Supporting Saints: Rusacks St Andrews, Clarets and Connoisseur Golf
For more than 170 years, golf has been woven into the fabric of student life at the University of St Andrews. Today, nearly 1,000 students, almost one in every ten at the University, engage with Saints Golf, making it one of the largest and most vibrant university golf programmes in Europe.
Saints Golf relies on philanthropic investment to enable talented student athletes to thrive while representing St Andrews in the most competitive university leagues and national competitions.
Partnering with Saints Golf for the 2026–27 season are sponsors Rusacks St Andrews, Connoisseur Golf and Clarets. Their belief in golf at St Andrews helps to enhance the student experience, strengthen our performance environment, and enables student-athletes to pursue success at the highest level of British university sport.
A meaningful connection to St Andrews
“I’ve always felt very fortunate to have been given the opportunity to study at St Andrews,” says alumnus Jim Stewart (MA Hons 2005). “As someone who has loved golf for almost four decades, there’s no better place in the world.”
Jim graduated with a degree in Art History and is now Managing Director of St Andrews-based luxury golf travel operator, Connoisseur Golf. He recalls University golf during his student days in the early 2000s, when the game was predominantly a social sport. He remembers that mentality changing when important matches and tournaments came around but doesn’t believe golf at St Andrews was played at anything akin to today’s standard.
“There’s a completely different setup now, and it is so refreshing to see University golfers competing with regularity at the highest level,” he says. “This has been achieved through direction, discipline, and a modern approach to training and preparation. These new advances do not come without cost, and I’m delighted that Connoisseur Golf can play a small part in helping to continue the success that’s already been achieved.”
Supporting students and strengthening community
For five-star Rusacks St Andrews, supporting Saints Golf plays to a belief that corporate responsibility extends far beyond the walls of the hotel. “We’re incredibly fortunate to be part of one of the world’s greatest golfing destinations,” explains General Manager Seamus Coen. “With that comes a responsibility to support the people and organisations that make St Andrews such a special place. Saints Golf embodies everything that’s great about our community. It creates opportunities for young people, encourages participation in the game, develops life skills, and ensures that golf remains accessible to the next generation. Those values align perfectly with what we stand for as a business.”
Clarets’ connection the game extends beyond its ties to the town. Its downstairs neighbour is the R&A World Golf Museum, which boasts one of the largest collections of golf memorabilia in the world. “Being based within the Museum and overlooking the Old Course means golf is naturally a huge part of who we are, so supporting Saints Golf felt like a great fit from the outset,” says Stefano Pieraccini, Proprietor and Managing Director of the enviably located café and brasserie. “The University is such an important part of St Andrews, and we’re proud to support a programme that gives talented young golfers the opportunity to develop, compete and represent the University at a high level. We’re still at the beginning of our own journey with Clarets, so it’s exciting to build relationships like this and hopefully create a partnership that grows for years to come.”
For Jim and the team at Connoisseur Golf, getting involved with Saints Golf is about a much deeper connection than financial sponsorship. “We love following the players’ progress and tracking team results. By attending events, tournaments, launches and mixers, we feel like a true part of the setup, not just a silent sponsor.”
Stefano echoes Jim’s sentiment, adding: “We don’t see it as something purely transactional; hopefully we can build a relationship that develops over time.”
The same rings true for Rusacks, where the team – and the hotel guests who happen upon the student athletes in the bar, 18, which serves as Saints Golf’s unofficial clubhouse – are invested in watching the students develop in confidence, achieve success, and create lifelong friendships.
For the young golfers, there’s the bonus of gaining real-world exposure to a luxury hospitality environment, helping to bridge the gap between education and industry.
“Year after year, that sense of purpose is what keeps us involved,” says Seamus. “Hospitality is ultimately about creating memorable experiences and leaving a positive legacy. Supporting Saints Golf is simply another way of living those values, and we’re immensely proud to continue that journey together.”
Investing in future success
A long-time golfer himself, and with years of experience working in the industry, Jim knows just what’s required to succeed in modern golf, and he’s only too happy to play his part in driving that success. “Investing in infrastructure and people is essential,” he says. “While it’s the players that deliver results, their supporting environment requires significant funding. From our standpoint, we’re delighted to be aligned with an organisation that has become synonymous with success. The golf students carry themselves so impressively wherever they compete, and we feel very privileged that they will represent us across the golfing world, including as far away as Japan, in the 2026–27 season.”
That theme of investment in the community, in young people, in sport, and in the future underpins Seamus’ message to other businesses considering supporting student sport at St Andrews. “Don’t look at it as sponsorship,” he says. “Saints Golf is developing the next generation of leaders, ambassadors and professionals who will shape the future of golf, tourism and hospitality. By supporting the programme, you’re not only helping talented young people reach their potential, but you’re also strengthening the wider community and safeguarding the reputation of St Andrews as the Home of Golf.”
He adds: “Every business benefits from a thriving local community and a strong pipeline of talented, passionate individuals. If every local business contributed in whatever way it could, the collective impact would be extraordinary – not just for the students, but for the town as a whole.”
Stefano’s advice for prospective supporters is to “do it for the right reasons”. “Partnerships like this are about much more than having your name attached to something,” he says. “ You’re supporting young people, building relationships locally, and investing in something that matters to the town.”
Jim highlights the partner experience: “The welcome and energy we received have been incredible. As an alumnus, it is also deeply rewarding to give back to the place that gave me so much in an earlier part of my life. This is far from a donation. The business value we get from Saints Golf is unmatched, and that makes supporting my alma mater even more special.”
Together, the support of Rusacks St Andrews, Connoisseur Golf and Clarets is helping Saints Golf to provide exceptional opportunities for student-athletes, ensuring the programme continues to thrive both on and off the course.
For more information about supporting Saints Golf, contact Elaine McBride, Golf Partnership Officer, at [email protected]. You can keep up with all the latest news and successes on the Saints Sport news page.