Andrew Oldcorn is new ambassador for Ratho Park Golf Club

Forty-two years after he joined Ratho Park as a member, Andrew Oldcorn has returned to his golfing roots.

Club captains Armar Johnston and Caroline Mansley flank Andrew Oldcorn at Ratho Park Golf Club to where he has returned after 42 years

To his delight, the former PGA champion is now an official ambassador for the Lothians club and can’t wait to fly its flag on the Staysure Seniors Tour.

Oldcorn, who was born in Bolton but raised in Edinburgh, cut his golfing teeth at Dalmahoy before moving to Ratho Park when he was still a junior.

He was attached to Kings Acre when he won the PGA Championship at Wentworth in 2001 - his third European Tour title triumph - and had retained that link with the Lasswade club until now.

“This has a nice symmetry to it as I am going back to where I started,” said Oldcorn. “I have been a member at Ratho Park since 1977 and been an honorary member there since 1983.

“I went back to Dalmahoy, where the club had folded when I was a junior, for a spell at the beginning of my pro career, but I was never attached to Ratho Park. It was always in my mind that I wanted to be back there and it is nice that is happening at the back end of my career.

“We managed to sort something out and I am delighted that it was unanimously agreed by the club council. I have been welcomed with open arms.

“I will be delighted to fly the flag for Ratho Park and hopefully I can help raise the profile of the club and put it on the map a bit more.

“This is something I have always wanted. It is not a business decision. It is out of my heart as it is a great club. I am round the bend and into the home straight in my career and I think this will be good for both of us. I am there a lot and play a lot of golf there in the winter.”

Club secretary Robert Dobbie said: “The council and members of the club are delighted that Andrew is representing Ratho Park as a club ambassador and hope to see him challenge for honours on the Staysure Tour in the coming months and years.

“We are also looking forward to Andrew’s increased involvement within the club which will serve to inspire the next generation of golfers at Ratho Park.”

Oldcorn, a three-time winner on the Staysure Tour, is gearing up for a busy spell, starting with a new event this week, the Farmfoods European Legends Links Championship at Trevose in Cornwall.

“We have a six-week run coming up that includes the Senior British Open, the PGA the week after and also the Scottish Senior Open,” said the 59-year-old.

“I have always needed a few events to get the motor running and hopefully my game will have picked up at the right time for when it really counts.”