Paul Lawrie brands golf centre thieves ‘scumbags’

FORMER Open champion Paul Lawrie today branded the thieves who raided his Aberdeen golf centre as “scum bags.”

Paul Lawrie in action in Shanghai. The golfer was in China as his golf centre was raided. Picture: Getty

Three masked robbers smashed their way into the shop at the Ryder Cup star’s golf centre on the outskirts of the city at the weekend and stole an estimated £30,000 worth of golfing clothes and equipment.

Lawrie, who is understood to be on his way home to Aberdeen after finishing tied for 34th place at the BMW Masters at the Lake Malaren resort in Shanghai, tweeted: “Scumbags - We have good CCTV but they were all wearing balaclavas and gloves.”

Detectives are continuing their investigation into the “high value” robbery at the Paul Lawrie Golf Centre at Blairs, on the South Deeside Road, in the early hours of Saturday morning.

A Police Scotland spokesman said: “A large amount of Galvin Green clothing and Taylormade golf clubs were stolen from the premises. It is believed a silver coloured Audi A4 was used by the perpetrators, who had sourced stolen number plates in the local area.”

The robbery at the Paul Lawrie golf centre is the third raid on golf shops in the North east in the past four weeks.

On 24 September thieves broke into the Dunes Golf Driving Range in Fraserburgh and stole an estimated £50,000 worth of goods, and on 17 October an estimated £10,000 of golfing equipment was stolen from Murcar Golf Club in the Bridge of Don.

Robbie Stewart, director of golf at Paul Lawrie Golf Centre, said: “Three people broke in during the early hours of the morning. They used wire cutters to break through the gates and then used a crowbar to break the bottom window of the shop’s door, before crawling in. They absolutely knew what they were looking for.”