Gleneagles Hotel

The Gleneagles Hotel
Gleneagles Hotel and surrounding grounds
General information
Location Auchterarder
Perthshire
Scotland
PH3 1NF
Opening 7 June 1924
Owner Ennismore
Design and construction
Developer Caledonian Railway Company
Other information
Number of restaurants 4
Website
gleneagles.com
Gleneagles Hotel
Club information
Location Perth and Kinross, Scotland
Established 1924
Type Private
Owned by Ennismore
Total holes 63
Tournaments hosted Ryder Cup, Johnnie Walker Championship
Website www.gleneagles.com
King's Course
Designed by James Braid
Par 71
Length 6,790 yards
Queen's Course
Designed by James Braid
Par 68
Length 5,965 yards
PGA Centenary Course
Designed by Jack Nicklaus
Par 73
Length 7,320 yards
Wee Course (9 holes)
Designed by George Alexander
Par 27
Length 1481 yards

Gleneagles Hotel is a luxury hotel near Auchterarder, Perth and Kinross, Scotland.

History

The hotel, which opened in 1924, was built by the former Caledonian Railway Company which also built the nearby Gleneagles railway station. The hotel itself once had its own dedicated railway branch line.[1]

During the Second World War, as with many large country hotels, it was converted into Gleneagles Hospital[2] under the charge of Dr Thomas Ferguson as Medical Superintendent.[3]

The hotel's golf course and luxurious surroundings meant that golf and grouse shooting at Gleneagles had, by the 1950s, become a fixed part of high society's calendar, along with yachting at Cowes and polo at Deauville.

When the hotel was being built, an up-and-coming dance band leader named Henry Hall was involved in buying their pianos, and organising the dance band entertainment. He decided that radio broadcasts would be an ideal way to advertise the new hotel, so was given permission to move his Trafford Band from Manchester's Midland Hotel to the Gleneagles and form a new band in Manchester. The hotel's opening night was celebrated with Scotland's first ever outside broadcast on 4 June 1924.

After the season ended, the band moved to the Adelphi Hotel in Liverpool. Summer 1925 saw the band return to Gleneagles, although their commercial recordings were made in Manchester, and the winter seasons were in Liverpool.[4]

Between 1982 and 1986, £11 million was spent on renovation and since 1982 the hotel has been open all year round. In 1986, and every year since, the hotel has been awarded five red stars by the AA. The hotel was owned for 31 years by the international alcoholic beverage firm Diageo, until it was sold to a private investment company Ennismore in 2015.[5]

The hotel was redeveloped[6] in preparation for hosting the 40th Ryder Cup Matches in 2014 played on the PGA Centenary Course.

Facilities

Restaurants

Gleneagles has 9 bars and restaurants.[7]

Golf

Gleneagles has remained famous for its golf courses: the King's Course, Queen's Course and PGA Centenary Course, previously known as the Monarch's Course. There is also a nine-hole course called the PGA National Academy Course, informally known as the Wee Course. Gleneagles Golf Academy opened in 1994 and in 2010 was re-branded to The PGA National Academy for Scotland.[8] The Jack Nicklaus-designed PGA Centenary Course opened in 1993 and hosted the Ryder Cup in 2014. When asked about his work, Nicklaus said, "It's the finest parcel of land in the world I have ever been given to work with."[9]

Significant tournaments that have taken place (or will take place) at Gleneagles include:[10]

Conference venue

The facade of the hotel

Significant conferences that have taken place (or will take place) at Gleneagles include:

Other facilities

Sir Jackie Stewart, of Formula One fame, developed close ties with Gleneagles Hotel and established a successful clay pigeon shooting school, now known as The Gleneagles Shooting and Fishing School.

The British School of Falconry has been located at Gleneagles since 1992.[11]

Glenmor Holiday Homes

The village of Glenmor has holiday homes set within the grounds of the hotel.[12]

The homes are leased to owners for periods of one or more weeks per year until 2058 (55 years since opening in 2003).

Awards

Gleneagles Hotel has won/holds many awards,[13] including

  • 5 Red AA Stars[14] (since 1986)
  • Conde Nast Gold List 2009 - Best Hotel in the World for Facilities[15]
  • Scotland's leading resort at the World Travel Awards 2008[16]
  • Best Golf Resort in the World (2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017) - Ultratravel Magazine[17]
  • Scotland's Best Hotel - Today's Golfer Travel Awards (2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017)[18]

See also

References

  1. ↑ http://portal.historicenvironment.scot/designation/GDL00360
  2. ↑ http://www.gleneagles.com/hotel/gleneagles-blog/the-gleneagles-general-hospital
  3. ↑ Biographical Index of Former Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh 1783–2002 (PDF). The Royal Society of Edinburgh. July 2006. ISBN 0 902 198 84 X.
  4. ↑ "Henry Hall biography". John Wright. Archived from the original on 2 October 2013. Retrieved 25 September 2013.
  5. ↑ BBC News (2 July 2015). "Gleneagles Hotel and golf resort sold by Diageo". Retrieved 6 July 2015.
  6. ↑ Simon Brown (1 February 2008). "Gleneagles Announces Launch of New Destination Spa". PR Web. Retrieved 1 February 2008.
  7. ↑ "Fine Dining Restaurants in Scotland | Gleneagles Hotel". Gleneagles. Retrieved 2017-09-18.
  8. ↑ "The PGA National Golf Academy Scotland | Gleneagles". Gleneagles. Retrieved 2017-09-18.
  9. ↑ https://trugolf.com/news/gleneagles-home-of-the-2014-ryder-cup/
  10. ↑ "Golf championships at Gleneagles". Gleneagles Hotel. Archived from the original on 2 August 2009. Retrieved 11 February 2009.
  11. ↑ "British School of Faconry at Gleneagles". Gleneagles Hotel. Retrieved 19 January 2009.
  12. ↑ "Glenmor holiday homes at Gleneagles". Gleneagles Hotel. Archived from the original on 13 October 2008. Retrieved 19 January 2009.
  13. ↑ "Gleneagles' Awards". Gleneagles Hotel. Archived from the original on 19 December 2008. Retrieved 18 December 2008.
  14. ↑ "5 red Stars from AA". Automobile Association. Retrieved 19 January 2009.
  15. ↑ "Conde Nast Gold List 2009". Conde Nast Traveller. Archived from the original on 24 December 2008. Retrieved 19 January 2009.
  16. ↑ "World Travel Awards 2008". World Travel Awards. Retrieved 19 January 2009.
  17. ↑ "Gleneagles voted Best Golf Resort in the World - GolfPunkHQ". GolfPunkHQ. Retrieved 2017-09-18.
  18. ↑ "Gleneagles scores hole in one | DRAM Scotland". dramscotland.co.uk. Retrieved 2017-09-18.

Coordinates: 56°17′09″N 3°44′51″W / 56.28583°N 3.74750°W / 56.28583; -3.74750

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