul left school at 17 and began working as an Assistant Professional at Banchory GC under the watchful eye of Doug Smart. He soon became a touring professional and won his first title in the Scottish Assistant’s Championship at Cruden Bay, the PGA’s longest running event being one of the hardest to win: players are only eligible to compete in the championship during their three years of training.

Bruce Davidson
BGC Honorary Member
PGA Master Professional
Winner: BGC Junior Champion
Winner: BGC Club Champion
Bruce’s love of golf started as a sports-mad 12-year-old, when he managed to get hold of an old set of hickory clubs. He would take them out to his back garden at Banchory, perfecting his swing while trying not to take divots out of the grass. He soon graduated to an actual course, becoming a Junior Member at Banchory Golf Club and winning the 1977 Boys’ Junior Championship four years later.

Linda Urquhart
BGC Honorary Member
Winner: Ladies Club Championship 26 times
Winner: County Championship 3 times
Winner: BGC Ladies 36 hole open 7 times
Linda is a prodigious golfing talent in the North East of Scotland. For almost 50 years she has dominated the local golfing accolades and trophies. Joining Banchory Golf Club around 1966, she applied for permission to play in Banchory’s Club competitions in 1975 and took only 12 months to win the Ladies’ Bronze trophy. She followed this in 1978 with the first of her Club Championship titles, which she has won 26 times.

Greig Hutcheon
BGC Honorary Member
Winner: Scottish PGA Championship – 3 times
Winner: Scottish Northern Open – 3 times
As a junior member at Banchory Golf Club it was clear that young Greig had a talent. He had left Banchory Academy to join the Golf Club on a Youth Training Scheme programme and learned the game under the guidance of the late Doug Smart, the Banchory professional who also nurtured the talent of 1999 Open Golf Champion, Paul Lawrie. By 1989 at the age of 16 Greig took up a golf scholarship at Lamar University in Texas, where he studied for two years, during which time he had won the Club’s Spence Trophy, and in 1990 was selected to play for Scotland in the Boy’s Home internationals.

Sam Locke
BGC Honorary Member
Winner: Scottish Amateur Championship, Prestwick 2017
Winner: Silver Medal, Open Championship, Carnoustie 2018
Sam Locke was born in 1998 and came to prominence by winning the leading amateur’s Silver Medal at the 2018 Open Championship. He was the only amateur to survive the 36-hole Final Qualifying that year and then the only amateur to make the cut at Carnoustie. He turned professional after the Championship.

James Byrne
BGC Honorary Member
Member of the winning GB&I Walker Cup Team 2011
James was born in Gorleston, England but at three weeks old he relocated with his parents to their home in Banchory, Scotland. From an early age he showed promise in both swimming and golf, and whilst achieving success in the former he chose to focus upon a career on the golf course in 2004. At the age of eight he gained membership to our Club and competed in his first competition at the age of nine. His technique and ability improved with coaching from David Naylor, and laterally the Inchmarlo Professional, Andrew Locke, and he represented Scotland across all age groups. James was selected for the GB&I team twice, and gained his first major tournament victory at the Scottish Boys’ Strokeplay Championship.