Braehead Golf Club on Alloa Road denies allegations that they broke the Equality Act 2010, and their club constitution when dealing with complaints from member, Gillian Bellington.
Gillian, 49, who suffers from Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME), said that the club accused her of playing outside of her tee times, and that they failed to make reasonable adjustments to accommodate her disability.
She said: “Since I started, the women have had strict rules of when you can and can’t play.
“They say I can’t play with men and when I do they disqualify me.”
She says that due to her health conditions, she is more physically able to play in the mornings, when the majority of players are men.
Gillian continued: “I have ME, so I play in the morning, and I struggle to play in the afternoon.
“I’m getting accused of playing outside of my tee-times. They disqualify me for playing with men and it’s against the Equality Act.
“It’s not my fault that not many women want to play in the morning.”
Following her complaints, Gillian claims that her golf handicap was restricted before she was later suspended from the club in mid-August, allegedly without a written warning.
She continued: “It was a shock.”
“It’s affecting me quite badly, I’m quite down and my mental health is not great.
“It’s a turmoil of emotions.”
Braehead Golf Club strongly denies the allegations and says that they have followed Scottish Golf guidelines and been fair in their dismissal.
David Dick, Braehead Club Secretary, said: “Although we do not comment on specific disciplinary procedures of any of our members due to data protection, we can confirm that we have followed all guidelines set out in conjunction with Scottish Golf and no guidelines were broken regarding either Gender or disability.
“We would also like to advise that we would always send out written notification to any individuals.
“The case that you may be referring to, a written notification was sent out via email on Friday 16th August 2025, which they did reply to.”